Exercise 8
Considering Context and Consequences
When you publish or share findings, they don’t just live in journals — they land in communities, as well as their histories and political contexts.
Research can shape identities, reinforce or challenge cultural beliefs, and even fuel political debates. It can also be interpreted in ways you didn’t intend.
📖 Step 1: Read
Read one or two (light) readings
💬 Step 2: Discuss
Apply discussion questions to a real or hypothetical research project
✍️ Step 3: Reflect
Use a worksheet to reflect on how this exercise applies to your work, and note key takeaways
Step 1.
Read
📖 Read as a group.
Note: web versions include links to additional content.
Readings
Read the following readings as a group. You might take turns reading aloud or spend a few minutes reading quietly.
“Challenging Our Ideas of ‘Community’ – a Case Study“
A Summary and Reflection on “The Pain Was Unbearable. So Why Did Doctors Turn Her Away?” from Wired.
This reading was featured in a previous exercise. If you’ve read it before, we recommend skimming it to refresh your memory.
“Worksheet: Writing a Positionality Statement for Big Data Research“
Reflecting on the perspective you bring to your repository-enabled research
This reading was featured in a previous exercise. If you’ve read it before, we recommend skimming it to refresh your memory.
Step 2.
Discuss
💬 Discuss a real or imaginary project
Discussion Prompts
Use the prompts below to guide your group’s conversation.
You can focus on a real research project or make one up for this exercise.
Identities and Communities
When we think about ‘communities,’ we often imagine groups that already exist. But research can also create or expose new vulnerabilities that bring people together in unexpected ways.
For example, as described in today’s reading, “Challenging Our Ideas of ‘Community’ – A Case Study,” an algorithm wrongly flagged pet owners who were prescribed opioids for both themselves and their pets, grouping them together based on their shared characteristics.
Similarly, research on BRCA1/2 variation and cancer risk led individuals to organize and define themselves as the ‘BRCA previvor’ community.
- Are there any aspects of your work that you can imagine creating an identity or encouraging new communities to form? Does your research reinforce existing communities or groups?
Putting Your Research in Context
Social and Cultural Context
- What social or cultural context may be relevant to your results?
- My research could lead people to relate to each other in new ways
- Social stigma or taboo may shape how my results are received
- There may be a strong social appetite for this kind of research, raising the risk of overinterpretation (taking the findings further than supported by the research)
- My results could appear to conflict with cultural beliefs or practices
- My results could appear to reinforce cultural beliefs or practices
Historical Context
- What historical context may be relevant to your results?
- Could your findings unintentionally echo harmful narratives used in the past to oppress or marginalize groups?
- Does a group’s history (e.g., genetic bottlenecking, past research harms) affect the kind of data available to you?
- Does the dataset itself have historical context that is important to acknowledge/account for in your results?
Political Context
- What political context may be relevant to your results?
- Does your research touch on politically charged issues right now?
- How could your results be weaponized against one or more groups/communities?
Environmental Context
- What environmental context—such as the built environment including access to transportation and housing quality, as well as exposures to things like air pollution, toxins, or climate change— may be relevant to your results?
- Could your findings affect how environmental factors are understood or addressed in ways that might harm certain communities?
- Could your findings help highlight environmental factors that impact health, and in turn support policies or actions that benefit certain communities?
Open Questions About Context
- What questions do you still have about relevant context to your results?
- I don’t know what I don’t know: there may be context I’m unaware of
- I do know what I don’t know: I suspect a finding (such as an outlier/discrepancy) may be due to context, but I don’t know what that context is
- I don’t have access to the people or materials that would provide needed context
- Materials that would give me more context are in a language I don’t understand
Considering Your Own Context
- In what ways is your personal context (identity, beliefs, positionality) reflected in your results and conclusions?
Write a brief response to this question using “Guide: Writing a Positionality Statement for Biorepository Research” for inspiration. This is for your own personal reflection, though you may adapt it later for grants, publications, or review materials.
- If you wrote a positionality statement earlier in your project (as discussed in Exercise 6: Grounding Your Communication), consider taking a few minutes to revisit it and update it if needed.
Has your perspective changed as a result of doing this research? Do you see ways that your identity or beliefs have influenced how you interpreted your findings?
TIP: to explore this concept further, we recommend these two exercises:
Step 3.
Reflect
✍️ Document your takeaways
Note on versions:
Reflection Worksheets
Take a few minutes to reflect on this exercise using the worksheet below. Choose the version that best matches your role — or share one worksheet as a group. Jot down any insights, questions, or takeaways.
Researchers:
Ethics Committees:
Data Access Committees:
Next Steps
You’ve completed this exercise. Great work! 🎉