The Internet as a medium for qualitative research

Abstract:  With an estimated 200 million Internet users, the Internet has created communities that would /could not have formed otherwise providing access to interdisciplinary, heterogeneous groups. New modes of contacting research subjects as well as the social mobility provided by the new technologies confronts researchers with the need to revisit concepts such as interview, subject, field site, and informed consent. This paper will identify and elaborate these and other issues around using the Internet as a medium for qualitative research. The questions addressed by the paper include: What are the specific strengths and limitations of the Internet together with its related synchronous and asynchronous and both ?push ? and ?pull ? services that might impact on it as a research medium? What bearing does the global nature of the Internet as well as the changing technology have on ethical issues such as ensuring privacy and confidentiality, distinguishing between private vs. public information, incorporating informed consent without confounding the dynamics of the on-line target group and providing full disclosure of the possible risks when these may be changing as the technology advances? With an anticipated billion Internet users by 2005, what are the implications for sampling given the rapidly changing demographics of those who