News | Academics
Sociology professor's ethics under scrutiny
Sociology professor Sudhir Venkatesh is being audited by the University for improperly documented expenses, the New York Times reported. The Sex Workers Outreach Project of New York City also filed a complaint in 2011 claiming that his research methods were exploitative.
By Jeremy Budd • December 3, 2012 at 2:22 PM
By Jeremy Budd • December 3, 2012 at 2:22 PM
Sudhir Venkatesh, at a meeting of the Committee of Global Thought in March, is under audit by the University, the New York Times reported.
Sociology professor Sudhir Venkatesh has come under fire for improperly documenting his research expenses, the New York Times reported Saturday. But his accounting discrepancies are not the first concerns raised about his ethics, which had been questioned in a legal complaint filed by a sex workers advocacy group last year.
The Sex Workers Outreach Project of New York City lodged the complaint with the University's Institutional Review Board in October 2011, claiming that Venkatesh's research about sex workers in New York City was exploitative.
Spectator verified that the complaint was lodged last week. As of press time, SWOP could not be reached for comment, although a member of the organization confirmed that it had filed a complaint.
In a statement to Spectator, Venkatesh said, "I strongly disagree that I exploit the subjects of my research."
"I am motivated by providing accurate, objective knowledge about the world I study," he said. "But I study economically disadvantaged and socially marginal groups, so I am also motivated by providing information that enriches public understanding of their plight."
In January 2011, Wired Magazine published an article that Venkatesh wrote, "How Tech Tools Transformed New York's Sex Trade." The article explored how the Internet and mobile phones have changed how sex workers and their clients interact.
Venkatesh wrote that he followed 290 women for his research. "I spent at least 12 months earning their trust, trying not to ask a lot of prying questions. Once they realized I wasn't a cop or social worker, they usually told me their stories," he said in the article.
The recent allegations against Venkatesh question how honest his financial reporting was. The New York Times reported on Saturday that University auditors had been investigating $241,364.83 of Venkatesh's expenditures, $221,960 of which was considered insufficiently documented.
"Part of this work resulted in my reimbursement of approximately $13,000 of funds where I agreed that inadequate documentation was provided," Venkatesh said in the statement.
Venkatesh served as the director of the Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy from 2009 until this year. For those three years, he said, he "worked actively with the University administration to bring transparency and stability to the management of social science research and grants."
"The irony is that from 2010 onward I worked actively with the Arts & Sciences to restructure ISERP's management of grants and research," he said. "I repeatedly pointed out lax procedures that had long been the rule there and I called for a thorough review of all procedures on several occasions, in part because I was worried about the risks the University faced."
Venkatesh stepped down from leading ISERP to pursue a job he was already holding at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In October, then-Executive Vice President for Arts & Sciences Nicholas Dirks told Spectator that administrative turnover was part of a broader review of the organization.
"We are reassessing the nature of the institute, what its goals are, what its stakeholders are," he said. "We really needed to involve some new people and see how they felt about the future of the institute."
The Academic Review Committee, which periodically reviews Columbia's centers and institutes, decided to look at ISERP and "re-evaluate what and how it relates to different departments," Dirks said.
University spokesperson Robert Hornsby declined to comment.
Venkatesh is currently a member of Columbia's Committee on Global Thought and plans to teach next semester after spending this semester on parental leave.
"At the top of my list is the need to ensure the trust of my fellow students, faculty, and staff at Columbia and Barnard, and related institutions," he said. "My door is always open to this community and I will do my best to ensure that this trust is maintained."
jeremy.budd@columbiaspectator.com
Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that SWOP, rather than a member of SWOP, had confirmed that the group had filed a complaint. An earlier version of this article also stated that SWOP declined to comment. Spectator regrets the errors.
The Sex Workers Outreach Project of New York City lodged the complaint with the University's Institutional Review Board in October 2011, claiming that Venkatesh's research about sex workers in New York City was exploitative.
Spectator verified that the complaint was lodged last week. As of press time, SWOP could not be reached for comment, although a member of the organization confirmed that it had filed a complaint.
In a statement to Spectator, Venkatesh said, "I strongly disagree that I exploit the subjects of my research."
"I am motivated by providing accurate, objective knowledge about the world I study," he said. "But I study economically disadvantaged and socially marginal groups, so I am also motivated by providing information that enriches public understanding of their plight."
In January 2011, Wired Magazine published an article that Venkatesh wrote, "How Tech Tools Transformed New York's Sex Trade." The article explored how the Internet and mobile phones have changed how sex workers and their clients interact.
Venkatesh wrote that he followed 290 women for his research. "I spent at least 12 months earning their trust, trying not to ask a lot of prying questions. Once they realized I wasn't a cop or social worker, they usually told me their stories," he said in the article.
The recent allegations against Venkatesh question how honest his financial reporting was. The New York Times reported on Saturday that University auditors had been investigating $241,364.83 of Venkatesh's expenditures, $221,960 of which was considered insufficiently documented.
"Part of this work resulted in my reimbursement of approximately $13,000 of funds where I agreed that inadequate documentation was provided," Venkatesh said in the statement.
Venkatesh served as the director of the Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy from 2009 until this year. For those three years, he said, he "worked actively with the University administration to bring transparency and stability to the management of social science research and grants."
"The irony is that from 2010 onward I worked actively with the Arts & Sciences to restructure ISERP's management of grants and research," he said. "I repeatedly pointed out lax procedures that had long been the rule there and I called for a thorough review of all procedures on several occasions, in part because I was worried about the risks the University faced."
Venkatesh stepped down from leading ISERP to pursue a job he was already holding at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In October, then-Executive Vice President for Arts & Sciences Nicholas Dirks told Spectator that administrative turnover was part of a broader review of the organization.
"We are reassessing the nature of the institute, what its goals are, what its stakeholders are," he said. "We really needed to involve some new people and see how they felt about the future of the institute."
The Academic Review Committee, which periodically reviews Columbia's centers and institutes, decided to look at ISERP and "re-evaluate what and how it relates to different departments," Dirks said.
University spokesperson Robert Hornsby declined to comment.
Venkatesh is currently a member of Columbia's Committee on Global Thought and plans to teach next semester after spending this semester on parental leave.
"At the top of my list is the need to ensure the trust of my fellow students, faculty, and staff at Columbia and Barnard, and related institutions," he said. "My door is always open to this community and I will do my best to ensure that this trust is maintained."
jeremy.budd@columbiaspectator.com
Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that SWOP, rather than a member of SWOP, had confirmed that the group had filed a complaint. An earlier version of this article also stated that SWOP declined to comment. Spectator regrets the errors.
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