As investigators think about designing a research project, they may find it useful to use a survey or questionnaire as the best way to gather data from many participants in a short amount of time. Internet communities (such as mailing lists, chat rooms, newsgroups, or discussion boards on websites) are rich sources of qualitative data for researchers. The IRB believes that online and Internet-based research protocols must address potential risks (e.g., violation of privacy, legal risks, and psychosocial stress) and provide the same level of protection as any other types of research involving human participants.
Research involving online, cloud based and Internet-based platforms must ensure that the procedures fulfill the principles of voluntary participation and informed consent, maintain the confidentiality of information obtained from or about human participants, and adequately address possible risks to participants including psychosocial stress and related risks. Participation by minors must be addressed in the protocol application.
Please be sure to read UMBC’s Policy for Responsible Computing while an IRB application and subsequent survey design is being created.
The following guidelines are offered to help researchers plan, propose, and implement on-line or Internet research:
Recruitment:
Online and internet-based procedures for advertising and recruiting study participants (e.g., internet advertising, e-mail solicitation) must follow the IRB guidelines for recruitment that apply to any traditional media, such as newspapers and bulletin boards.
Data Collection:
It is strongly recommended that data collected from human participants over computer networks be transmitted in encrypted format. This helps insure that any data intercepted during transmission cannot be decoded and that individual responses cannot be traced back to an individual respondent. The highest level of data encryption should be employed, within the limits of availability and feasibility. Participants may be required to use a specific type or version of browser software.
Data Storage:
All personal identifying information should be kept separate from the data, and data should be stored in encrypted format. Researchers are advised to use pseudonyms when reporting results. When a survey platform server is used for data storage, personal identifying information should be kept separate from the data, and data should be stored in encrypted format. Note the use of Social Security Numbers is not permitted. It’s recommended that data backups be stored in a safe location, such as a secure campus lab that has limited access. Portable data storage medium present challenges with data security, loss or theft – be sure to justify in a protocol application why such devices would be used and how often backups will be stored in a secure area. The IRB also recommends that data destruction be performed by a qualified service to ensure that no data can be recovered from obsolete electronic media
Observation of Internet activity:
This usually involves such activities as gathering information about the use of the Internet, recording user information or users’ comments. Examples include: participant observation of an on-line discussion group, using “cookies” to track web sites visited, or asking visitors to a web site to provide demographic information. The human subjects issues involved in this type of research generally involve consent/disclosure issues. Investigators need to indicate to the IRB how they intend to obtain the subjects’ consent to use this information for research. As with other types of participant observation, investigators generally must disclose their role as researchers to the group participants.
Confidentiality or Anonymity:
Researchers conducting web-based research should be careful not to make guarantees of confidentiality or anonymity, as the security of online transmissions is in question. Investigators need to address how they intend to assure confidentiality, keeping in mind that the degree of concern over confidentiality is directly related to the sensitivity of the data. Data transmitted via e-mail cannot be anonymous without the use of additional steps. Because respondents’ electronic addresses are typically provided when they return such surveys by e-mail, PIs should devise a plan for stripping such information to maintain the confidentiality and anonymity of respondents’ names.
The researcher should also state how the confidentiality of the data will be maintained. Data submitted over the web can only be anonymous if software is used to store the information directly in a database without identifiers; otherwise identifiers are attached to the data. Web servers automatically store a great deal of personal information about visitors to a web site and that information can be accessed by others.
Informed Consent:
For anonymous web-based surveys, participants would still need to be presented with the consent information and level of potential risk as a result of participating in the research, but would be informed that their consent is implied by submitting the completed survey. Other web-based surveys must include “I agree” or “I do not agree” buttons on the website for participants to click their choice of whether or not they consent to participate. A cover letter/consent page should indicate that by clicking on a “I agree” link, subjects are consenting to participate. This page should also include an e-mail address in addition to a telephone number to withdraw consent and remove data, to the extent possible, upon request of the respondent.
UMBC Consent Templates
Web-Based Survey Consent | Instructions
E-mail solicitations requesting participation in a study should contain a version of the approved cover letter and consent forms. Participants must be informed that by replying to the e-mail and completing the requested task(s) constitutes consent. With all of the above cases, researchers must request a Waiver of Written Informed Consent from the IRB, documenting how and why written consent would not be appropriate, and what format will be used to provide consent information to participants.
Debriefing Process for Online Surveys
Some research requires a debriefing after participants have completed an online survey. These debriefing forms should be similar to the debriefing process done during in-lab experiments. A debriefing page should come immediately after the last question on the survey. Participants should be thanked for participation and more information as to the purpose of the study should be provided. If required, researchers should include contact information and information about other resources (e.g., Health Services, UMBC Resources).
On-line Survey Platform Recommendations
The use of survey platforms, such as SurveyMonkey, Qualtrics, Amazon MTurk or other online survey tools is permitted for minimal risk studies that do not involve the collection of sensitive data. The IRB recommends that data be transmitted in a secure format, preferably formats which offers SSL encryption. Check the survey platform provider resources to determine how to create surveys and for encryption techniques that would be used in collecting data for a research project.
Further reading:
Association for the Advancement of Science, Ethical and Legal Aspects of Human Subjects Research on the Internet
Association of Internet Researchers, Ethical decision-making and Internet research
American Psychological Association, Psychological Research Online: Report of Board of Scientific Affairs’ Advisory Group on the Conduct of Research on the Internet
Ethical guidelines for research online, http://www.cc.gatech.edu/~asb/ethics/.
Internet Research Guidance, Rutgers Office of Research Regulatory Affairs, https://orra.rutgers.edu/internet-research