Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys

Sampling is fundamental to the credibility of any empirical investigation, and this is no different for populations with an invisible stigma (such as sexual orientation, illness or disability). The purpose of this paper is therefore to provide an empirical assessment of the strengths of web surveys...

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Main Authors: Trau, Raymond, Härtel, C., Härtel, G.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2013
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/27521
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author Trau, Raymond
Härtel, C.
Härtel, G.
author_facet Trau, Raymond
Härtel, C.
Härtel, G.
author_sort Trau, Raymond
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Sampling is fundamental to the credibility of any empirical investigation, and this is no different for populations with an invisible stigma (such as sexual orientation, illness or disability). The purpose of this paper is therefore to provide an empirical assessment of the strengths of web surveys over hard-copy surveys in conducting research targeting groups with an invisible stigma. Using a sample of gay men, this study demonstrates that when employed with a broad-based recruitment strategy web surveys increase rather than reduce sampling coverage for invisible stigmatized populations. Further, we provide evidence that the web survey technique can yield data of comparable quality to that obtained with a hard-copy survey. The paper concludes with strategies researchers and organizations can adopt to overcome barriers in obtaining a diverse sample when using web surveys and can be used by organizations as a mechanism for creating an inclusive culture by ‘listening to the voices’ of individuals belonging to an invisible stigmatized group.
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T08:06:12Z
publishDate 2013
publisher Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-275212017-02-28T01:47:31Z Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys Trau, Raymond Härtel, C. Härtel, G. Sampling is fundamental to the credibility of any empirical investigation, and this is no different for populations with an invisible stigma (such as sexual orientation, illness or disability). The purpose of this paper is therefore to provide an empirical assessment of the strengths of web surveys over hard-copy surveys in conducting research targeting groups with an invisible stigma. Using a sample of gay men, this study demonstrates that when employed with a broad-based recruitment strategy web surveys increase rather than reduce sampling coverage for invisible stigmatized populations. Further, we provide evidence that the web survey technique can yield data of comparable quality to that obtained with a hard-copy survey. The paper concludes with strategies researchers and organizations can adopt to overcome barriers in obtaining a diverse sample when using web surveys and can be used by organizations as a mechanism for creating an inclusive culture by ‘listening to the voices’ of individuals belonging to an invisible stigmatized group. 2013 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/27521 Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. restricted
spellingShingle Trau, Raymond
Härtel, C.
Härtel, G.
Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys
title Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys
title_full Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys
title_fullStr Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys
title_full_unstemmed Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys
title_short Reaching and Hearing the Invisible: Organizational Research on Invisible Stigmatized Groups via Web Surveys
title_sort reaching and hearing the invisible: organizational research on invisible stigmatized groups via web surveys
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/27521