This is the second and final post from Michael Link on location.
Privacy and ethics concerns in research are not new, but
they have taken on considerably higher visibility in our 24/7 news world as
researchers test the bounds of new measurement approaches. At a recent
symposium on Leveraging Location hosted by Nielsen, a panel of legal experts
provided some thoughts in this area on issues researchers are encountering
today. Their insights went well beyond location data, hitting on aspects that
involve many of us working with data from the public. (Obligatory warning: I’m
not a lawyer; these are simply my observations and interpretation of the
discussion). Three broad lessons caught my attention:
First and foremost, start with the respondent/consumer,
understanding and acting in accordance with their expectations. How data are
collected and the insights generated should be readily apparent to the “average
person.” If your starting point is “the law” or “what is legal”, you’ve already
put yourself in a hole. Laws and regulations provide a base — a bare minimum,
what the public demands is often much more. As researchers we should operate
within the reasonable expectations of the majority of the public, yet not necessarily
feel constrained by folks on the extremes.
Second, to lead in innovation you cannot be afraid to have
your name in the paper and receive negative comments. In essence, as one
panelist put it “get comfortable not being comfortable.” Pushing the envelope
involves a degree of calculated and real risk. If your organization likes to
keep a low profile and acts with alarm at the first half-dozen negative emails
received, then you might want to take “innovation leader” off of your long-term
business strategy. Note that Rule #1 above is still in effect, so setting expectations
accordingly and having a good grasp of the potential risks is imperative.
Third, time is an important and often under-appreciated
dimension of attitudes towards privacy and ethics. These are not static
features of our society, but rather evolving concepts. What may have been
unthinkable a few years ago (using a smartphone as a “virtual wallet”) now seems
commonplace. Likewise, certain aspects of data collection in this digital/organic
data era that seem unreasonable to the public today (and hence, would be good
to avoid) may become more readily accepted with time and incremental exposure.
The trick to innovating, of course, is knowing when the time may be right. To
this there is no clear right answer, but the public (and the press) will let
you know if you have chosen unwisely.