Oral history can be a complicated beast when it comes to issues surrounding consent and ethics. Firstly, oral history is considered both a methodology and a field of study so this inevitably complicates things for researchers. As a field of study that has developed into its current form over the past fifty years, oral history has always concerned itself with giving a voice to the powerless, the marginalised and disenfranchised in society. As the field has developed over the years, so too have questions about the practice of oral history. After all, the very foundations of oral history relies on talking and listening to our subjects in order to record and preserve their memories for future generations. Yet, the academic pursuit of oral history has also raised numerous questions about the types of histories we record and the dynamics at play between researchers and their subjects. Indeed consent and ethics have always been a central concern of oral history. But when it comes to addressing these issues, oral historians need to strongly bear in mind that they are not only abiding by the professional standards of the field but also respecting the wholly collaborative nature of the interview. This guide will aim to provide an overview of the debates concerning consent in oral history and the issues it raises in research data management for researchers at UCL and beyond.

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UCL Library Services is pleased to invite UCL staff to an afternoon of information and discussion about the UK Data Service (UKDS).

The UKDS is funded by the ESRC to meet the data needs of researchers, students and teachers in the Social Sciences and Humanities. Its collection includes major UK government-sponsored surveys, cross-national surveys, longitudinal studies, UK census data, international aggregate, business data, and qualitative data.

Participants will learn how to access these collections as well as how to deposit their own research data and sources in the UKDS repository, ReShare. During the drop-in session participants will be able to ask questions about data sharing, ESRC data management plans, consent procedures, data storage, encryption and more.

The event will take place in the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS) Common Ground.

See the programme and book your place.

The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into effect in May 2018. It will replace the current Directive and apply to all EU member states without the need for national legislation. The implementation will require comprehensive changes to the way in which organisations, like UCL, collect, use and transfer personal data.

Please see the UCL Data Protection Office’s guidance on the impact of the GDPR on how researchers will seek consent, on privacy notices, data breaches and more.