Abstract
Institutional Review Boards often raise concerns about qualitative research with vulnerable populations such as crime victims, and assume that research with vulnerable populations will be distressing for participants. It is therefore vital to examine whether participants do in fact experience adverse effects stemming from their participation. The existing research is clear that some members of vulnerable populations do feel distressed when they participate in research; however, in most cases, this distress is outweighed by the benefits of participation, such as a sense of having contributed to community awareness raising. This literature is, however, predominantly quantitative. In addition, it overwhelmingly focuses on violent trauma, providing no insight into participants’ experiences of research on non-violent traumatic events. The current study addresses these shortcomings by examining the research participation experiences of victims of online fraud. Specifically, an online questionnaire designed to elicit qualitative data was administered to victims of online fraud who had previously participated in a semi-structured qualitative interview. Among other findings, the study suggests that perceptions about the outcomes of research, in addition to the research process, influence victims’ satisfaction with their participation in qualitative research.