Entry requirements

180 credits. Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6.

Learning outcomes

After completion of this course the student is expected to be able to:

• Critically assess when the involvement of research participants is necessary and warranted.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the basic principles and standards of research ethics in peace and conflict research.
• Demonstrate knowledge of advanced topics in research ethics in peace and conflict research.
• Identify and assess relevant ethical problems associated with commonly used methodologies in peace and conflict research.
• Identify and assess strategies to minimise and mitigate ethical problems in peace and conflict research.
• Demonstrate knowledge about the challenges involved in research ethics.
• Independently solve assignments within allocated time.
• Communicate in English, in writing and/or orally.

Content

The course aims to familiarize students with state-of-the-art research and practice in research ethics. This includes basic principles and standards regarding the safety of research participants and the exhortation to do no harm, and their formalization in different institutionalized guidelines. It also includes advanced ethics topics; examples include (but are not restricted to) reflexivity and positionality, researcher related trauma, responsibilities vis-à-vis the research team, data security and other logistics, and research fatigue. The course covers all relevant forms of data collection which involves personal data, including fieldwork methodologies (e.g. interviews, focus groups, and participant observation); large-N studies (e.g. surveys and experimental work involving human participants); and desk studies which involve personal data absent consent (e.g. archival sources, court transcripts, and other reproduced materials).

Instruction

The course will be carried out through interactive seminars during which the students will present and discuss written submissions. The language of instruction is English.

Assessment

Examination and grading are based on the students' performance in the following areas: seminar assignments; active participation in seminars; and a final written assignment.

In order to receive the grade Pass (G), the student is required to:

• participate in all mandatory seminars and present a genuine attempt to solve all assignments before each seminar. Should a student fail to hand in a seminar assignment on time and/or be absent from a seminar, he/she will need to complete a replacement assignment in addition to the original assignment.
• receive a grade of Pass on the final written assignment.

The grading system has two grades: Pass (G); and Fail (U).

If there are special reasons for doing so, an examiner may make an exception from the method of assessment indicated and allow a student to be assessed by another method. An example of special reasons might be a certificate regarding special pedagogical support from the University's disability coordinator.

Uppsala University does not accept cheating and plagiarism. Suspected incidents of cheating or plagiarism are reported to the Vice-Chancellor, which may issue a formal warning to the student or suspend the student from studies for a certain period.