There are innumerable possible models of research design that would not require informed consent in this situation. Informed consent is usually only required when there is some harm that must be agreed to, but it is easy to conceive of any number of situations where this data collection leads to nothing that requires informed consent. It isn't ethically anything, until you understand the whole design. Also remember the ethical standards are generated from different principles than harm in many Scandinavian countries as noted in the first set of AoIR guidelines, so your instincts of informed consent might not be quite fitting. So let's not 'throw the baby out with the bathwater' and instead try to answer the specific question if we can. -- jeremy hunsinger Associate Professor Communication Studies Wilfrid Laurier University Collaboratory for Digital Discourse and Culture Virginia Tech www.tmttlt.com () ascii ribbon campaign - against html mail /\ - against microsoft attachments http://www.stswiki.org/ sts wiki http://transdisciplinarystudies.tmttlt.com/ Transdisciplinary Studies:the book series I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. -Pablo Picasso