In this article we discuss some of the ethical dimensions of design-based research, which we believe should feature more prominently in CSCL scholarship. We begin by sketching out why it is important for CSCL researchers to articulate their visions of the good and how this can be accomplished in a systematic way. We then outline how ethical discourses can take shape at the various stages of design-based research and how the ethical and empirical dimensions of DBR can inspire and shape one another. These considerations can help CSCL researchers move closer to consider how sociopolitical issues feature in their work, as has been increasingly called on by scholars.