A research note: Using ethics memoranda of understanding in community-based research

Abstract

Because university-based research ethics committees tend to focus on ethical dilemmas common in biomedical research in laboratory settings, a growing number of researchers and community-based organizations have articulated the need for alternatives to such committees in community-based research. While there is a robust academic literature on ethical dilemmas in such social research, there remains a need for practical tools to use in collaborations between communities and researchers. In this research note, I present potential memoranda of understanding between academics and communities that might be used when formal community-based research ethics committees do not exist. I focus on two hypothetical scenarios, in which a researcher works with an established group or organization, and in which a researcher is just one of several researchers working with the same community. I forward a framework that conceptualizes researchers as critical friends of communities in their research, highlighting questions of emotional labor, community benefits, and what I call generative conflicts. I hope that researchers and community-based organizations find this note to be a useful starting point for constructive dialogs on reciprocity in community-based research.