Montemayor Benjamin N, DeLeon Joy, Owens Christopher
Texas A&M University, College Station, USA.
J Empir Res Hum Res Ethics. 2025 Jul;20(3):114-122. doi: 10.1177/15562646251347580. Epub 2025 Jun 2.
Many institutional review board (IRB) members often classify online sexual and behavioral health surveys as not meeting the minimal risk standard under the Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) due to concerns that answering sensitive or controversial topics may cause discomfort. However, college students' comfortability in responding to such topics remains unknown. Undergraduate college students ( = 123) were asked about their comfort level in answering online survey questions about their sexual behaviors, alcohol use, drug use, and mental health. Additionally, the study examined demographic differences in comfort levels. Few participants reported overall discomfort when answering online survey questions about their sexual and behavioral health, and minimal demographic differences were found. Some IRB members may overestimate the discomfort participants experience when answering surveys about sexual behaviors, substance use, and mental health. Findings support the argument that online sexual and behavioral health surveys may meet the CFR criteria for minimal risk.
许多机构审查委员会(IRB)成员常常将在线性健康和行为健康调查归类为不符合《联邦法规法典》(CFR)规定的最低风险标准,原因是担心回答敏感或有争议的话题可能会引起不适。然而,大学生在回答此类话题时的舒适度仍不明确。研究询问了123名本科大学生在回答关于他们性行为、饮酒、吸毒和心理健康的在线调查问卷时的舒适程度。此外,该研究还考察了舒适度方面的人口统计学差异。很少有参与者表示在回答关于他们性健康和行为健康的在线调查问卷时总体感到不适,并且发现人口统计学差异极小。一些机构审查委员会成员可能高估了参与者在回答关于性行为、物质使用和心理健康的调查时所经历的不适。研究结果支持这样一种观点,即在线性健康和行为健康调查可能符合CFR关于最低风险的标准。