‘Text- work’ in research ethics review : the significance of an institutional ethics review document in and beyond committee meetings

Morton, JW

Abstract

This article analyzes how a formal text (the Ethics Review Form) available at National Health Service Research Ethics Committees (NHSRECs) in the UK was used in meetings. Derived from the work of Dorothy Smith on incorporating texts into institutional ethnography (IE), it proposes the concept of ‘text work’ as a way into understanding more about decision-making in ethics review and the extent to which this formal text shaped and influenced their review work. The research study used observations of committee meetings, field-notes and interviews to produce an ethnographic mapping of RECs’ work. This article draws on one aspect of the research which was the process of isolating a particular, ubiquitous text and analysing how it worked and was worked on the meetings. The analysis contributes to contemporary discussion offering an alternative to ongoing debates about idealised ways of conducting ethics review. Finally, some tentative suggestions are made about improving training, based on and starting from the work which reviewers undertake.

Citation

Morton, J. (2018). ‘Text- work’ in research ethics review : the significance of an institutional ethics review document in and beyond committee meetings. Accountability in research, 25(7-8), 387-403. https://doi.org/10.1080/08989621.2018.1537790

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 15, 2018
• Online Publication Date: Oct 22, 2018
• Publication Date: Oct 22, 2018
• Deposit Date: Oct 29, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 22, 2019
• Journal: Accountability in Research
• Print ISSN: 0898-9621
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• Volume: 25
• Issue: 7-8
• Pages: 387-403
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/08989621.2018.1537790
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/08989621.2018.1537790
• Additional Information: Additional Information : This article reports on part of a larger-scale ethnographic mapping of research ethics regulation in England. The use of institutional ethnography is a novel methodology to use to explore the work of Research Ethics Committees (RECs). This article looks at how a particular document is 'worked on' in meetings and provides insights which show how this work has significant and extensive reach - beyond the everyday context of REC meetings.