Research Ethics

The Department for Cultural and Social Anthropology offers a Research Ethics Screening to all research staff of the Department as well as to all PhD students within the framework of the FÖP (Fakultätsöffentliche Präsentation).

It is designed to encourage researchers to reflect carefully on the ethical aspects of their project before they start collecting data.

To take advantage of the Research Ethics Screening, please complete the Research Ethics Screening (see below). Please submit your application at least one month before the start of your data collection. Your submission will then be forwarded to the research ethics team based at the Department to discuss the ethical aspects of your research project. Within four weeks you will receive feedback as to whether you may proceed with your research under the given circumstances or whether a revision or second assessment by the Ethics Committee of the University of Vienna is still necessary.

Research Ethics Screening

The Faculty of Social Sciences has created an Reserach Ethics Screening Tool that researchers are free to use (univie log in required; after logging in please go to "online self-assessment"). It uses a department specific questionnaire (univie log in required; after logging in please go to "Department specifics") that has been adapted to ethnographic research.

The Research Ethics Screening is a compulsory part of the FÖP. All persons preparing for the FÖP must complete the process in form of the Pre-screening for PhD projects (univie log in required). We would recommend to start this project early in the preparation for the FÖP. The questionnaire will only be accessible to the FÖP committee, but will not be automatically forwarded to the Institutional Review Board. Should you desire a formal ethics vote on your PhD project, please make sure to go through the standard Research Ethics Screening after having passed your FÖP and before starting data collection.

Institutional Review Board

The Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology is represented in the Institutional Review Board of the Faculty of Social Sciences (univie log in required; after logging in please go to "Institutional Review Board").

Ethnographic Data Archive

The Ethnographic Data Archive – a cooperation of the University Library Vienna and the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology – provides advice and support to PhD students and researchers on questions of research data management, including ethics in working with research data.

 Resources and Literature

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