Creating an Ethical Assurance Research Method

Chapter 3: Research Method
Ethical Assurances
IoT entails a complex network of interactive and technical components that affect different aspects of life. It affects how people communicate and interact with each other. Therefore, it is important to consider the ethical aspects of these interactions (Allhoff & Henschke, 2018). Among the ethical considerations that this study will consider will include ensuring that the users are not exposed to any form of harm when using the technology, ensuring that the users understand what the research is all about and that they provide informed consent in participating in the research, protecting their privacy, and maintaining honesty in dealing with other professionals.
The first step in the research will be to obtain Northcentral University’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval before the data collection process. The approval will provide the necessary authority to approach the research participants and obtain the information needed to conduct the research. The IRB group review is important as it protects the rights and welfare of human research subjects. The group’s review will help assure that the appropriate steps have been taken to protect the rights and welfare of the human subjects to the study. This approval will also help ensure adherence to the ethical values and principles that will underlie this research. Finally, the approval will also help alleviate any concerns that the general public may have concerning responsible research.
The researcher will ensure that the respondents are protected from any harm from using the IoT devices by ensuring that the IoT manufacturers have complied with all the user standards necessary to guarantee the security of the users, training the users on how the devices operate ensuring that the IoT is secure. In ascertaining compliance with the user standards, the research team will ensure that the devices have proper security features to prevent users from electrocution and information leak. The team will also contract the services of IoT specialists to confirm that the devices meet the performance requirements following their expected uses.
The researchers will then educate the users on the importance of the research. Since this research is geared at helping protect resources in urban cities, the users will be informed about the importance of resource conservation and how the devices will facilitate the achievement of this goal. This training process will be focused on helping the respondents make informed consent about the study that they will be about to participate in. During the training process, the respondents will also be guaranteed that their privacy rights will not be infringed. None of their information will be leaked or used for purposes other than those specified in the study.
The risk of the study to the participants is expected to be minimal since only certified IoT devices will be used in collecting the information. Any potential risk will be addressed through the training that the participants will be taken through. The participants will be informed on how to handle the devices in terms of normal operations and in the event of a mishap. For example, the user will be guided on how to switch off an IoT device ...