Internet-Based Research - SBE
Consent to participate in research is an ongoing process. Which of the following strategies would help ensure that participation in a survey about a sensitive personal topic remains voluntary throughout a study? Including the institution's privacy policy on the survey site. Giving examples in the consent process of the kinds of questions that will be asked. Designing the survey so that subjects are not forced to answer one question before going to the next. Providing a thorough debriefing at the end of the study.
Designing the survey so that subjects are not forced to answer one question before going to the next.
Which of the following examples of using the internet to conduct research meets the federal definition of research with human subjects? Gathering data to supplement an oral history project about a local civil rights activist. The activist passed away while the researcher was in the process of conducting in-person interviews with the individual's social network. Analyzing a website visitor report from several pro-anorexia blogs to determine the popularity of each blog. Access to the blogs is not restricted. Downloading a publicly available dataset that includes high school students' academic achievement rates. The data are in aggregate and were derived from multiple school districts from different states. Conducting an on-line focus group with cancer survivors to determine familial support systems. The researcher also invites subjects' significant others to be a part of the focus group.
Conducting an on-line focus group with cancer survivors to determine familial support systems. The researcher also invites subjects' significant others to be a part of the focus group.
To minimize potential risks of harm, a researcher conducting an on-line survey can:
Design the survey so that no direct or indirect identifiers are collected.
Researchers endeavoring to conduct an on-line study should consider that there are some potential risks of harm to subjects unique to internet-based research. One of these risks is: Recruiting, consenting and debriefing subjects takes place on-line, and may require little to no interaction with the subjects. People assume pseudonymous on-line identities, such as an avatar in an MMORPG. Online studies do not require the documentation of informed consent. Individuals may post private identifiable information about themselves on-line without intending it to be public and available to researchers.
Individuals may post private identifiable information about themselves on-line without intending it to be public and available to researchers.
Which of the following methods could be considered a "best practice" in terms of informing respondents how their answers to an on-line survey about personal information will be protected? Respondents are informed that investigators will try to keep their participation confidential; however, confidentiality cannot be assured. Respondents are informed that a research assistant will transfer all the research data to a password-protected computer that is not connected to the internet, via a USB flashdrive. The computer is located in a research team member's office. The investigator uses the informed consent process to explain her institution's method for guaranteeing absolute confidentiality of research data. The investigator uses the informed consent process to explain how respondent data will be transmitted from the website to his encrypted database without ever recording respondents' IP addresses, but explains that on the internet confidentiality cannot be absolutely guaranteed.
The investigator uses the informed consent process to explain how respondent data will be transmitted from the website to his encrypted database without ever recording respondents' IP addresses, but explains that on the internet confidentiality cannot be absolutely guaranteed
