Privacy, ethics, and data access: A case study of the Fragile Families Challenge

Ian Lundberg, Arvind Narayanan, Karen Levy and Matthew Salganik
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Ian Lundberg: Princeton University
Arvind Narayanan: Princeton University
Karen Levy: Cornell University
Matthew Salganik: Princeton University

Working Papers from Princeton University, School of Public and International Affairs, Center for Research on Child Wellbeing.

Abstract: Stewards of social science data face a fundamental tension. On one hand, they want to make their data accessible to as many researchers as possible to facilitate new discoveries. At the same time, they want to restrict access to their data as much as possible in order to protect the people represented in the data. In this paper, we provide a case study addressing this common tension in an uncommon setting: the Fragile Families Challenge, a scientific mass collaboration designed to yield insights that could improve the lives of disadvantaged children in the United States. We describe our process of threat modeling, threat mitigation, and third-party guidance.We also describe the ethical principles that formed the basis of our process. We are open about our process and the trade-offs that we made in the hopes that others can improve on what we have done.

JEL-codes: F13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018-09
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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