Online space increasingly permeates our day-to-day lives and we find ourselves communicating more through social networks, it is interesting to consider how the internet is affecting the way we perceive ourselves.
Offline, we are defined by our physicality, restricted by our bodies and our behaviours. The online space allows us to break free from these restrictions. If you are reading this it is likely you have an online presence of some sort. This could be a profile on a social network like Facebook or Twitter, an account on a forum or message-board, or a presence on Ebay or a dating website. It is also likely that, in one way or another, the way you present yourself on these sites differs in some way from the way you would present yourself in real life.
Our online lives allow us greater freedom – to be creative, to meet new people, but also to be antisocial, antagonistic and dishonest, often without consequence in the real world. Online research discussions are as susceptible to this as any other online platform. However, the suspension of social hierarchies affords us more confidence to be outspoken and to voice our opinions, which can be of major benefit to a research discussion.
Here at OnePoll we do most of our qualitative research online and are excited about the direction this approach is taking. When conducting research of this nature, it is important to make sure that the data collected is accurate and honest.
What follows are some basic principles to apply that will make sure your online environment is comfortable and will ensure good quality responses.
=> Create a safe environment - Firstly it is important to cultivate an online environment that feels safe, where participants won’t feel personally judged on their responses. At the recruiting stage you should design an articulation test to judge the engagement level of the participant. The way they write and present themselves will be an indication of their character – whether they are friendly and laid back, colloquial, or serious and factual. A mixture of both of these kinds of people is ideal for a qualitative research project. What needs to be avoided is rudeness and anti-social behavior which could make the other participants feel uncomfortable.
=> Minimize member bias - This is another element to consider when screening your participants. Your project will be on a certain subject; while you want your participants to have some knowledge in the area you are studying so they can contribute effectively, you also need to try and ensure that the people you pick for your project are not strongly linked or involved in the area of study. For example, if you are researching attitudes towards a number of supermarket chains it is important to the validity of your results to make sure that there aren't any supermarket employees present in your research community, as they may well have a biased opinion for one supermarket or another.
=> Manage the community - We like to think of all our online research projects as communities. An online community is like a social network. Over time your participants will form bonds and become more involved, but this may take time. That is why it is important that the community is managed correctly to help stem the conversation and tease out interesting discussion routes to help bring the community together. The researcher(s) managing the conversation need to be proactive in the discussions, always driving forward and encouraging the participants to get involved.
=> Explore different points of view
Build a fuller picture of the subject by questioning your participants from several different angles. This will help you to flesh out the minutiae of their feelings for the subject. Where a single-point approach may allow your participants to talk around the truth of their feelings, questioning from several angles will allow you to triangulate their answers for an accurate representation.
=> Use one-on-one interviews
Though the majority of subjects will be a suitable fit for an asynchronous online discussion, other more sensitive or taboo subjects may be better suited to an interview format. Speaking only to a researcher, the participant should feel more secure. Away from the rest of the group they have less reason to be dishonest in their answers. The researcher needs to be friendly, understanding but also assertive; this combination will help to create a productive relationship in the interview between interviewer and interviewee.
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