Research Consent Form

Blogging and the Creation of Online Feminist Networks

Interview Consent Form

GW IRB Reference number: 110601

Principal Investigator: Cynthia Deitch, Associate Professor of Women’s Studies, Sociology, and Public Policy
& Associate Director of the Women’s Studies Program
Principal Contact: Elizabeth M. Curtis, M.A. Candidate in the Women’s Studies Program /Tel.: (202)994-6224

1) INTRODUCTION

We invite you to take part in a research study under the direction of Associate Professor Cindy Deitch and M.A.
Candidate Elizabeth M. Curtis of the Women’s Studies Program of the George Washington University.
First, we want you to know that:
• Taking part in research is entirely voluntary.
• You may choose not to take part in this study or you may withdraw from the study at any time.
• You may receive no benefit from taking part. The research may give us knowledge that may help
people in the future.
Now we will describe this research study. Before you decide to take part, please take as much time as you
need to ask any questions and to discuss this study with family or friends. Before you signify your acceptance of
the conditions outlined in this form by signing it, be sure that you understand what the study is about.

2) WHY IS THIS STUDY BEING DONE?

You are being asked to take part in this study because you expressed interest in blogging and feminism by
posting comments on A Blog Without a Bicycle.
The purpose of this study is to learn more about the formation of feminist networks online through blogging.
The research will be conducted online via comments provided by readers of A Blog Without a Bicycle and email
and instant messenger conversations.
The number of individuals who will participate in this study will be determined by the number of individuals
who volunteer to participate in the study. We anticipate that between 10-25 individuals will participate. Please
note that you must be at least eighteen years old to participate in this study.

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3) WHAT IS INVOLVED IN THE STUDY?

If you choose to take part in this study, this is what will happen:

The study will take place in two parts. In the first part, you will comment on A Blog Without A Bicycle. In the
second part, you will participate in an interview with a researcher via email or instant messenger. The two parts
of the study are described in detail below.
Part 1: Comment(s) – You have already completed this part of the study at this time.
• You began your participation in this study when you commented on A Blog Without a Bicycle.
• You provided information that allowed the researchers to contact you in your comments and a
researcher followed up with you to see if you were interested in participating in a short, 10-
question interview about blogging and feminist communities online. You can expect to spend
approximately one-hour participating in this interview, but you can elect to spend more or less
time participating in the project. After reviewing this consent form, you may choose to decline
to participate in this interview.
Part 2: Interview
• If you decide to participate in an interview, you will have the option to be identified in the report
of the research by your online identity or to remain anonymous (specify your preference in part
11).
• After you complete this interview, the researcher may contact you to follow-up. You can decline
to participate in additional conversations with the interviewer or you may continue to engage in
dialogue with the interviewer in whatever manner you prefer and for as long as you would like.

4) WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF THE STUDY?

No foreseeable risks are anticipated for participants in this study.

5) ARE THERE BENEFITS TO TAKING PART IN THE STUDY?

You may receive no benefit from taking part. The research may give us knowledge that may help people in the
future.

6) WHAT ARE MY OTHER OPTIONS?

You do not have to be in this study if you do not want to. To opt out of participating in this study, merely
refrain from commenting on A Blog Without a Bicycle. Posting on A Blog Without a Bicycle signifies your
agreement to participate in the study; if you do not want to participate in the study, do not post comments on a
Blog Without a Bicycle.

7) WHAT IF I CHANGE MY MIND?

You may stop taking part in this study at any time.

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8) WILL I RECEIVE PAYMENT FOR BEING IN THIS STUDY?

You will not be paid for taking part in this study.

9) WHAT ARE THE COSTS FOR PART IN THIS STUDY?

Taking part in this study will not lead to added costs to you.

10) OTHER INFORMATION YOU NEED TO KNOW

Confidentiality. When results of this research study are reported in Elizabeth Curtis’s M.A. thesis, academic
journals, or at scholarly meetings, the people who take part will have a choice about whether or not they would
like to be identified by their online identity. Your original thoughts, or intellectual property, will be protected
and your ideas will be attributed to you using the attribution (ie, legal name, blog title, online identity,
pseudonym, etc) you prefer. Again, if you would prefer to remain anonymous, a pseudonym can be used to
attribute any information you made that are included in written reports of this study and your identity will
remain confidential. Please clearly designate how you would like to be identified in written reports of this study
in Section 11.
Taking you off the study: The investigators can decide to withdraw you from the study at any time. The
investigators reserve the right to decide what data (in the form of comments or information obtained from
interviews) will be included in the study or in publications of the information gained in the study. Your
comments and/or interview may or may not be fully or partially included in publications based on this study.
Any comments or information you provide that is included will be attributed to you in the way that you specify.
Problems or Questions. The Office of Human Research of George Washington University, at telephone
number (202) 994-2715, can provide further information about your rights as a research subject. Further
information regarding this study may be obtained by contacting Elizabeth M. Curtis, the M.A. student
conducting this research as a part of her thesis, at telephone number (202) 994-6224 or by email at
ecurtis@gwu.edu.
Consent Document. Please keep a copy of this document in case you want to read it again.

If you agree to participate in this interview, please sign below:

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11) DOCUMENTATION OF CONSENT

I understand the information included in this form. I have asked any questions that I have about this study, its risks and
potential benefits, and my options for participating in it with Elizabeth M. Curtis, the primary contact. My questions so
far have been answered. My comment(s) on A Blog Without a Bicycle indicate(s) my willingness to participate in this
study, my understanding that I can withdraw at any time, and my assertion that I am at least eighteen years old.
Further, my signature below indicates my willingness to participate in an interview and my understanding that I can stop
this interview at any time.

Please “sign” below by typing your name (or initials, if you would like more privacy) below. If you would like
to be identified in reports of this research by your online identity, please write that name below as well. If you
would like your comments to remain anonymous, instead write “anonymous.” If you would like to remain
anonymous, you can select the pseudonym that will be used to refer to you by writing it on this form; otherwise,
a pseudonym will be assigned to you. If you select to remain anonymous, your identity will be kept confidential.

__________________________________________________ _______________
Subject’s Signature (name or initials) Date

__________________________________________________ _______________
Subject’s Preferred Attribution (ie, name, online identity, Date
anonymous, pseudonym, etc)

__________________________________________________ _______________
Signature of Person Obtaining Consent Date

__________________________________________________ _______________
Principal Investigator’s Signature Date

DO NOT SIGN AFTER THE EXPIRATION DATE OF: 1/31/2008

A P P R O V E D
The George Washington University
Institutional Review Board

·FWA00005945·

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