Ethical Considerations in Academic Research

Authors

Dr. Saidatul Akmar Zainal Abidin

Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Shah Alam (Malaysia)

Article Information

DOI: 10.47772/IJRISS.2026.100800189

Subject Category: Research

Volume/Issue: 10/8 | Page No: 2740-2746

Publication Timeline

Submitted: 2026-08-16

Accepted: 2026-08-21

Published: 2026-08-29

Abstract

Ethics is a set of moral principles or moral values often an important consideration in academic research. We need to rule out any potential misconduct either with the scientific method or the way results are presented to the people (M.I.T.D., Correia, 2023). In the past, work ethics can involve setting up in-person coffee meetings instead of virtual catch-ups; using snail mail for important documents, rather than emails/WhatsApp/Telegram, etc, and taking real breaks for a breather or stretching, and not just screen switches; these are among the many ways in which work habits used to be carried out, yet produce results. In social science, the objectives of human research typically involve gaining insights into real-world phenomena, examining effective treatments, and exploring behaviours to improve lives; what you research and how it is conducted involve ethical considerations (Pritha Bhandari, 2021). According to Benny Ang (from Elsevier, 2025), authorship, competing interest, plagiarism, simultaneous submission, research fraud, salami slicing, and the use of Generative AI are the most common unethical acts; plagiarism being the most common. The need to understand and uphold ethics in scientific research is pertinent in today’s scientific community. The rapid advancement of technology and science raises ethical questions about privacy, consent, and the potential long-term impacts on society and its environment (Miteu, G.D, 2024).

Keywords

ethics, ethical considerations, ethical practices, ethical principles

Downloads

References

1. Alfaro-Núñez, A. (2022). Deceiving scientific research, misconduct events are possibly a more common practice than foreseen. Environmental Sciences Europe, 34(76). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12302-022-00659-3 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

2. Ang, B., Ph.D. Customer Consultant, SEA Region at Elsevier, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia. https://www.linkedin.com/in/bennyang1984/ [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

3. Bak, H. J. (2018). Research Misconduct in East Asia’s Research Environments. East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal, 12(2), 117–122. https://doi.org/10.1215/18752160-6577620 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

4. Bergonia, R. L., Baricante, D., & Ilustre, R. G. (2022). Ethics in Conducting Research in Second Language Acquisition. International Journal of English Language Studies, 4(3), 35-38. https://doi.org/10.32996/ijels.2022.4.3.5 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

5. Cronqvist, M. (2025). Research Ethics in Swedish Dissertations in Educational Science – A Matter of Confusion. Journal of Academic Ethics, 23, 243–258 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-024-09540-9 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

6. Han, Junhui & Li, Zhengfeng. (2018). How Metrics-Based Academic Evaluation Could Systematically Induce Academic Misconduct: A Case Study. East Asian Science Technology and Society: An International Journal, 12(2). DOI:10.1215/18752160-4275144 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

7. Hanapi, Normadiana & Ab Rani, Nur Izzati & Kamal, Mohd. (2023). A Study of Common Unethical Practices and Challenges to Complying with a Code of Conduct Among Professionals in the Malaysian Construction Industry. International Journal of Innovation and Industrial Revolution. 5 (13), 28-39. https://doi.org/10.35631/ijirev.513004 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

8. Kim, Myungsim & Kim, Jongyoung & Bak, Hee-Je. (2018). Between Fraud and Hope: Stem Cell Research in Korea after the Hwang Affair. East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal, 12(2). DOI:10.1215/18752160-4201055 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

9. Meier, G., van der Voet, P. B. & Tian, Y. (2024) Research Ethics in a Multilingual World: A Guide to Reflecting on Language Decisions in All Disciplines. Diametros, 21 (80), 38-58. https://doi.org/10.33392/diam.1926. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

10. Mueller, G. & Baniya, A. (2024). ‘Caring’ Through Translation: A Dialogue on Ethics and Inclusivity in Cross-Language Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. 23. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069241256280. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

11. Olesen, A. P., Amin, L., & Mahadi, Z. (2018). Researchers experience of misconduct in research in Malaysian higher education institutions. Accountability in Research, 25(3), 125–141. https://doi.org/10.1080/08989621.2018.1429925 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

12. Ramrathan, L., Le Grange, L., & Shawa, L. B. (2017). Ethics in Educational Research. Education Studies for Initial Teacher Education, 432-443. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Lester-Shawa/publication/312069857_Ethics_in_educational_research/links/586e0b9f08ae6eb871bcf47c/Ethics-in-educational-research.pdf [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

13. Zimmer, M. (2010). "But the data is already public": On the ethics of research in Facebook. Ethics and Information Technology. 12, 313-325. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-010-9227-5. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

Metrics

Views & Downloads

Similar Articles