Who Are Your Anonymous Respondents?

We feel strongly that people who give us information through surveys, in-depth interviews, or focus group deserve a promise that this will never happen to them:

One of the tenets of rigorous market research is that respondent confidentiality is key.  Why?  Primarily because it benefits you as a client.  To make smart decisions, you need honest and thoughtful information from your customers and constituents.  In most cases, your customers want to give us that information (because they want you to do a better job) as long as it won’t come back to haunt them.

Versta Research adheres to the professional standards and ethics guidelines for privacy as outlined by the Insights Association, AAPOR, and other industry organizations to which we belong.  The following two statements nicely summarize our views and approach:

“Researchers must ensure that data obtained for purposes of research are not used to reveal the identity of the research subject without their consent.” From the Insights Association Code of Standards & Ethics for Market Research and Data Analytics.

“We will not disclose any information that could be used, alone or in combination with other reasonably available information, to identify participants with their data, without participant permission.” From the AAPOR (American Association for Public Opinion Research) Code of Professional Ethics & Practices.

If you need help deciding whether your research plan and approach appropriately protect the privacy of those participating in the research, we would be happy to advise.  We have deep experience with these issues in market research, membership research, political polling, and academic IRB (Institutional Review Board) mandates governing research under federal funding.

—Joe Hopper, Ph.D.