ERIC Number: EJ1143363
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017-May
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1531-7714
EISSN: N/A
The Use of Reddit as an Inexpensive Source for High-Quality Data
Jamnik, Matthew R.; Lane, David J.
Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, v22 n5 May 2017
Today, researchers have the ability to conduct their investigations in a number of different manners, including both traditional testing using university subject pool participants and the more recent method of online recruitment. Although the use of internet participants is becoming more popular, this area of research is still very much in its infancy and needs further examination. Additionally, alternative web-based platforms need to be investigated because much of the literature has focused on using Amazon.com's Mechanical Turk (MTurk). Therefore, the current study recruited an internet population using the website Reddit, and compared them to a traditional undergraduate sample to learn more about this web-based platform. The results demonstrated similarities and distinctions between the two samples. Furthermore, previous findings in the psychological well-being literature were replicated. As a whole, the participants recruited from Reddit provided high-quality data that were inexpensive and comparable to the responses gathered using undergraduate participants. We conclude that this website appears to be a promising tool for the field of psychological assessment, research, and evaluation.
Descriptors: Web Sites, Internet, Recruitment, Comparative Analysis, Undergraduate Students, Well Being, Psychological Evaluation, Research Methodology, Stress Variables, Life Satisfaction, Measures (Individuals), Participant Characteristics, Correlation, Statistical Analysis
Center for Educational Assessment. 813 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01002. e-mail: pare@umass.edu; Tel: 413-577-2180; Web site: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/pare
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A