Crimes at sea—blue crimes—can have devastating impacts on small-scale fishing communities. Increasing calls to address “blue crimes” demand more research to address the drivers, patterns, actors and impacts of criminal activities in society and the oceans. This research and policy agenda, however, is not without risks as it might impact individual small-scale fishers and their communities, exacerbate existing inequalities and contribute to the criminalization of small-scale fishing practices. This paper discusses the risks and ethical challenges faced by a blue crimes research agenda to improve rather than worsen the plight of small-scale fishers. We identify eight inter-related ethical considerations: (i) pay attention to context and forms of involvement, (ii) cultivate reciprocal relationships and collaborations, (iii) evaluate and minimize risks, (iv) integrate storytelling and careful listening, (v) challenge reductionism, (vi) represent people, places, and practices carefully, (vii) follow communication ethics and (viii) consider the legal and policy implications. In light of a review of the literature on blue crimes and small-scale fisheries, we point to the need for ethically grounded research that is committed to reducing the associated burdens on small-scale fishers and their communities.

中文翻译：

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小规模渔业和蓝色犯罪研究的伦理考虑

海上犯罪——蓝色犯罪——会对小规模渔业社区造成毁灭性影响。解决“蓝色犯罪”的呼声越来越高，需要更多的研究来解决犯罪活动在社会和海洋中的驱动因素、模式、行为者和影响。然而，这项研究和政策议程并非没有风险，因为它可能会影响个体小规模渔民及其社区，加剧现有的不平等，并有助于将小规模捕鱼活动定为刑事犯罪。本文讨论了蓝色犯罪研究议程所面临的风险和伦理挑战，以改善而不是恶化小规模渔民的困境。我们确定了八个相互关联的道德考虑因素：(i) 注意参与的背景和形式，(ii) 培养互惠关系和合作，(iii) 评估和最小化风险，(iv) 将讲故事和仔细聆听相结合，(v) 挑战简化论，(vi) 仔细代表人物、地点和实践，(vii) 遵循沟通道德，以及 (viii) 考虑法律和政策影响。根据对蓝色犯罪和小规模渔业文献的回顾，我们指出需要进行以伦理为基础的研究，致力于减少小规模渔民及其社区的相关负担。