Open access
Selected Ethical Aspects of Conducting Research with the Participation of Vulnerable Groups — the Case of Persons with Disabilities in Latvia
Tomasz KASPRZAK1
Publication language: Polish
scientific paper
Transformations No. 3(126)2025, Publication date: 30 September 2025
Keywords: person with a disability, Latvia, ethics, qualitative research
Abstract The article analyses selected ethical and methodological aspects of conducting research involving vulnerable groups, using the example of persons with disabilities in Latvia. The author presents the legal, social, and cultural context of the functioning of this group and identifies historical and political factors shaping their situation. Particular attention is devoted to issues related to the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as well as to the practical problems of applying the principles of equal treatment within the Latvian social system. The methodological section discusses ethical challenges accompanying qualitative research, such as obtaining informed consent from participants, ensuring anonymity, minimising psychological risk, and the issue of the researcher’s role in the relationship with research participants. The author emphasises the importance of reflexivity, cultural and linguistic sensitivity, and the need to involve persons with disabilities in the research process in accordance with the principle “Nothing about us without us”. The article contributes to a broader discussion on the ethics of research among socially marginalised groups and on the possibilities for the practical implementation of a participatory approach in the social sciences.
Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach, Instytut Socjologii, Polska
ORCID: 0000–0003–0955–3464
E-mail: tomasz.kasprzak@us.edu.pl