A common ethical concern with covert observation is...

A common ethical concern with covert observation is...

• A. There are no ethical concerns.
• B. People might not want to be observed.
• C. It is always more ethical than overt observation.
• D. It guarantees informed consent.

Answer: (B)

Covert observation raises ethical issues around consent and privacy. The key worry is that people might not want to be observed at all and haven’t agreed to participate, so their autonomy is violated and they can’t choose to withdraw. This lack of consent is a central reason why covert methods are ethically controversial, even in natural settings. It would be wrong to claim there are no ethical concerns, or that covert observation is always more ethical, or that it guarantees informed consent, since none of those hold true in practice.

Covert observation raises ethical issues around consent and privacy. The key worry is that people might not want to be observed at all and haven’t agreed to participate, so their autonomy is violated and they can’t choose to withdraw. This lack of consent is a central reason why covert methods are ethically controversial, even in natural settings. It would be wrong to claim there are no ethical concerns, or that covert observation is always more ethical, or that it guarantees informed consent, since none of those hold true in practice.