Are Benefits of Participation Higher Than Risks? An Exploration of Reactions to Participation in Research on Intimate Partner Stalking Among College Young Adults

Abstract

Ethical guidelines dictate that research studies should present more benefit than harm to participants, thus, it is important to study participants’ reactions to participation, particularly in the context of potentially traumatic topics. While several studies have indicated that positive evaluations of research typically outweigh perceived harms among survivors of physical, sexual, or psychological intimate partner violence, few studies have assessed survivors of intimate partner stalking (IPS) or unwanted pursuit behaviors (UPBs). Among 602 undergraduates (78% women), the present study examined reactions to research participation in a study on IPS/UPBs. Results indicated that, among victims and non-victims of IPS, positive global evaluations and perceived benefits outweighed negative emotional reactions and perceived drawbacks to participation. While some participants (7.5%) reported emotional reactions to participation, most, on average, evaluated the study positively (94.4%), many reported benefits (45.5%), and just one (0.2%) reported drawbacks. Emotional reactions were positively correlated with both drawbacks and benefits of participation. Frequency of UPBs/IPS and IPV were positively correlated with emotional reactions to participation; however, when included in a model with psychological distress (i.e., post-traumatic stress disorder and depressive symptoms), symptom frequencies were more strongly related to reactions to research than victimization variables. In all, research on IPS/UPBs appears to be evaluated generally positively and can likely be undertaken safely when using safeguards to inform participants and debrief them following participation.