'Netiquette' important for productive research

Editor's note: The Internet can be an extremely effective research tool. The following article was written by School of Journalism and Mass Communication Ph.D. student and fyi graduate assistant, Douglas J. Frederick. Although it is not typical of fyi articles, it contains information which may be useful to faculty and staff who are increasingly conducting research on the Internet.

The case

It seemed like an easy assignment. Sarah needed to conduct six interviews for a research methods class. Three were to be face-to-face interviews and three were to be through e-mail and the usenet newsgroups on the Internet.

The instructor, new to the Internet herself, gave the class a few tips on conducting research by means of the news-groups. The first tip she gave was to make sure to use a header that would grab attention when posting questions or surveys to the newsgroups. Then she suggested narrowing responses to three knowledgeable individuals with whom to conduct e-mail interviews.

Sarah, like many students, waited until the weekend before the assignment was due to conduct her Internet research. Her topic was eating disorders. Finding a newsgroup on depression, she posted a message that explained she was a student looking for information on eating disorders. Since the assignment was due in three days, and hoping to get a quick response, the subject header she used was "I need help ASAP!"

Sarah received quick responses, but they were not the responses she expected. Scathing messages were posted to the newsgroup and sent to her e-mailbox.

After receiving these flames, Sarah fired off another message to the newsgroup. "I HATE RUDE PEOPLE!!!!" read the header of her second message.

Before the flame wars ended, all faculty members in Sarah's major department and most upper-level administrators of the university (not The University of Iowa) had received a message notifying them of an "out-of-control" student from the university. The instructor of the class, who happened to be up for tenure, was embarrassed and upset over the incident.

Some problems

Although e-mail and the Internet have been with us for quite awhile, problems such as Sarah's can still arise for users.

One mistake Sarah made was poor self-presentation. The initial message, which contained many typos, gave the impression of a student failing to do her homework then looking for a quick way to "use" the newsgroups. This did not portray a credible and responsible researcher.

The nature of her questions was another problem for the newsgroup participants. Sarah's questions were rudimentary and the answers could easily be found in textbooks. This suggested that Sarah was a student who failed to take her research seriously and waited until the last minute to try to find some quick answers.

What really upset the newsgroup participants, however, was the header "I need help ASAP!" In the context of a support depression newsgroup, this alarmed the newsgroup community which swiftly reacted to supply support expecting she was seriously depressed. It would be similar to Sarah walking into a depression support group meeting and yelling "I need help now!"

Newsgroup participants were infuriated with Sarah's lack of courtesy and understanding of the newsgroup and sent replies which ridiculed and reprimanded her.

Sarah's second message "I HATE RUDE PEOPLE!!!!" was more fuel for the fire.

Eventually, after the instructor of the course posted an apology to the newsgroup, the situation was resolved.

Some suggestions

Sarah's instructor said that many things were learned during this ordeal. She admited that she will give better instructions to future students. Now she requires that students "okay" any messages pertaining to the class assignment with her before posting to the newsgroups.

Keeping track of how students complete class assignments is not an easy task. When it comes to utilizing the Internet for research, however, there may be more information available than realized.

Students and instructors should have an understanding of the culture and idiosyncrasies of the Internet, individual newsgroups, and e-mail. This medium cannot be treated the same as telephone or print questionnaires. It's unique, interactive, and ever-changing. An excellent starting point to provide understanding of this communication medium is to direct students to web "netiquette" sites, such as http://www.screen.com/start/guide/netiquette.html.

Individual newsgroups can be thought of as individual cultures, each with cultural norms, values, and rules. Sarah broke the cultural rules because she did not know them. To understand cultural norms and rules, many newsgroups provide posts of frequently asked questions (FAQs). Students should read these posts. Another suggestion is to have students pick a newsgroup and read two to three weeks of messages to find out what is and what is not acceptable.

E-mail has unique characteristics that also are commonly used in newsgroup posts. "Smileys" and acronyms are frequently used. These change the meaning of the textual messages. If the reader is not aware of the meaning, misinterpretation may occur. Students should be directed to web sites such as http://wellweb.com/behappy/smiley.htm to gain an understanding of how these symbols change meanings.

Instructors can never be fully aware of the research practices of their students. They should, however, try to make sure the students are using legal, ethical, and proper research methods. The Internet has taken on an ever-increasing role in conducting research. By getting students started right, many embarrassments may be avoided.

by Douglas J. Frederick