Consent In Qualitative Research

If you are conducting qualitative research the consent of a parent or legal guardian is mandatory (see the reference to Appendix “E” below); and the MRIA recommends that researchers use discretion and obtain the consent of the legally authorized adult before interviewing young people for other marketing research studies. In addition, , even in quantitative research study, whenever, a research study is dealing with a sensitive topic it is best practice to get the parental permission when dealing with young people.

Here are the relevant sections of the Code that address legally authorized adult consent with researcher interact with children, young people and persons with cognitive disability.

Introduction

Fundamentals of MRIA Code

3. Researchers

The consent of a parent, legal guardian or otherwise legally authorized adult is required before interviewing children. In the case of qualitative research, adult consent is required for persons under 16. Persons of any age with any kind of functional cognitive disability shall, for the purposes of this Code, be included in the category of “children” as herein defined.

h) Young people are defined as persons between 14 and 17 years of age, inclusive. The consent of a parent, legal guardian or otherwise legally authorized adult is recommended before interviewing young people. In the case of qualitative research, adult consent is required for persons under 18.

ARTICLE 8 – CHILDREN, YOUNG PEOPLE AND PEOPLE WITH FUNCTIONAL COGNITIVE DISABILITIES Researchers shall take an inordinate degree of care when interviewing children, young people and people with functional cognitive disabilities. The consent of the parent, legal guardian or otherwise legally authorized adult shall first be obtained before interviewing children or people with functional cognitive disabilities.

Appendix “E” Qualitative Research

5. Recruitment of Children and Young

This section highlights or applies guidelines pertinent to social media research.

All reasonable measures should be taken to ensure that verifiable and explicit permission is obtained from a parent, legal guardian or otherwise legally authorized adult (hereafter referred to as ‘parent’) to invite a child to participate in research, or to install an app on their mobile phone, although it is recognised that the identification of children, young people and those with a functional cognitive disability is not possible with certainty.

Prior parental permission is not required to:

• collect an email address solely to provide notice of data collection and request permission or

• collect the age of the child, “young person” or person with a “functional cognitive disability” for screening and exclusion purposes. If this screening leads to the decision that the person contacted does qualify for an interview, parental permission must then be sought to continue with the