1. What should market researchers do in situations such as those described? Visit www.iccindiaonline.org/policy_state/esomar.pdf and discuss whether the International Code of Marketing and Social Research Practice provide guidance in dealing with such issues.
2. Describe an example in which marketing research could cause harm to participants. Many companies have a review process similar to that required for government-funded research to ensure research participant safety, with most following the government's "Common Rule." Write a brief report explaining this rule and how you would apply it your example.
As the Pepsi, P&G, and Lexus examples in the chapter illustrate, companies are increasingly using qualitative research methods such as observation, ethnography, and in-depth interviews to gain customer insights. However, qualitative research brings up ethical issues. Unlike quantitative data collection methods that use surveys or mechanical means, qualitative research puts researchers in close physical proximity to consumers-even in their homes-where the researchers may see or hear private and confidential things. Most research extends confidentiality to research subjects so they will be open in responding to questions, but what if a researcher learns something troublesome? For example, marketing research is advancing into more sensitive consumer behaviors related to product abuse and deviant behaviors, and consumers may reveal harmful or illegal behavior to the researcher. Alternatively, like all experiments, marketing research experiments, such as a researcher pretending to shoplift in a store to observe other customers' reactions, necessarily involve some type of deception. Such experiments can be conducted without customer knowledge, or customers may even be induced to participate in the deception. They may be told later and feel uncomfortable with their actions. These are just a few of the ethical issues related to qualitative marketing research.