By: Vani Nailumu, Research Coordinator, Balance of Power (a DFAT-funded multi-country initiative working to increase the legitimacy of women’s leadership in the Pacific).
Engaging and reflecting on the ethics process early throughout the research process, helps us – as practitioners, and research learners to value critical reflexivity and understand the relational dimensions of producing and contributing to a body of knowledge. It is important to frame ethics as an emergent process, and as a critical part of learning that encourages a deeper understanding of a researcher’s role and accountability to the context and the people they are researching on and with.
Conventional research design underlines the importance of gaining formal ethical approvals especially from regulatory bodies or in academic settings before a research initiative is embarked upon, particularly for research involving human subjects. However, this formal approval process often undervalues or ignores the dynamic and inherently complex nature of research ethics in culturally nuanced contexts in the Pacific. This includes the risk of limiting ethical considerations to a ‘once-off’ initial administrative and procedural process and failing to recognise their ongoing and even emergent nature. Understanding and appreciating what is ethical for the context can often evolve through the research process, through the interactions that take place within the context of the research, rather than from a fully formed understanding of what this will look like at the outset.
My experience of supporting locally led research in a development program has shown that the concept and practice of ‘ethics’ is relational and emergent, and part of the broader research process. It is not an isolated task at the beginning but rather a necessary ongoing, adaptative, and culturally sensitive component of our research process. It is deeply relational and contextual, as what may be accepted in one community may be inappropriate for another. What is ‘ethical’ varies and emerges depending on who you are, where you are and who you’re dealing with. This approach to ethics emphasizes reciprocity, respect for traditional knowledge, and the importance of relational ethics in our diverse Pacific contexts. This approach also helps build the trust that enables communities to engage openly and frankly with researchers.
For example, before entering a community to conduct research, there are cultural protocols that any researcher, whether Pacific Islander or not, must observe as an outsider to that context: the traditional granting of permission, an introduction of yourself and your background, as well as the observation of cultural mores including how you dress, where you sit, and how to greet people, etc. This observation of cultural and community norms is an integral part of the research process as it is about treating communities with respect. As researchers, it is important to recognize our responsibility to continually reflect on the dynamics involved in the different phases of research projects from planning and implementation through to socialisation and dissemination of findings. Navigating the relational and emergent research ethics process is therefore a complex exercise and requires engaging local researchers with contextual knowledge and lived experiences to lead research initiatives on the ground.
What does this look like in practice?
Balance of Power [1]recently conducted research in Vanuatu on Voter Motivations ahead of the (then scheduled) national elections in late 2025, and I was part of the research team. Formal ethics approval was obtained internally through the program’s ethics committee, as well as with the ethics committee at the Australian National University as the research partner, and with local partners through informed consultations, scoping and approvals to roll out the study. Nonetheless, throughout the research, our Ni-Vanuatu research team members and local research partner guided an ongoing ‘ethics process’, providing insights as to which communities would require certain cultural protocols be observed and which didn’t; the approaches needed to enter the community respectfully and the appropriate timing; and which provincial office we needed to advise of our presence whilst in the province. In hindsight, even this visit to the provincial office was a form of ethics – of seeking informed consent. This locally grounded ethics process reinforced the importance of working with local researchers who have a deep understanding of the local context and cultural protocols, as they are able to give greater effect and meaning to what ethical research looks like in the research context.
Positionality and Context in the Pacific
The concept of positionality – understanding who we are, where we come from, and how we relate to others informs our understanding of ethical approaches to research. This is particularly important in the Pacific, where researchers are often outsiders working in indigenous communities with markedly different cultural norms and traditions. Our positionality shapes not only how we conduct research but also how we are perceived by the communities we engage with. In my experience, as an indigenous Fijian woman who supported the research in Vanuatu, I consciously wore my “Sulu Jaba and Sulu i Ra” as a way of clearly showing my positionality, of who I am, where I come from. This was part of ‘seeking informed consent’ by identifying myself as an outsider coming in to learn with and from the community members and their context.
Implications for researchers
Relational and emergent research ethics doesn’t just relate to collecting, analysing and writing up data, but to the ‘so what?’ of research as well. It widens focus to emphasise the importance of creating value for the participants and communities with whom we are engaging. In the Pacific context, this might be operationalised by researchers asking the following questions:
- What cultural and social mores do we need to observe as part of an ethics process?
- What are some contextual ethical processes not generally observed by outsiders that we need to observe to better understand the context and build trust?
- How will I be perceived and what does my positionality mean for undertaking ethical research?
- What are the ways in which our participants benefit from this research?
- How can we ensure that our research contributes to the well-being of the communities involved, rather than extracting data for our own academic or professional gain?
- And then, so what? How are we, in the development sector, building on our research and using our findings to help better the lives and lived experiences of our people?
In essence, ethics should be an ongoing process about ensuring that our research is adding value and contributing to the wellbeing of the communities we are researching. Formal ethical regulations are important; however, it should be complemented with contextualized and emergent approach to ethics, ensuring that ethics remains at the heart of our research practice from the beginning of the research process till the end.
[1] Balance of Power is an Australian Government funded initiative working to promote women’s leadership legitimacy in Fiji, Tonga and Vanuatu.