Market Research: Foundations to Practice · Research Ethics, Privacy, and Compliance
The ICC/ESOMAR Code
The industry's leading self-regulatory framework was substantially updated in 2025, specifically to address AI's growing role in research. This chapter covers what the code requires and why it was revised now.
The ICC/ESOMAR International Code of Conduct, maintained jointly by the International Chamber of Commerce and ESOMAR, sets globally recognized ethical standards for market, opinion, and social research, covering informed consent, participant privacy, honest and transparent reporting, and professional conduct expected of researchers operating across the many different countries in which ESOMAR maintains an active member presence [33].
Key Takeaways
- The ICC/ESOMAR International Code of Conduct sets global ethical standards for research, covering informed consent, privacy, honest reporting, and professional conduct.
- The 2025 code update specifically addresses AI, synthetic data, and secondary data use, requiring maintained human oversight over increasingly automated processes.
- New 2025 provisions include data minimization (collecting only what's needed) and a strengthened duty of care for children and vulnerable populations.
- National research associations formally adopt the code, with local professional standards committees enforcing it within their own country's research industry.