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Navigating ethical challenges in online wildlife trade research

Morcatty, Thais Q; Su, Shan; Siriwat, Penthai; Andersson, Astrid Alex; Atoussi, Sadek; Feddema, Kim; Henriques, Sergio; ... Roberts, David L; + view all (2024) Navigating ethical challenges in online wildlife trade research. Conservation Biology , 38 (5) , Article e14341. 10.1111/cobi.14341. Green open access

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Abstract

The surge in internet accessibility has transformed wildlife trade by facilitating the acquisition of wildlife through online platforms. This scenario presents unique ethical challenges for researchers, as traditional ethical frameworks for in-person research cannot be readily applied to the online realm. Currently, there is a lack of clearly defined guidelines for appropriate ethical procedures when conducting online wildlife trade (OWT) research. In response to this, we consulted the scientific literature on ethical considerations in online research and examined existing guidelines established by professional societies and ethical boards. Based on these documents, we present a set of recommendations that can inform the development of ethically responsible OWT research. Key ethical challenges in designing and executing OWT research include the violation of privacy rights, defining subjects and illegality, and the risk of misinterpretation or posing risks to participants when sharing data. Potential solutions include considering participants' expectations of privacy, defining when participants are authors versus subjects, understanding the legal and cultural context, minimizing data collection, ensuring anonymization, and removing metadata. Best practices also involve being culturally sensitive when analyzing and reporting findings. Adhering to these guidelines can help mitigate potential pitfalls and provides valuable insights to editors, researchers, and ethical review boards, enabling them to conduct scientifically rigorous and ethically responsible OWT research to advance this growing field.

Type: Article
Title: Navigating ethical challenges in online wildlife trade research
Location: United States
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1111/cobi.14341
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cobi.14341
Language: English
Additional information: © 2024 The Author(s). Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Keywords: e-commerce, ethics, informed consent, internet, IWT, privacy, social media, wildlife trafficking
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Dept of Geography
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10197001
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