Mindfulness of Ethical Codes of Conduct in DIY Marketing Research Decisions: An Abstract

Abstract

Do-it-yourself (DIY) marketing applications (e.g., Survey Monkey, Google Forms) provide an easy to use set of tools for conducting marketing research in a convenient manner with rapid turnaround and low administration costs. However, while these DIY tools provide the mechanism through which to collect market research, they do not automatically come with the expertise to use these tools effectively. In particular, they potentially make it easier for novice DIY marketing researchers to create ethical dilemmas that professionals, by drawing upon their expertise and following their codes of conduct, would be more likely to avoid. The effectiveness of codes of conduct is well established within the literature for professional groups in improving ethical decision making. However, of critical concern is whether individuals are aware of the codes of conduct and if they recognize the ethical content of specific situations where principles in the code of conduct apply. For professionals, this is part of their socialization and professional obligations as members of professional societies, while for non-professional DIY researchers such codes and norms do not exist. Reminders in this context could serve as triggers for mindful consideration of the ethical content of the situation so they are both aware of the immediate concerns as well as the broader implications. Mindful individuals are more likely to act ethically, uphold ethical standards, and use principled approaches to ethical decision making. Mindfulness can be developed through training over an extended period or induced during brief episodic moments of reflection. This study proposes that for novice DIY researchers, (1) reviewing an abridged ethical code of conduct immediately before designing marketing research will reduce the number of ethical decision violations when compared to those with no code of conduct exposure and, (2) reviewing specific ethical guidelines embedded at key relevant points while designing marketing research will reduce the number of ethical violations when compared to those receiving an abridged code of conduct.