Impact of International Public Health Emergencies on Social Science Research

Qualitative research during a public health emergency (PSE) such as the COVID-19 pandemic lags behind other research approaches in terms of delivery, reliability, and timeliness of findings. Due to social distancing and travel limitations, social science researchers, especially qualitative ones, are finding it difficult to plan and conduct research during the pandemic and the question arises as to how qualitative research, which relies on human connection, sympathetic listening, and "rich description," can grow in a culture where individuals are socially disconnected from one another. Social science researchers are forced to forgo fieldwork, which is the most important component of qualitative research, and resort to online data collection. In conducting research during those times, researchers are faced with conflicting obligations to preserve the subject's rights regarding the conduct of the study and the use of the results. This research examines the role of qualitative research and the methodologies and ethical standards that can be adopted by researchers in times of Public Health Emergency (PSE) to overcome the challenges faced in situations such as digital illiteracy and physical distancing norms of interviewees. It is argued that there are potential benefits of using virtual data collection during health emergencies.