Assignment 2: Small-Scale Qualitative Research Project: Part 3

This week, you will confirm interview arrangements with an individual you plan to interview in Week 5. (You should have a backup interviewee in the event that your preferred interviewee becomes unavailable.) You may choose anyone who could provide information on your research topic and the problem you have identified in the problem statement. Before you confirm your interviewee, you must ensure you adhere to the following ethical requirements.

Review the Research Ethics Review Application as outlined in the IRB Application document, which can be found at the Application and General Materials website provided in your Learning Resources this week.

Walden University’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) is responsible for ensuring that all student, staff, and faculty research complies with the University’s ethical standards as well as U.S. federal regulations. Detailed information about the IRB process can be found at the Office of Research Integrity and Compliance website provided in your Learning Resources this week. The IRB process must be completed before you collect any data, including data from first-person interviews. However, for the purposes of this course, you will not need to complete the full IRB application process for your small-scale qualitative project. Please keep in mind that before you begin any collection of data for your own doctoral study, you will need to obtain approval from the IRB. Please take the time to familiarize yourself with this process.

Your small-scale qualitative research project for this course has been pre-approved by the IRB with the condition that all student researchers contain their research activities within the “minimal risk” category.

Requirements for “minimal risk” for this Assignment include:

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You may interview adults only, age 18 or older. Interviewees must be “adults who are not mentally or emotionally disabled or prisoners.”
You may NOT interview anyone over whom you hold supervisory responsibility.
You may NOT interview anyone in active military service.
You may NOT give payments, compensation, reimbursement, free services, extra credit or other gifts to participants.
You must de-identify the data relating to the participants and the institution where you will collect (if applicable) to minimize risk of inappropriate disclosure of personal information. De-identification consists of removing all direct identifiers, such as names, school names, locations, etc. from the interview transcript. Suggestions include Participant #1, #2, etc. and locations may be addressed by stating (for example, an IT firm located in a city in the southeast).
The IRB requirements for this Assignment are simplified for coursework purposes. These simplified requirements do not take the place of the IRB process that you must complete for your doctoral study. You will complete a full IRB application and review process in future semesters after your committee and the URR (University Research Reviewer) have approved your doctoral proposal. It is recommended that you review the IRB application in preparation.
The IRB process for this Assignment has restrictions that will not apply to your future doctoral study. For example, in this simplified, practice Assignment, you will not be allowed to interview minors or to conduct group interviews or focus groups. Obviously these restrictions will not apply to your future doctoral research. This is just practice, so we are keeping the IRB requirements simple.
After your Instructor approves your selected interviewee, then you may proceed to contact him or her. When you are transcribing your interview as part of a future Assignment in this course, be sure to delete all identifying information from the transcript. Do not include the interviewee’s name, names of anyone that the interviewee mentions, name of the school or organization where the interviewee works, etc. For example, you would change John Doe, to interviewee #1 and change New York City to a city in the northeast.
If you have any questions about the requirements for this Assignment, please contact your Instructor. Be sure to follow the Assignment rubrics.
For this Assignment:

Submit a 1- to 2-page statement identifying your research topic for your small-scale qualitative research project. Analyze the characteristics and qualifications of 2–3 potential individuals who you are considering interviewing in Week 5. Your analysis should include how these individuals have been involved in or can speak knowledgably about Information Technology and provide insights into your research topic. Justify your first choice from among these potential interviewees who you prefer to interview in Week 5. Participant information will be kept confidential. Remember to submit an APA formatted paper including a title page.

Length: 1–2 pages

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