An embodied response: ethics and the nurse researcher

Area of Science:

• Qualitative Research Ethics
• Sociology of Health and Illness
• Nursing Practice

Background:

• Ethical considerations are paramount in qualitative research, particularly in observational studies within healthcare settings.
• Researchers' subjective experiences and embodied responses to ethical dilemmas are often underexplored.
• Situational ethics require ongoing reflection beyond pre-defined protocols.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore situational ethics in qualitative research through the lens of a researcher's embodied experiences.
• To analyze ethical challenges encountered during an observational study of Norwegian public health nursing.
• To reflect on the role of researcher's feelings (uncertainty, discomfort, responsibility) in ethical decision-making.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of field notes from an observational study on public health nursing.
• Presentation of four narrative excerpts detailing experienced ethical challenges.
• Philosophical reflection, incorporating Levinas' philosophy, on researcher's embodied responses.

Main Results:

• The researcher is an active participant, not a detached observer, in qualitative field research.
• Ethical challenges in field research are complex and may not have definitive solutions, necessitating acknowledgment.
• Embodied responses, such as feelings of vulnerability, signify the fundamental importance of ethics.

Conclusions:

• Ethical practice in qualitative research involves acknowledging and reflecting on embodied, subjective experiences.
• The researcher's vulnerability is an indicator of the ethical demands inherent in the research process.
• Situational ethics necessitate an ongoing, reflective engagement with the ethical dimensions of research practice.