IHMJ1203 Research Ethics for Philosophers (3–5 cr)

This course is situated in the national Findocnet Moodle environment. Participants can do it remotely and at their own pace. The focus is in ethical questions that are important for philosophical research. The national Responsible Conduct of Research code (TENK) is introduced as well as official violations and procedures relating to it. The local guidelines of the University of Jyväskylä are introduced. Also, the ethical questions relating the following themes are explored: research funding, authorship, journals and supervision. Representatives of other disciplines than philosophy can participate if they use methods of a similar kind. This course is ideal for researchers who do not conduct empirical research but work with texts and theories and do conceptual analysis.

Contents:

-The influence of different ethical approaches (e.g. Aristotelian ethics, Kantian ethics and utilitarianism) on how the nature of research ethics is understood.
-Ethical questions relating to philosophical writing
-Professional conduct and Responsible Conduct of Research code (TENK)
-Social and political questions related to philosophical research (e.g. the relation to politics and gender)
-Practical questions: research funding, authorship, journals and supervision
-The guidelines of University of Jyväskylä 

• Participants are able to recognise and analyse key ethical questions of philosophical research

• Participants recognise and understand key ethical principles guiding research in general

• Participants understand the Finnish Responsible Conduct of Research guidelines, processes for dealing with research misconduct, and processes for applying research license or ethical review.

• Participants are able to Identify rights and responsibilities as a researcher.

• Participants gain a deeper understanding about the ethical questions and challenges of their own research project.

• Participants understand how ethical decisions and choices influence society and research community. 

To complete the course and get 3 ECTS, participants are required to:

• actively engage with the course materials,

• do both the pre- and post-assignment,

• answer essay assignments associated with most topics. Each essay should be about 2-3 pages long and there are 5 of them altogether. Both online and file upload answers are possible.

• familiarize themselves with the local guidelines and institutions.

To get 5 ECTS and/or personal feedback to one’s research project, participants are required to do the 3 ECTS version of the course and have a presentation in a workshop.