Fraudulent Participation in Online Qualitative Studies
Practical Recommendations on an Emerging Phenomenon
Bibliographic Data
Fraudulent participation is defined in the following as participation in research by individuals who, for one reason or another, intentionally provide false responses. Qualitative studies are at an increased risk of fraudulent participation when online recruitment and participation are used, and monetary incentives offered. Fraudulent participation threatens data quality and subsequent evidence-based practice, yet validated guidance on how to tackle it is lacking. This paper offers a critical reflection thereon by three separate qualitative research groups that experienced fraudulent participation in collaboration with a patient representative, a bioethicist, a legal expert, a journal deputy editor, and a chief executive of a national charity. The Prevent FRaudulent Online STudy participation (P-FROST) recommendations provide advice on (1) Study set-up (including team members and study design), (2) Monetary incentives and recruitment, (3) Data collection (screening and interview considerations), and (4) Analysis, reporting, and support. The reflection which balances the diverse perspectives of patients, researchers, funders, ethics boards, and legal teams puts forward the P-FROST recommendations to identify and prevent fraudulent participation throughout the design, ethical approval, and implementation of online qualitative research
Critical reflection · Incentive · Medical education · Political science · Public relations · Qualitative research · Sociology · Ethics in Clinical Research · Focus Groups and Qualitative Methods · Medicine · Psychology · Qualitative Research Methods and Ethics
Suspected Impostor Participants in Online Qualitative Interviews
Fraudulent participation in online qualitative leisure research
Not fearful, but cautious
Participants or pretenders? Addressing the challenge of inauthentic participation encountered during three social research studies on experiences of food insecurity in the UK
Re‐Thinking the Imposter Participant
Identifying and managing fraudulent participants
Safeguarding engagement with under-represented groups
Mitigating the risk of imposter participants in qualitative research
Recruitment Strategies to Prevent Fraudulent Virtual Enrollment While Respecting Privacy in Vulnerable Populations
Detecting and Preventing Imposter Participants
Moving Beyond Red Flags for Imposter Participants
Conducting Internet-Based HIV/STD Prevention Survey Research
Detecting, Preventing, and Responding to “Fraudsters” in Internet Research
‘Imposter participants’ in online qualitative research, a new and increasing threat to data integrity
Intimacy, rapport, and exceptional disclosure
Suspicious and fraudulent online survey participation
Skype as a Tool for Qualitative Research Interviews
Changes in Participant Interactions. Using Focus Group Analysis Methodology to Explore the Impact on Participant Interactions of Face-to-Face Versus Online Video Data Collection Methods
It's More Complicated Than It Seems
Pixilated partnerships, overcoming obstacles in qualitative interviews via Skype
| Unique citing works | 11 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 11 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2026 (2) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 8 |