CODE OF CONDUCT
Issued at 2nd Jan 2020, effective from 2nd Jan 2020
Key note:
Evidence matters: Evidence helps to build strategy and reduce risk; it is essential for good commercial and public policy decisions. Our members have commissioned and provided evidence that has helped to eliminate the fault and make our corporation transperent, and ethical.
THE PRINCIPLES OF CODE OF CONDUCT
All members in ASHAVI must follow the principles below:
1. Ensure the professional activities can be understood in a transparent manner.
2. Be straightforward and honest in all professional and business relationships.
3. Be transparent as to the subject and purpose of data collection.
4. Ensure the professional activities are not used to unfairly influence views and opinions of participants.
5. Respect the confidentiality of information collected in the professional activities.
6. Respect the rights and well-being of all individuals.
7. Ensure that individuals are not harmed or adversely affected by their professional activities.
8. Balance the needs of individuals, clients, and their professional activities.
9. Exercise independent professional judgement in the design, conduct and reporting of the professional activities.
10. Ensure that the professional activities are conducted by persons with appropriate training, qualifications and experience.
11. Protect the reputation and integrity of the profession.
General Rules of Professional Conduct
Awareness and Adherence with Legislation
1. ASHAVI Members must ensure that their professional activities conform to the national legislation relevant to a given project.
2. ASHAVI Members must ensure that when undertaking direct marketing activities, they adhere to all relevant specific legal and ethical requirements which apply to direct marketing practice.
The following practices fall within the scope of direct marketing:
a) The offering of client goods or services, or vouchers to purchase client goods or services as an incentive, reward or expression of thanks;
b) The use of promotional language in describing clients in invitations or introductions to projects;
c) The offering of materials to participants which promote clients or their products and services. This includes referring participants to a client website at the conclusion of a project.
3. ASHAVI Members may provide information about a client’s products or services where it is necessary to avoid adversely affecting a participant. For example, where a sensitive subject has been discussed, members may provide information on relevant help lines operated by a client.
4. ASHAVI Members must ensure that all of their professional activities, whatever the purpose, are conducted in a transparent manner and that their activities promote compliance with privacy ethics and data protection rules.
5. ASHAVI Members must never undertake any activities, under the guise of research, which aim to manipulate, misled or coerce individuals. This applies throughout the research process including proposal, data collection, analysis and reporting. Examples of this activity include:
a) Sell or market under the guise of research (‘sugging’)
b) Fund raise under the guise of research (‘frugging’)
c) Lobby for political purposes under the guise of research (‘plugging’)
d) Create false media content and commentary, including social media, under the guise of research (media-mugging).
6. ASHAVI Members must take reasonable action to avoid conflicts of interest with clients or employers and must make prior voluntary and full disclosure to all parties that might give rise to such conflict.
7. ASHAVI Members must act honestly in their professional activities. Members must take reasonable action to ensure that others do not breach or cause a breach of this Code.
8. ASHAVI Members must not act in a way which might bring discredit on the profession, MRS or its Members.
9. ASHAVI Members must take all reasonable precautions to ensure that participants are not harmed or adversely affected by their professional activities and ensure that there are measures in place to guard against potential harm
Client confidentiality
1. Members must disclose the identity of clients where there is a legal obligation to do so. Comment: Transparency is one of the fundamental principles underpinning data protection laws. In line with this an obligation to name a commissioning client may arise in three main scenarios:
a) Client is controller or joint controller
b) Client is the source of the personal data
c) Client is receiving personal data from a research activity
2. Where files of identifiable individuals are used e.g., client databases, Members must ensure that the sources of the personal data is revealed at an appropriate point in the data collection. The identity of the client must be revealed when data collection undertaken if clients require personal data from a project.
Incentives
ASHAVI Members must ensure that client goods or services, or vouchers to purchase client goods or services, are not used as incentives for projects conducted for research purposes.
ASHAVI Members undertaking projects for other purposes, such as direct marketing, may use client goods or services as incentives.
1. Where incentives are offered, for whatever purpose, ASHAVI Members must ensure that Participants are clearly informed:
a) who will administer the incentive;
b) what the incentive will be;
c) when the participant will receive the incentive; and
d) whether any conditions are attached e.g. completion of a specific task or passing of quality control checks.
Incentives that require participants to spend money to be redeemed, e.g. money-off vouchers, are not permitted.
Data Collection
ASHAVI Members must ensure that there is a lawful basis for any collection and processing of personal data undertaken as part of their professional activities.
ASHAVI Members must take reasonable action when undertaking data collection to ensure all of the following:
a) that data collection processes are fit for purpose and clients have been advised accordingly;
b) That the design and content of data collection processes are appropriate for the audience being analysed;
c) that participants are able to provide information in a way that reflects the view they want to express, including don’t know/prefer not to say;
d) that participants are not led toward a particular point of view;
e) that responses and/or data collected are capable of being interpreted in an unambiguous way;
f) that any potential use of the personal data is revealed;
g) that personal data collected and/or processed is limited to what is relevant;
h) that personal data is stored and transmitted by secure means and only accessible to authorised individuals.
ASHAVI Members must ensure that participants are informed about any recording, monitoring or observation at recruitment and at the beginning of a data collection activity.
Permission and Consent
Members must ensure that participants give their permission to take part in a data collection exercise, before proceeding with the activity. Permission requires the following information to be provided to participants:
a) the name of the organisation(s) or individual responsible for data collection;
b) the general subject of the data collection;
c) the purpose of the data collection;
d) the type of data collected, particularly special category and/or criminal convictions data;
e) the right to withdraw at any time
f) whether the data collection is to be recorded and/or observed;
g) who is likely to have access to live or recorded information;
h) the likely length in minutes of the data collection;
i) any costs likely to be incurred by a participant;
If consent is the legal basis for the data collection, Members must ensure that participants are provided with appropriate information to allow informed consent to be given, at the point that they agree to participate. Informed consent requires the following information to be provided:
a) the name of the organisation(s) or individual responsible for data collection;
b) the general subject of the data collection;
c) the purpose of the data collection;
d) the type of data collected, particularly special category and/or criminal
e) convictions data;
f) the right to withdraw at any time;
g) whether the data collection is to be recorded and/or observed;
h) who is likely to have access to live or recorded information;
i) the likely length in minutes of the data collection;
j) any costs likely to be incurred by a participant;
k) the use of automated decision making (if used);
l) transfer of data to a third country;
Participant’s Rights
1. ASHAVI Members must ensure that participants are not misled when being asked to participate in a project.
2. ASHAVI Members must exercise special care when the nature of a project is sensitive or the circumstances under which the data is collected might cause a participant to become upset or disturbed.
3. Members must ensure that a participant’s right to withdraw from a project at any stage is respected.
4. ASHAVI Members must ensure that participants are able to check without difficulty the identity and bona fides of any individual and/or their employer conducting a project (including any subcontractors).
5. Members must ensure that participants (including employees in employee data collection projects) are not required or pressured to participate in any projects.
6. Members must ensure that any responses given by participants during data collection are deleted if requested by participants, where possible as the personal data is still being processed.
Reference:
Market Research Society Association
ESOMAR.
CONTACT US:
ASHAVI (ASHA VIET AN COMPANY LIMITED)
TAX CODE: 0315641631
Email: research@ashavi.com