IMPOSTER PARTICIPANTS IN QUALITATIVE RESEARCH: AN EVER- INCREASING CHALLENGE

Problem

Recruitment and data collection in qualitative research have increasingly moved online after Covid-19. Remote data collection can be as rich as in-person approaches and has the benefit of increasing accessibility to underserved communities and saving time and cost to researchers.In our research about the experiences of menopause in underserved women, it became apparent there were imposter participants during recruitment and remote data collection. This compromised data was analysed within the team and was eventually excluded from the study. From scoping the literature, the issue of imposter participants in qualitative research is not new but is on the rise. There is a lack of guidance in how to tackle this increasing problem that needs to be addressed to optimise the trustworthiness of qualitative data. We aim to review current literature, share our reflections on the impact of imposter participants, highlight ethical considerations and create a toolkit that can be transferable to qualitative research in all settings.

Approach

We conducted a scoping review of imposter participants in qualitative research and realised this was a problem for nearby institutions. We reached out to qualitative researchers in primary care from the Universities of Oxford, Birmingham and Keele and have formed a cross-organisational steering group with PPIE members. As part of our due diligence, the issue of imposter participants was highlighted to ethical committees.We aim to collate and reflect upon our experiences with imposter participants, discuss themes, and create a toolkit. We will highlight ethical considerations such as safeguarding and the balance between accessibility and gatekeeping in research methods.

Findings

The first meeting for the steering group is scheduled in two weeks. The agenda for the meeting is to reflect on current literature and our experiences of imposter participants. We intend to meet monthly addressing a different aim within the project.As the group is cross-organisational, we have diverse experiences of this issue in academic primary care. We aim for the findings to be published and shared within our networks to increase awareness of the issue with tangible considerations for future research practices.

Consequences

From the literature, we know that imposter participants in qualitative research can significantly impact the trustworthiness of the data. It can negatively impact on the practicalities of conducting research such as finances, researchers time and effort, and feasibility of continuing a study.We aim to increase transparency and awareness of this ever-increasing problem in qualitative research through our shared experiences. We intend for the toolkit to be shared widely in our academic networks to minimise the impact of imposter participants on qualitative research methods. This is vital to optimise the trustworthiness of the data and to safeguard researchers and participants. We aim to highlight the ethical considerations and areas of future research.