Beyond formal ethics reviews: Reframing the potential harms of sexual violence research

Abstract

Given the recent surge of research about sexual violence, it is timely to revisit the role of ethics in this field. This article examines two key frameworks which govern ethics in sexual violence research: institutional risk management and trauma discourse. While recognising the importance of these frameworks, we argue that they share a narrow conceptualisation of the potential harms of sexual violence research. Drawing on the legacy of decades of feminist research on sexual violence, we call for a deeper engagement with ethical and epistemological questions of knowledge, positionality and power. We argue that researchers need to consider the broader social and political contexts that shape survivors’ lives and experiences of disclosure in undertaking ethical research. Sexual violence researchers must also consider the potential harms of their research on marginalised communities – from questioning who is included in research, to the implications of the responses to violence advocated for. Utilising insights from feminist, critical and intersectional traditions – and reflections on our own experiences as sexual violence researchers – we argue for ethical considerations to extend beyond risk management and medicalised trauma frameworks.