COVID-19 and the ‘Ethics of Disruption’
Current Dilemmas Facing Longitudinal Research in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Abstract
This paper draws on recent experiences from the Young Lives study to discuss some of the ethical and practical challenges facing longitudinal cohort studies in low- and middle-income countries in the time of coronavirus. We argue that COVID-19 has instigated an ‘ethics of disruption’ for social researchers across the world, and for longitudinal cohort studies like Young Lives, this requires navigating three core considerations: first, managing research relationships and reciprocity within an observational study design; second, maintaining methodological continuity and consistency across time; and third, balancing an immediate short-term response to COVID-19 against the longer-term perspective. We refer to the study’s plan to implement a new COVID-19 phone survey to illustrate how the team are navigating this altered ethical terrain.
Citation
Crivello, G.; Favara, M. (2020), “COVID-19 and the ‘Ethics of Disruption’: Current Dilemmas Facing Longitudinal Research in Low- and Middle-Income Countries”. Preprints 2020, 2020060262 (doi: 10.20944/preprints202006.0262.v1).