Respondent Debriefing

Respondent debriefing is a procedure that sometimes is carried out at the end of a survey's data collection phase. That is, when an individual participant has completed all aspects of the survey, debriefing occurs for that person. Debriefing is usually provided in the same format as the survey itself, that is, paper and pencil, online, or verbally via telephone. There are two major reasons that a researcher may want to debrief respondents: (1) The researcher may want to gather feedback from the respondent about the respondent's experience participating in the study or about more details concerning the topic of the survey, and (2) the researcher may have used some form of deception as part of the study and will use the debriefing to inform the respondent of this and try to undo any harm the deception may have caused the respondent.

Typically, the debriefing begins with a statement of gratitude for the participation of the respondent. This is followed by a brief restatement of the objective of the survey that would have initially been provided to the participant at the time that informed consent was being sought. Third, an overview of the tasks completed during the survey is given. Fourth, a very general statement of what will be done with all participants' responses is provided. Fifth, the participant is given the chance to request a report of the results of the survey when data analysis is complete, and contact information must be collected so that the results of the survey can be provided the participant.

In addition, appropriate referrals relative to the nature of the survey should be provided. For example, in research into depression among college students, some researchers provide appropriate referrals, including the campus counseling center and the local county mental health agency. Finally, the name of the principal investigator is provided, as well as his or her contact information, in the event that the respondent would need to communicate a concern or ask questions about the survey; contact information should include office phone number, work email address, and office address.

After data analysis has been completed, either a report of the survey results is mailed to survey participants or the results of the survey are published on a Web site to which survey participants are provided the Web address, perhaps via postcard or email.

In the event that the research involved the use of deception, the debriefing phase must also attempt to undo the effect of the deception by acknowledging that false information was given to some survey participants. Those who were deceived must be told that fact, regardless of how slight the harm may be in the eyes of the researcher.