Choose your own title and use my previous thesis as a background to find citations to form a research proposal.

RESEARCH PROPOSAL - DIGITAL SURVEILLANCE AND HUMANITARIAN ETHICS: INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES ON CONFLICT-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES Student’s Name Course Professor’s Name University City (State) Date Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u Title PAGEREF _Toc193155663 \h 3Introduction PAGEREF _Toc193155664 \h 3Literature Review and Research Questions PAGEREF _Toc193155665 \h 3Methodology PAGEREF _Toc193155667 \h 6Research Design PAGEREF _Toc193155668 \h 6Data Collection Method PAGEREF _Toc193155669 \h 6Sampling Size and Method PAGEREF _Toc193155670 \h 7Data Analysis Method PAGEREF _Toc193155671 \h 7Ethics and Positionality PAGEREF _Toc193155672 \h 8Timetable PAGEREF _Toc193155674 \h 9Reference List PAGEREF _Toc193155675 \h 10 Title Digital Surveillance and Humanitarian Ethics: Investigating the Impact of Emerging Technologies on Conflict-Affected Communities Introduction Qualitative research in conflict zones entails an ethic and methodology, carrying out unique challenges best addressed through considered and adaptive research practices. They must ensure that their methodologies do not contribute to the vulnerabilities of the affected populations. For example, in volatile settings where the ability to freely give informed consent may be constrained by coercion or misinformation, obtaining real informed consent is highly hazardous (McGrath et al., 2019). Moreover, local NGOs and even military authorities can provide bias in how participants are accessed, allowing them to influence the collected inputs for the cases selectively (Pelletier et al., 2024; Fakhry et al., 2024). Moreover, qualitative methods that involve the probing of trauma are invasive, and researchers stand a chance of re-traumatizing parts of participants (Luker, 2008). Nevertheless, these challenges underscore our willingness to develop trauma-informed, culturally sensitive, safe, and integrity-based research strategies to protect the well-being and safety of participants. This proposal would go further in investigating these dynamics as well as the ethical and methodological issues that arise as a result of the deployment of such devices in war and conflict environments and, in particular, how digital surveillance technologies affect the scope of humanitarian research to take place in areas of conflict. Literature Review and Research Questions In recent years, much discourse has been regarding integrating digital surveillance technologies into humanitarian operations in conflict zones. Since these technologies increase communication and allow data to be collected and delivered, they can improve crisis response and aid supply. Using Rejali and Heiniger (2020), the authors of this particular material point out that these technologies present significant risks regarding privacy and security for the different populations involved. Artificial intelligence (AI) has helped support the digital surveillance tools used in previous humanitarian actions, which are used to assess accurate needs and early warning systems. According to Beduschi (2022), data-driven tools generate biased results since the data sets on which the AI algorithms are trained are biased. The use of the results could affect the community. The problem is especially troublesome as AI biases are capable of being synonymous with wider social inequities and leading to further marginalization of the underprivileged. In addition, there are big concerns regarding privacy and data protection as we use such technologies. Therefore, improper use of sensitive information, whether through breaches or unauthorized access, represents an immediate danger to people already in vulnerable circumstances. Such environments also complicate matters for informed consent. Given the nature of conflict zones with coercion and misinformation that makes it hard for people to make fully informed decisions about their participation in research or data collection processes. Epp et al. (2022) reported that re-traumatization is a risk, as digital tools to engage with that demand responding to traumatic incidents can make participants psychologically unwell with data collection, thereby requiring the adoption of trauma-sensitive methodologies in research and data collection. Foucault’s theory of surveillance can also adequately explore these issues from the theoretical underpinnings, for it highlights how surveillance mechanisms can lead to the individual’s internalization of disciplinary measures, which results in the appropriation of the autonomy of monitored individuals and compliance with dominant power structures (Rudschies, 2022). As per Kouki (2020), the Ethics of Care theory further advocates investing in individuals’ dignity and well–being to recognize the relational and contextual aspects of humanitarian work, thus requiring an ethical approach that honors the rights and dignity of all stakeholders involved. Venturing into digital surveillance in humanitarian settings is complicated and implies methodological challenges, such as access, gatekeeper, and the researcher’s position. Such factors may skew the data obtained, resulting in unreliable research outcomes (Roberts and Faith, 2021)....