Recruiting research participants with social media: A proposal for a body of knowledge

Using the internet for prima data collection is now widely recognized as a legitimate way to conduct research whether by scholars or practitioners. Social media, in particular, has made it possible to easily and quickly advertise studies to large pools of participants around the world for both online or offline research. In addition, this type of recruiting is appealing because of the cost, time, and convenience benefits. However, few empirical studies have been conducted about this growing area of research recruitment. To address the lack of information about this type of recruiting, this paper proposes the creation of a body of knowledge that leverages results from empirical studies, best practices, and ethical considerations based on changing social trends to best exploit the rich potential of this burgeoning technology while maintaining high research standards and minimizing risk to potential participants.