Minimising harm

In this video, user researchers discuss the importance of safeguarding participants in user research.

What is harm?

In any kind of research, the most important thing is to minimise harm. This is the fundamental meaning of ethics in research.

Harm can happen in many different ways. Researchers can cause harm to participants by being insensitive when dealing with difficult topics or by revealing personal information that puts them in danger. Harm could be caused if research requires participants to travel to a dangerous area, or to expose themselves to illness by meeting in person. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, lots of user research is now conducted online or through video calls for that reason.

As an ethical researcher, you should think about the nature of your research, your participants, and reflect on how you can design your research to minimise the risk of causing any distress or harm to participants.

Things to consider to minimise harm

When researching sensitive topics, it is important to make sure that you are using the right language.

There are times that we do not anticipate that certain topics or questions may cause distress or offence, but even if you do not think the topic is sensitive, it is important that your language does not cause harm or distress. It is helpful to have input from a subject matter expert (SME), co-design group or relevant support worker to ensure that your questions are correctly worded. This will mean that your research is more effective and efficient as well as ensure that you avoid language that is misleading, offensive or inflammatory.

You should be sensitive to your participant’s responses to your questions. If your participant shows signs of discomfort, you could consider rephrasing questions, taking a break, rescheduling the session or ending the research early.

Transparency

It is important that all participants in your research know exactly who you are and why you are conducting your research.

At the start and end of the research, you should remind the user that their participation is voluntary and they are able to withdraw their consent should they change their mind about participation. This includes being able to withdraw consent after the research session – we will learn more about this in the next step.

You should also make sure your participant is able to contact you if they have follow-up questions or concerns and you should share any relevant support resources with them, especially if your topic has the potential to be distressing.

Observers

Observers in research sessions are there for several reasons. They can support the researcher in practical ways, such as by taking notes, and it is also an effective way to involve other team members in research. Sometimes the team need to see how users are interacting with the thing they have built before they will believe it!

Observers are also witnesses. It can be very helpful to have the perspective of someone who actually saw something when trying to analyse research sessions data. This also helps mitigate bias.

Observers should be well-briefed on their role. For sensitive research, you could consider limiting the number of observers present in the session.

Safeguarding

According to NHS England, safeguarding is the protection of a person’s health, wellbeing, and right to live in safety, free from harm, abuse and neglect.

Researchers are required to report instances where they become aware of:

• a risk of harm to a child or vulnerable person
• an immediate, serious risk to the participant’s safety
• an immediate, serious risk to the safety of others

During research, it is important that the whole team works to minimise harm and ensure there are proper safeguarding measures in place.

We can do this by ensuring our research is conducted in a safe, inclusive and protective environment, preparing our research carefully and being ready to act on a safeguarding concern.

In government, user research can involve very sensitive topics, such as illness, disabilities, bereavements, citizenship or refugee status, and many more.

This is why it is important that all researchers are aware of safeguarding and harm reduction. Even if you think your research does not involve a sensitive topic, you can never know what is going on in someone’s life or what might come up during a research session.

Main types of safeguarding risks

There are 3 main types of safeguarding risks in research that you should consider in your planning and prepare to manage in your research.

Firstly, the risk of causing the participant and others harm in research settings, which occurs if the location you choose to conduct your research in is, or becomes, unsafe.

Secondly, the risk of harm being disclosed or identified in research settings. For example, this could be a young child revealing that they are left home alone for long periods of time or a researcher overhearing aggressive and abusive language towards a participant during a video call.

Thirdly, direct risks posed by health conditions. This could be transmission of an illness, such as COVID-19, during a research session.

It is important you know the right protocols to follow ahead of your research, in the case that you need to escalate a safeguarding concern.

You should familiarise yourself with the contact details of the appropriate safeguarding lead for your users. Preparing this ahead of research will help you act as quickly as necessary, without searching for guidance or contact details once you are aware of the risk. This might be a manager or a support worker.

If you are unsure who an appropriate safeguarding lead could be, work with your team and SMEs to identify the correct route before starting your research.

Finally, agree a protocol for the steps you will take to manage the research session, document any safeguarding concerns and process of escalation to your safeguarding lead.

Task

Take a moment to reflect on the importance of minimising harm and safeguarding. Were you aware of different types of harm? What sort of safeguards do you think it is important to have during research?

Share your thoughts with other learners in the comments below.