BY AMY LAWTON, SOCIAL RESEARCH AND INFORMATION OFFICER, WESTIR LIMITED
Research and evaluation has increasingly been undertaken in the not-for-profit (NFP) sector in recent decades. This is mainly due to funding bodies, whether from government or other sources, adopting an ‘evidence-based approach’ and requiring programs and services to demonstrate outcomes, value and impact as a means of securing ongoing funding.
As NFP research and evaluation has evolved, practitioners working in the field have found themselves facing a number of challenges. One of these issues is ensuring that their research and evaluation processes are ethical.
Therefore, the aim of this guide is to help NFP organisations and professionals understand what they need to consider to ensure that their research and evaluation processes are ethical. The guide covers a range of areas including:
- Key concepts in research and evaluation ethics
- Current ethical issues in NFP research and evaluation
- Working ethically with community groups
The guide also provides an ‘ethics checklist’ developed by WESTIR Limited to help NFP professionals put these value-based judgements into practice throughout their research and evaluation processes.
