Faculty of Business and Law: Research Ethics Application Form Analysis

This document is a completed research ethics application form submitted to the Faculty of Business and Law. The project aims to analyze the impact of social media marketing strategies on brand image, specifically focusing on Marks and Spencer. The application details the research procedures, including participant recruitment (customers over 18), informed consent processes, and data collection methods (surveys and secondary data analysis). It addresses ethical considerations such as confidentiality, participant rights (voluntary participation, withdrawal, and the option to omit questions), and potential risks. The form outlines the research location, steps taken for permissions, and measures to maintain confidentiality. The application also acknowledges potential ethical issues, like the time commitment from participants during surveys, and explains how these will be addressed. The Faculty of Business and Law Ethics Committee reviewed the project, and the form includes a statement of ethical approval.

Faculty of Business and Law Research Ethics Application Form
Tick one box: Externally funded project I-JON funded project Other
Title of
project:
Name of
researcher s .
SECTION A
Yes No N/A
1 Will you describe the main research procedure to
participants in advance so that the are informed what to
ex ect?
✓
2 Will you tell participants that their participation is
voluntary?
✓
3 Will you obtain written consent from participants? (please
include the consent form with our ethics submission
✓
4 If the research is observational, will you ask participants
for their consent to bein observed.
✓
5 Will you tell participants that they may withdraw from the
research at an time and for an reason?
✓
6 With questionnaires/interviews, will you give
participants the o tion of omittin uestions the do not
want to answer?
✓
7 Will you tell participants that their data will be treated
with full confidentiality and that, if published, it should not
be identifiable as theirs?
✓
8 Will you debrief participants at the end of their
participation (i.e.
ive them a brief ex lanation of the stud ?
✓
If ou have ticked No to an of uestions 1-8
then
ou
r
ro•ect is NOT low risk

9 Will your project involve deliberately misleading
participants in any way ?
✓
10 Is there any realistic risk of any participants
experiencing either h sical or s cholo ical distress or
discomfort?
✓
11 Will it be possible to link identities or trace information
back to individual artici ants in an wa ?
✓
12 Will the study involve discussion of sensitive topics (e.g.
sexual activity, drug use, ethnicity, political behaviour,
potentially illegal activities ?
✓
13 Will financial inducements (other than reasonable
expenses, compensation for time or a lottery / draw
ticket) be offered to participants?
✓
If ou have ticked Yes
to
uestion 9 -13 then our ro•ect is NOT low risk
14 Does our ro•ect involve work with animals? ✓
15 Do participants fall into
any of the following
special groups? If they
do, please outline on
page 2 how you will take
account of their needs.
Note that you may also
need to obtain
satisfactory Disclosure
and Barring
Service (DBS) clearance
Schoolchildren
(under 18 years of age)
✓
People with learning or
communication difficulties
✓
Patients ✓
People in custody ✓
People engaged in illegal
activities e. . dru -takin
✓

If you have ticked yes to question 14 or 15, then your project is NOT low risk
and will require a full ethics review and may be referred to the University's
Ethics Committee for final approval.
Please provide full details of your project below
(if insufficient detail is provided and the precise nature of the study is unclear then
the Ethics panel will not be able to approve the project and your form will be
returned)
What is the purpose of the project and its academic rationale?
The purpose of conducting the project is to analyse the impact of social media
marketing strategy in creating brand image of the organization. The researcher
has identified different marketing strategies that are used by Marks and Spencer
in order to create a brand image.
How will participants be recruited? Who will they be (i.e. number, age, and
gender)? Outline any particular inclusion/exclusion criteria.
Participants are considered those who are highly influence by social media
marketing strategy of Marks and Spencer. Further people of above the age of
18 will be selected for gathering specific and reliable information
Details of the informed consent process and debriefing arrangements
(Informed consent and participant information sheet templates provided by
the
FBL REC may be submitted with this application form if required)
Description of the method (please include your research instrument (survey
questionnaire, interview questions etc that you will be using to collect data if
relevant)
Both both primary and secondary information is collected in order to make
research more effective. More specifically primary information is gathered
through a survey in which questions are asked from 50 customers Marks and
Spencer. On the other side to collect the secondary information investigator
will take into consideration, books, journals, websites, and articles
qualitative technique will be used for the entire information which is collected
from the side of employees. More specifically, thematic method will be used
for presenting the findings in an effective manner. Under this, different themes
and charts will be prepared on the basis of result and interpretation will be
done

Where will this research be conducted? What steps have been taken or will be
taken to ensure appropriate permissions are obtained? N.B. of possible a copy
of correspondence i.e letter, emails granting you permission must be
submitted with your ethics submission)
Please describe how you will maintain confidentiality and/or anonymity within
this research.
To maintain confidentiality all the information provided by client is need to
kept safe and secure and not share with anyone
Please describe any other particular ethical issues raised by the project and
how you will address them
Ethical issues which is raised is related to the time of customer which is
consume at the time of taking participant in the survey. For addressing this
issues customer are provided option to feel the form whenever they are free
and not forced any respondent for taking a participant.
I am familiar with the Ethics Code and Procedures (available at REC Code and
Procedures and with relevant professional guidelines for ethical practices in
research, and have ensured that this project adheres to them.
Name (caps) I Signature Date:
Statement of Ethical Approval
Note: No legal liability or responsibility can be attached to the Ethics Committee for advice given.

This project has been considered by the Faculty of Business & Law Ethics Committee and the
project has been
[3 approved in its current form approved subject to
required revisions or conditions
[3 declined and will need to be revised and resubmitted
The following required revisions are stipulated.
The following conditions are stipulated.
The following queries or recommendations were made.
Signed
(Chair, Faculty of Business and
Law Research Ethics
Committee)
Date