ABSTRACT
Matters of research ethics often remain at a rather prosaic and procedural level of compliance with institutional safeguards. By contrast, this chapter places practical theological research within a ‘higher’ or ‘meta-level’ of thinking about the broad context, values, significance, and accountabilities that come from engaging in investigation that involves human situations and seeks to promote desirable change and transformation. It raises fundamental questions about the nature of the ‘goods’ that are being pursued in the course of research and the possible benefits or harms that might emerge as research proceeds. The chapter broadly follows the process of research from initial motivation, through research design and fieldwork, to analysis and presentation of data, and dissemination. At each stage, we present questions and issues that researchers will find useful to reflect upon in their pursuit of ‘the good’ in research.
