Which ethical concern is raised by the "Tearoom Trade" study?

The "Tearoom Trade" study, conducted by sociologist Laud Humphreys in the late 1960s, is particularly controversial due to the method of data collection that involved deception. In this study, Humphreys observed and recorded the activities of men engaging in homosexual acts in public restrooms without their consent, leading to significant ethical concerns regarding the deception employed in the research process.

In qualitative research, maintaining the trust and informed consent of participants is paramount, and the ethical principle of autonomy requires researchers to respect individuals' rights to make informed decisions about their participation. By not informing the participants of the study's purpose and observing them covertly, Humphreys violated this principle. This raises significant ethical implications regarding the integrity of the research and the potential exploitation of subjects’ vulnerability.

The lack of transparency in the research design ultimately highlights the ethical concern surrounding deception in research; it challenges the integrity of the researcher and the ethical grounds on which the research was conducted. Thus, the ethical concern raised by this study primarily revolves around the deception used by the researcher during the data collection process.