Ethics in Contemporary Ethnographic Research  Changes On Branch 196dad01848b9c64

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# Assignment 1: Data Walk

Due date
: April 26 (end of day)

The goal of this assignment is to sensitize you to the ways in which data is continually produced in contemporary social settings. In another context we might talk about the *opportunities* this holds for social researchers, many of whom have welcomed the "data deluge" as an opportunity to invent new ways of knowing the social. In the context of this class, however, we will mostly discuss its ethical implications---the ways in which the research process is shot through with ethical concerns when it takes place in data-saturated environments.

Canadian media scholar [Alison Powell](https://www.alisonpowell.ca/?page_id=71) came up with the idea for **data walkshops** with the express purpose of "opening up civic discussions about data and its ethics within urban space." A variation on the ethnographic go-along method, it has been adopted by scholars around the world, including the [Centre for BOLD Cities](https://www.centre-for-bold-cities.nl/projects/data-walks) in our own region.

Powell describes the data walkshop as "a radically bottom-up process of exploring and defining data, big data and data politics from the perspectives of groups of citizens, who walk, observe, discuss and record connections between data, processes of datafication, and the places that they live in" (p. 213). In this assignment, you will plan, carry out and report on a data walk. Each student will submit **a brief report** (around 800 words) with supporting materials such as maps, photographs and notes taken en route. While we take inspiration from Powell's format (also succinctly discussed in [this interview][powell-interview]), we make a few modifications. We trust the assignment description that follows is detailed enough, but please let us know if you have any further questions.

During the walk, you will focus on _data hubs_: objects or sites that collect data. Examples include customer loyalty cards, ATMs, traffic cameras, RIFD tracking systems, OV chip card scanners, QR codes, parking meters, air quality meters, but the list could go on and on.

A data walk should involve participants, each taking on a different role, such as navigator, note-taker or photographer. For the purposes of this assignment, you should involve at least one other person, meaning you will complete it in pairs. You are free to involve more people, but only if that doesn't cause you extra work or delays. Your participant could be a roommate or a family member (not a fellow CADS student, but somebody coming to the walk with a different perspective).

Plan your walk someplace convenient, for instance in your own neighborhood, and restrict it to about one hour. You should make at least a rough plan for your walk ahead of time. Most importantly, remember these questions from Powell's summary, and try to set yourself up for an affirmative answer: "Can [these activities] provoke joy, curiosity and engagement? New ways to tell stories and new ways of thinking about why data matters?"

You may also ride by bike, but we advise not to drive unless you or your participant is unable to be mobile in other ways.

Your report should address the planning, execution and your reflection on the data walk. You may take the following points as a guide as you complete the assignment:

1. **Plan your walking route ahead of time.** Make a map or list some landmarks you intend to pass on your walk.
2. **What will you look for?** Which data hubs do you expect to encounter along the way?
3. **Collect evidence.** Take pictures or bring back objects from your walk.
4. **Tell a story.** Why did you walk where you walked? What was an important thread that you decided to follow? What did you learn about your environment? Did the other participant in your walkshop see things differently?
5. **Discuss the results.** How visible are the data hubs you spotted? What kinds of data do they collect? Who owns the data? Where are they stored? What value might they bring to you or others? What do you think are the "costs" of data collection---in terms of the technology required for its collection, the likely environmental impact, encroachments on privacy, or possible "chilling effects"?

Please write your report in clear and coherent prose. Use proper references as needed.

Here's hoping your walk is stimulating and sunny! ☀️

[powell-interview]: https://doi.org/10.18146/2213-7653.2018.371 "Alison Powell on Data Walking"

# Assignment 2: Care Manuals for Ethnography

Due date
: May 17 (end of day)

Working in groups of up to four students, you will design and produce **a care, maintenance or repair manual** for ethnographic research. This assignment encourages you to use your creativity and to experiment with ways of presenting and explaining concepts touched on in this course for a wider public.

The manuals are intended to be public-facing resources for other ethnographers, so you will create your manual in such a way that it will be useful to others like you wondering what kinds of practices they can adopt in the course of ethnographic research to respond to emerging dilemmas, protect themselves and research participants, secure data, and otherwise ensure that their research is ethical. We will discuss possible topics during tutorials in [week 3](../weeks/3.md).

After you have created your manual, you will [choose a Creative Commons license](https://creativecommons.org/choose/) under which to release your work to the public. Submit your assignment, preferably as a single PDF, through Brightspace. Making hard copies to distribute to your friends is optional but encouraged!

## Resources

Care, maintenance or repair manuals come in all kinds of formats. Aside from basic information about the thing being cared for, common elements include:

- bulleted lists
- checklists
- flowcharts
- diagrams
- step-by-step instructions
- recommendations for tools and instructions for their use

Manuals combine technical communication with intercultural awareness of the needs of the audience. They have to find a balance between, on the one hand, providing enough information to be helpful (or else risk knowledge gaps) and, on the other hand, maximalism (which may be overwhelming, lead to resignation, and create a hierarchy between the more or less technically competent). Will your group be able to find the right balance?

For inspiration regarding the **form** of your manual, consult the following projects:

- [Manuals + Guides](https://www.are.na/shannon-mattern/manuals-guides)
- [The Manual Library](https://archive.org/details/manuals)
- [Step by Step: Thinking Through and Beyond the Repair Manual](https://placesjournal.org/article/step-by-step-repair-manuals-political-ecology)
- [Academic Repair Manual](https://redesigningacademy.wordsinspace.net/spring2022/academic-repair-manual/)
- [Debt Resistor's Manual](https://strikedebt.org/drom/)
- [Dish of the Day: Digital Care Meal](https://pratododia.org/en/) (*Prato do Dia*)
- [Read the Feminist Manual](https://psaroskalazines.gr/zines/RTFM/)
- [A Rough Guide to Bicycle Maintenance](https://cpezine.omeka.net/items/show/7)
- [Bicycle Maintenance Zine](https://neighborhoodanarchists.org/bike-maintenance-zine/)
- [How to Darn Your Clothes](https://iffybooks.net/darning/) 
- [iFixit Repair Guides](https://www.ifixit.com/Guide)

You can consult work by preceding cohorts of students in this course for inspiration regarding the **content** of your manual:

- [Zines](https://archive.org/details/@j_boy/lists/1/ecer?sort=date) by former ECER students
- [Zines and other resources](https://www.jboy.space/blog/hacking-ethnography.html) by former ECER students

# Assignment 3: Essay Question

Due date
: May 31 (end of day)

This assignment consists of **an essay question** that will be posted to Brightspace in the final week of May. In your answer to this question, you will have the chance to demonstrate what you have learned about ethical issues contemporary ethnographers face and ways they can respond practically. Successful answers will make connections between the course content (lectures, readings, and discussions in tutorials) and _Dealing in Desire_.

# Frequently Anticipated Questions

## How much work is this class?

ECER is a class of 5 EC, which corresponds to 140 hours of work total. That means that, in addition to attending lectures and tutorials, you should plan on spending an average of 12 hours per week on readings, homework, and assignments.

## What will we work on?

According to the official [course listing][], you will be able to do the following when our time together comes to a close:

1. Critically reflect on ethical dilemmas presented by various kinds of materials gathered in ethnographic research.
2. Apply ethical principles and practical skills to process data in a way that is accountable to academic norms and codes of professional conduct.
3. Understand how power and knowledge are related in social scientific inquiry.
4. Articulate how computational approaches and new forms of data both integrate with and call into question the practice of ethnographic research.

We designed the lectures, tutorials and assignments and chose the readings with these objectives in mind.

## Is attendance mandatory?

Attendance during lectures is voluntary but strongly advised. Participation in tutorials is obligatory. You may miss one session, but your tutorial instructor may ask you to complete an additional assignment to make up for the missed session. Students who miss more than one session without valid reasons will have a penalty of half a grade point applied to their final grade.

## What is my grade based on?

Assessment in this class is based on three assignments:

1. Your [research report](assignments/1.md) on a data walk (50 percent).
2. Your [group contribution](assignments/2.md) to the Care Manuals collection (pass/fail, 10 percent).
3. Your answers to [essay questions](assignments/3.md) relating the course content to _Dealing in Desire_ (40 percent).

We will discuss all three assignments during tutorials and lectures.

## Can I retake any assignments?

Yes, if you do not pass an assignment after making an honest first attempt, you are entitled to a retake. If you think you will not be able to submit an assignment by the deadline, please let us know well in advance and/or consult the study advisor. We will require you to appeal to the exam board before we can allow you to retake an assignment for which you did not submit a first attempt.

## What happens if I don't pass this course?

Completing this course is required to register for the second-year courses Fieldwork NL, Research Preparation, and Multivariate Analysis. If you do not earn a passing grade, that may result in a delay in your studies. If you are worried about your progress, please do not hesitate to reach out to the course coordinator and study advisor.

## Can I redo any of the assignments?

In accordance with Institute and Faculty policies, you can redo an assignment if your overall grade is lower than 5.5. Your revised assignment will need to be a noticeable improvement over your original assignment to be considered for an improved grade. Be sure to incorporate any feedback provided on your first attempt.

Revised assignments will be due within two weeks after the grades for assignment 3 have been published. If you decide to redo an assignment at that point, please let the course coordinator know which one you intend to redo.

## How should I format my assignments?

Assignments 1 and 3 should follow the Institute's Style Guide, employ consistent references, and include a list of works cited. Aim to write clear prose, using paragraphs and subheadings to organize your writing. Use your creativity in assignment 2---no formal criteria apply (though you should still make sure to credit your sources!).

## I'm a pre-master's student, what can *I* hope to get out of this class?

We will tailor tutorial discussions to issues you are likely to encounter as a master's student.

## Your question here!

Got more questions? [Contact us](index.md#instructors) and we'll do our best to clear everything up!

[course listing]: https://studiegids.universiteitleiden.nl/en/courses/118801

# ECER

## Course Information

This course revolves around data: what it consists of, what it can say and do, how to handle it responsibly, who defines it and who is defined by it. In our approach to each of these questions, we will combine ethical reflection with practical application of skills and tools. We will pay special attention to new forms of data generated in and by digital technologies, which are now nearly ubiquitous in ethnographic field sites and our own research practice.

Code
: 6491av2et

ECTS
: 5.0

Level
: 100

Period
: Semester 2, Block 4

## Instructors

| Name                  | Email                                   |
|-----------------------|-----------------------------------------|
| [John Boy, PhD][jboy] | <j.d.boy@fsw.leidenuniv.nl>             |
| Anna Notsu            | <a.notsu@fsw.leidenuniv.nl>             |
| Suzanne Naafs         | <s.naafs@fsw.leidenuniv.nl>             |
| Tim van de Meerendonk | <t.van.de.meerendonk@fsw.leidenuniv.nl> |
| Tommie Lambregts      | <t.j.a.m.lambregts@fsw.leidenuniv.nl>   |

## Dates

|      week       | theme                                          | lecture             | tutorials | due                              |
|:---------------:|------------------------------------------------|---------------------|-----------|----------------------------------|
| [1](weeks/1.md) | Contemporary Ethnography and the Ethics Regime | Apr 11, 9:15--11:00 | Apr 15    |                                  |
| [2](weeks/2.md) | Data, Data Everywhere                          | Apr 18, 9:15--11:00 | Apr 22    | [Assignment 1](assignments/1.md) |
| [3](weeks/3.md) | How to Care about Ethics                       | Apr 25, 9:15--11:00 | Apr 29    |                                  |
| [4](weeks/4.md) | Data Management in Action                      | May  2, 9:15--11:00 | May 13    | [Assignment 2](assignments/2.md) |
| [5](weeks/5.md) | The Open Imperative                            | May 16, 9:15--11:00 | **none**  |                                  |
| [6](weeks/6.md) | Standpoint, Representation, Embodiment         | May 23, 9:15--11:00 | **none**  | [Assignment 3](assignments/3.md) |

<small>Please consult [MyTimetable 🐓][rooster] for the schedule of your tutorial sessions.</small>

## Readings

The **required book** for this class is Kimberly Kay Hoang's _Dealing in Desire_ (University of California Press, 2015). It is available electronically through the university library catalog. You will read this book at your own pace, aiming to complete it in time for [assignment 3](assignments/3.md).

Unless available through the university library catalog, other **required and supplementary readings** will be [available for download][readings-link].

## Academic Integrity

This class adheres to Leiden University's [regulations on academic integrity][plagiarism-rules]. According to the university, "Plagiarism is understood as presenting, intentionally or otherwise, someone else's words, thoughts, analyses, argumentations, pictures, techniques, computer programmes, etc., as your own work."

We will refer **all suspected violations** of these regulations to the examination committee. Be careful to **properly cite** all works you draw on in your assignments. The University Library offers [tutorials and advice][lib-tutorials] on what and how to cite.

## Changes

This syllabus is a living document and may be adapted as the course progresses. You can keep track of changes in the [timeline][].

[jboy]: https://www.jboy.space
[lib-tutorials]: https://www.library.universiteitleiden.nl/students/citing
[plagiarism-rules]: https://www.organisatiegids.universiteitleiden.nl/en/regulations/general/plagiarism
[readings-link]: https://surfdrive.surf.nl/files/index.php/s/y6OE06i358Tb9h7
[rooster]: https://rooster.universiteitleiden.nl
[timeline]: https://code.jboy.space/ecer/timeline

# Week 1

## Lecture

Location
: PdlC SC01

Readings
: - Mutaru (2018)
- Le Guin (1973)

Contemporary ethnographic research continues the tradition of ethnographic inquiry in anthropology and sociology, but has some distinguishing characteristics. We will discuss the past and present of ethnographic research and how at every stage it involves decisions where ethical concerns are at stake, forcing us to ask what "the good" is in society and how we are meant to act. Further, we will cover the current research ethics regime, where it comes from, what it entails, what it looks like in practice, and why it is at times contested.

## Tutorial

Homework
: - Find the ethics code of an anthropological or sociological association in your home country or region and read it with Mutaru (2018) at the back of your mind. Some examples:
[Netherlands](https://antropologen.nl/abv/ethical-guidelines/) (anthropology),
[Netherlands](https://www.nsv-sociologie.nl/?page_id=3697) (sociology),
[Brazil](https://portal.abant.org.br/codigo-de-etica/),
[Britain](https://www.therai.org.uk/about-the-rai/ethical-policy),
[Czechia](https://www.narodopisnaspolecnost.cz/index.php/o-nas/eticky-kodex-cns),
[Germany](https://www.dgska.de/en/ethics/),
[Mexico](https://ceasmexico.wordpress.com/ceas/codigo-de-etica/),
[Norway](https://www.antropologi.org/feef),
[Philippines](https://www.ugat-aghamtao.org/constitution-and-bylaws),
[South Africa](https://www.asnahome.org/about-asna/ethical-guidelines),
[United States](https://americananthro.org/about/anthropological-ethics/),
and [more](https://waunet.org/wcaa/members/wcaa-members-associations/).
- Ask yourself: How well do you think the code would guide you when dealing with emerging ethical dilemmas in the course of fieldwork? Jot down some notes.
- *For pre-master's students:* Install the [Dilemma Game][] app and familiarize yourself with it.

[Dilemma Game]: https://www.eur.nl/en/about-eur/policy-and-regulations/integrity/research-integrity/dilemma-game

# Week 2

## Lecture

Location
: PdlC SC01

Readings
: - Bratich (2017)
- Thomas-Hébert (2019)
- Mejias and Couldry (2019)

Whether we like it or not, we live in data-saturated environments. The lecture will present concepts for thinking about this situation, introduce cases that illustrate risks that result for individuals and groups, and discuss some implications for the conduct of ethnographic research.

## Tutorial

Homework
: - Read Powell (2018) and think about how you can put her ideas into practice.
- Find a news article about a recent data breach, or visit the [GDPR Enforcement Tracker](https://www.enforcementtracker.com/) and read about the details of at least one violation that was sanctioned by authorities in the Netherlands, your home country (if GDPR applies there), or another country of your choice. Come prepared to discuss the details of the case you read about.

During tutorials, you will discuss and plan the [first assignment](../assignments/1.md).

# Week 3

## Lecture

Location
: PdlC SC01

Readings
: - King (2021)
- Mattern (2018)

We have discussed challenges we face as we want to conduct ethnographic research in an ethical manner in today's world. But what can we do as researchers to put ethical principles into practice? How can we avoid causing harm and protect those in the field, ourselves included? We will discuss ways in which "care" may provide a useful framework for putting ethics into practice. We will also discuss care as an example of an ethically rich and resonant research focus.

## Tutorial

During tutorials, you will discuss and plan the [second assignment](../assignments/2.md). This will require forming groups with two or three other students in your tutorial group and coming up with an idea for a manual.

Homework
: - Review some resources included in the description of [assignment 2](../assignments/2.md) and brainstorm some ideas for how you can practically relate the conduct of ethnography to care/repair/maintenance.

# Week 4

## Lecture

Location
: PdlC SC01

Reading
: - Jarzabkowski et al. (2014)

For this session we are honored to welcome Dr. **Andrew Hoffman**, the Faculty of Social Sciences data steward, who will speak from his vantage point about data management, its institutionalization and professionalization in contemporary academic research, its relation to ethnography---but especially what it looks like in practice and why it can be a helpful skill even if you don't intend to become an academic researcher.

About our guest speaker:

> [Andrew Hoffman](https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/staffmembers/andrew-hoffman) had an early career as a research data coordinator in academic cancer medicine before going on to complete a doctoral degree in sociology/social studies of medicine at McGill University. Over the course of two subsequent postdoctoral fellowships, Andrew studied and collaborated with researchers, data scientists, and software engineers on the development of new knowledge infrastructures, predominantly in the domain of translational science.
>
> Combining training as an ethnographer with dedication to user-centered design, Andrew aims to make data management policies and workflows legible, useful for, and responsive to the values and practices of social science researchers working across the methodological spectrum. As a Data Steward, his primary responsibility is to liaise with researchers and support staff in Cultural Anthropology & Development Sociology and the Centre for Science & Technology Studies (CWTS) to address research data management needs spanning the whole project lifecycle.

## Tutorial

During tutorials, you will have a chance to show what you are working on for assignment 2. You will also discuss ethical issues you might encounter as a researchers working in different contexts.

Homework
: - If possible, bring a hardcopy of your group assignment to your tutorial session (to the extent that you have completed it).
- Learn about the case of Mohammad Soroush by reading Rana (2019), and about the Crisis Text Line scandal by reading McNeil (2022). If you know of other cases of researcher misconduct, bring sources about them with you. Take some notes to prepare for a discussion in tutorials.
- Put some of this week's lessons about data management into action by rethinking how you organize your own files and folders. You have a [backup](https://www.worldbackupday.com/), right?

# Week 5

## Lecture

Location
: PdlC SC01

Readings
: - Fassin (2013) 
- Reyes (2017)
- Dilger et al. (2018)
- De Koning et al. (2019)

Researchers have a responsibility to address issues of public concern, and critical scholars in particular have the ambition of making public interventions. This requires finding formats for scholarly communication that can reach the public, but also resisting tendencies that enclose scholarly knowledge behind paywalls or within proprietary systems. In that sense, ethnographers are champions of opening up our work. The demand to be "open" can also be a challenge to those conducting critical research, particularly for ethnographers who are unable to share their data or be totally transparent about their research process. We will discuss a variety of ethical issues that are at stake in this tension.

**No tutorials this week.**

# Week 6

## Lecture

Location
: PdlC SC01

Readings
: - Hoang (2019)
- Reich (2021)
- Small (2015)

The final lecture will go into themes raised by _Dealing in Desire_, including questions of standpoint, embodiment, and representation in ethnography. We will also look at finalized group assignments together.

Following the lecture, you will have a chance to ask questions about [assignment 3](../assignments/3.md).

**No tutorials this week.**

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