games lab post...

Computer mediated research is any activity which seeks to produce knowledge through the mediation of computers or digital spaces.  I realize the breadth of this definition includes everything written on a computer, but I still think it holds up.  So many of the features of digital landscapes are those features irl that go unnoticed.  That's confusing.  What I mean to say is that thinking about traditionally researched topics in traditional spheres of inquiry can be radically changed and made more complicated with computers.  I don't know why I'm having so much trouble saying this.  Work with computers makes things visible that aren't quite visible in real life.  That said (finally), the visibility of certain features of digital landscapes changes the ethical responsibilities of the researcher.  Researchers need to be especially sensitive and wary of fields of ethical concern that may be novel or under represented in traditional research.  But they're still there.  Which is the point I keep trying to make...

The IRB form seemed pretty straightforward.  I appreciated the tone of the document, and that there seems to be an active attempt at making the rights of the children known to them.  In other words, there isn't a lot of tricky language.  At the same time, I wonder if the concepts of the form are still too subtle for an eighth grade mind.  I also wonder about money and why it doesn't appear in the form.