Experts Answer to Oral History Questions

100 Questions/27

What is the place of research ethics in compiling oral history?

Translated by Mandana Karimi

2026-4-27

We asked several researchers and activists in the field of oral history to express their views on oral history questions. The names of each participant are listed at the beginning of their answers, and the text of all answers will be published on this portal by the end of the week. The goal of this project is to open new doors to an issue and promote scientific discussions in the field of oral history.

In this project, a question is asked every Saturday, and we ask experts to present their views in the form of a short text (about 100 words) by the end of the week. All answers will be published together so that the audience can compare and analyze the views.

The content is the opinions of the senders and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Oral History website. Although the answers are supposed to be based on about 100 words, in order to be polite and not to leave the discussion incomplete, in some cases, answers longer than that are also accepted.

The experts are asked to submit their answers by Sunday night so that all answers can be published on Tuesday.

Question 27:

What is the place of research ethics in compiling oral history?

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Answers to question 27:

Gholamreza Azari Khakestar

Editing is considered one of the most important stages of oral history, in which everything that is expressed orally by the narrator becomes the final text and becomes available to the public. The most important principle that editors must adhere to is to maintain confidentiality and edit the text according to what was said by the interviewer. From an ethical point of view, editors must make the final text clear and, while documenting the statements, remove any ambiguities and shortcomings. The material and moral rights of the narrator should be preserved according to the agreements.
Parts of the interview that have legal implications and cause resentment or misunderstanding of individuals should be carefully selected and published at the appropriate time and context. Approval of the final text and the editing method in consultation with the interviewees is part of professional ethics in editing.

Hassan Beheshtipour

This question is very similar to the previous one. In my answer to the previous question, I mentioned to the narrator, the interviewer, and the editor that all three should be well aware of the place of research ethics in oral history and, more importantly, observe it carefully and fairly. I apologize that I have nothing new to say about this question. You can see the answer to question 26 here.

Mohammad Mehdi Abdollazade

Applying ethical principles and requirements in research, which are called "ethical principles of research," is essential in all stages of conducting oral history. Therefore, the editor must, by observing the standards of oral history editing, transform the written interview into a readable, scientific, and credible text, including:
- Removing offensive, vulgar, and impolite words that humiliate the interviewee.
- Maintaining the narrator's tone.
- Paying attention to cultural, social, and moral sensitivities.
- Removing the narrator's repeated words and material, the abundance of which creates a negative attitude towards the narrator.
- Not adding anything of his own to the text and only disambiguating it in the footnotes.
- Not publishing material that has been declared confidential.
- Correcting undocumented material by validating the necessary items and coordinating with the interviewee, and explaining it in the footnotes if the narrator insists.

Abolfat’h Mo’men

The historian's duty is to understand and report history as it happened, and in this process, observing the ethical principles of research is of fundamental importance. Compilation in oral history is also subject to these principles. The first principle is that the compiler is familiar with history, methods, and techniques of compilation; because lack of expertise is considered a form of immorality. In addition, the compiler must be as impartial as possible, although absolute impartiality is difficult and intellectual, social, and psychological factors affect them. By being methodical and relying on scientific principles, the degree of bias is reduced. Being trustworthy towards the narrative and observing fairness is essential. This ethics is important for both the trust of the narrators and the scientific credibility of the compiler.

Gholamreza Azizi

It seems that the main burden of observing research ethics in compiling oral history interviews falls on the compiler and in the process of preparing the interviews for publication. In general, observing research ethics in compiling oral history interviews refers to “preserving the authenticity of the interviewee’s speech and accurately conveying the content and concepts expressed during the interview to the published text” in two ways:
- Avoiding the application of personal opinions, desires and wishes, or any prejudiced, biased or biased tendencies;
- Avoiding reducing or adding material to the text of the questions and answers in the interview that leads to contradictions, hypothesizing and incorrect speculation by the reader or has an incorrect impact (positive or negative) on the judgment and evaluation of the people or issues raised in the interview.

Seyyed Mohammad Sadegh Feyz

Editing in oral history is a mirror of the interview stage with appropriate and necessary deletions and additions. However, in addition to all that was observed in the interview, this stage must also be observed with greater seriousness. Because the interviewee and the narrator were present there and absent here, and it is possible that over time the gap between the interview and editing may become long and the material recounted may have been forgotten. In this case, more than in the previous stage, honesty and integrity in quoting must be observed and improper interference and appropriation must be avoided.

Shafigheh Niknafs

Observing research ethics will maintain the principles and standards of compiling oral history and prevent behavioral harm. It involves several components: the researcher's ethical responsibility towards the research and the narrator; the editor's and the organization's ethical responsibility towards the narrator, the content of the work, and the factors of production.
Some principles include:
1. The findings of oral history research should not be distorted or covered up.
2. The narrator's specified cases should be subject to the condition of trustworthiness and confidentiality.
3. The principle of impartiality of research should be observed and deception of the interviewee should be avoided.
4. The name and role of each factor of production should be appropriately included on the cover and identity card of oral history works.
5. The weight of the memories should be increased by adding an introduction, foreword, classification of memories, assigning a title and subtitle, footnotes, photographs, documents, etc.
6.The publication of memoirs must be with the interviewee's consent and must not pose a danger to the narrator or other people.

Abolfazl Hassanabadi

Editing is one of the processes that can provide a suitable platform for presenting the prepared content of oral history. In fact, editing is the forefront of the work. Especially in Iran, due to the unavailability of the original interviews for comparative study and the interest in the written publication of oral interviews, the only factor that can be examined to judge the prepared text. Therefore, observing the ethical principles of research with components such as loyalty to the original text, expressing the presented content, preparing an appropriate scientific introduction, and lack of intention in editing the content can also give the reader the assurance that the text that is available to him for reading is a reflection of the original oral interviews.

Hamid Ghazvini

All stages of oral history, including compilation, are subject to the ethical rules governing this field. That is, all matters at all stages proceed under the three-dimensional framework of narrator, author, and audience. Accordingly, any manipulation of the text without the narrator's consent should be avoided. Ambiguities that cause incorrect and incomplete understanding of the text or interpretations that require clarification should be corrected clearly and precisely so as not to create negative consequences for the narrator. In addition, the author should not compile the text solely based on his own goals and interests. The rights of the audience should also be seriously considered, meaning that the text should not be mixed with content or interpretations that falsify history and present untrue information.

Artificial Intelligence

Research ethics play a crucial role in the compilation of oral history, as the compilation stage is where raw data is transformed into a written and effective narrative. The compiler must maintain confidentiality, avoid directional deletion or addition of material, and organize the structure of the narrative without distorting the meaning. Respecting the narrator's moral rights, accurately citing sources, and staying true to the original tone and intent are fundamental principles. It is also important to avoid censorship of taste or selective highlighting. Transparency in editorial interventions and documentation of changes is also essential. Ignoring these principles leads to distortion of the authenticity of the narrative and a decrease in the scientific credibility of the work.