Ethical issues in empirical studies using student subjects: Re-visiting practices and perceptions

• Published in: Empirical software engineering : an international journal Vol. 26; no. 3
• Main Authors: Liebel, Grischa, Chakraborty, Shalini
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.05.2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Compilers; Computer Science; Ethics; Informed consent; Interpreters; Mapping; Programming Languages; Software engineering; Software Engineering/Programming and Operating Systems; Student participation; Students; Teachers; Ethics; Survey; Mapping study; Research methodology; Student subjects
• ISSN: 1382-3256; 1573-7616
• DOI: 10.1007/s10664-021-09958-4

Context Using student subjects in empirical studies has been discussed extensively from a methodological perspective in Software Engineering (SE), but there is a lack of similar discussion surrounding ethical aspects of doing so. As students are in a subordinate relationship to their instructors, such a discussion is needed. Objective We aim to increase the understanding of practices and perceptions SE researchers have of ethical issues with student participation in empirical studies. Method We conducted a systematic mapping study of 372 empirical SE studies involving students, following up with a survey answered by 100 SE researchers regarding their current practices and opinions regarding student participation. Results The mapping study shows that the majority of studies does not report conditions regarding recruitment, voluntariness, compensation, and ethics approval. In contrast, the majority of survey participants supports reporting these conditions. The survey further reveals that less than half of the participants require ethics approval. Additionally, the majority of participants recruit their own students on a voluntary basis, and use informed consent with withdrawal options. There is disagreement among the participants whether course instructors should be involved in research studies and if they should know who participates in a study. Conclusions It is a positive sign that mandatory participation is rare, and that informed consent and withdrawal options are standard. However, we see immediate need for action, as study conditions are under-reported, and as opinions on ethical practices differ widely. In particular, there is little regard in SE on the power relationship between instructors and students.