[Air-l] New Book--Online Social Research

[Mark D. Johns]

Another shameless plug for a new book, just published by Peter Lang and now 
shipping:

Online Social Research: Methods, Issues, and Ethics (Digital Formations 
Series, Vol. 7 -- Steve Jones, Series Editor)
Edited by Mark D. Johns, Shing-Ling S. Chen, and G. Jon Hall   (C) 2004

Back cover:
Online Social Research: Methods, Issues, and Ethics is a collection of 
essays by veteran online researchers who provide testimonial illustrations 
as to how traditional research methods may be modified for effective online 
research as well as identify and discuss the critical issues and dilemmas 
encountered. The former serves as a resource for teachers, students, and 
researchers who utilize online environments for information gathering. The 
latter is designed to stimulate ongoing debates and creative ideas about an 
as yet nonregulated arena of research. Online Social Research addresses 
online research in the fields of communication, journalism, sociology, 
psychology, marketing, education, and medicine, as well as related 
disciplines that may have occasions to utilize surveys, interviews, and 
observations for information gathering in online environments. Since this 
book deals with methodological consideration, it is designed as a text for 
research methods classes as well as a resource for researchers.

Table of contents appears below.

------
Mark D. Johns, Ph.D.
Asst. Professor of Communication/Linguistics,
Luther College, Decorah, Iowa
http://faculty.luther.edu/~johnsmar/
-----------------------------------------------
"Get the facts first. You can distort them later."
     ---Mark Twain


Contents
Online Environments and Interpretive Social Research
         Norman K. Denzin, University of Illinois–Champaign-Urbana

Part I—Methods of Online Social Research
Introduction: Technological Environments and the Evolution of Social 
Research Methods
         Clifford G. Christians, University of Illinois–Champaign-Urbana; 
Shing-Ling Sarina Chen, University of Northern Iowa

Reengineering Focus Group Methodology for the Online Environment
         Matthew Williams, Cardiff University; Kate Robson, University of 
Wales College of Medicine

Researching OURNET: A Case Study of a Multiple Methods Approach
         Sharon S. Kleinman, Quinnipiac University

Managing Visibility, Intimacy, and Focus in Online Critical Ethnography
         Kathleen LeBesco, Marymount Manhattan College

“Seeing and Sensing” Online Interaction:
An Interpretive Interactionist Approach to USENET Support Group Research
         Mary K. Walstrom, Sonoma State University
Part II—Issues of Online Social Research
Introduction: Opportunities and Challenges in Methodology and Ethics
         Amy S. Bruckman, Georgia Tech

Surviving the IRB Review: Institutional Guidelines and Research Strategies
         Mark D. Johns, Luther College; G. Jon Hall, University of Northern 
Iowa; Tara Lynn Crowell, Richard Stockton College

Participants and Observers in Online Ethnography: Five Stories About Identity
         Lori Kendall, SUNY, Purchase

Representation in Online Ethnographies: A Matter of Context Sensitivity
         Annette N. Markham, University of Illinois at Chicago

Research Paparazzi in Cyberspace: The Voices of the Researched
         Shing-Ling Sarina Chen, G. Jon Hall, University of Northern Iowa; 
Mark D. Johns, Luther College

Part III—Ethics of Online Social Research
Introduction: Ethics and Internet Studies
         Steve Jones, University of Illinois at Chicago

Reexamining the Ethics of Internet Research: Facing the Challenge of 
Overzealous Oversight
         Jim Thomas, Northern Illinois University

Issues of Attribution and Identification in Online Social Research
         Susan B. Barnes, Rochester Institute of Technology

“Electronic Eavesdropping”: The Ethical Issues Involved in Conducting a 
Virtual Ethnography
         Katherine M. Clegg Smith, University of Illinois at Chicago

“NEED HELP ASAP!!!”: A Feminist Communitarian Approach to Online Research 
Ethics
         G. Jon Hall, University of Northern Iowa; Douglas Frederick, 
University of Iowa; Mark D. Johns, Luther College

Epilogue
Are We There Yet? Emerging Ethical Guidelines for Online Research
         Charles Ess, Drury University