Abstract: Establishing a connection to research participants online requires specific reflections and preparations. This chapter goes through the social and technical connections that need to be made when involving online communities into research: How do I connect to the group I seek to involve? With what technology is it possible to build relationships and how do they encourage participants to engage? These questions are key to reflexive processes that consider how technologies co-shape the observations and connections that can be made, as well as the information one is able to collect.
You can read the full chapter here.