Sucks to be you, dude.

[apocalypsos]

Per deadlychameleon, about SurveyFail here (she asks that if you plan on making this information known, you go ahead and repost with attribution so people don't need to click through):

In regards to surveyfail: http://www.fanhistory.com/wiki/SurveyFail

I called the Boston University IRB office. The direct approach works.

They've gotten a lot of emails regarding Dr. Ogas. He is no longer in any way affiliated with Boston University, except as a recent graduate. They have asked him to stop using his official Boston University email address in connection with this project, or his website. He is officially on his own, and this project is NOT IRB APPROVED.

That is the official status as stated by the Boston University IRB office.

The problem with this is threefold:

1. The researcher has no expertise in the area he is researching, nor has he recruited anyone to give him guidance.

2. The researcher has substantial profit motivation to produce work in this area (book contract with Penguin) which may lead to unethical conduct/a tendency to misrepresent his results.

3. The research is in no way overseen by any external body which can examine it for potential unethical conduct.

In addition to all of these, the researchers have now alienated their participant population, who are now very likely to become unreliable participants.

The only way to salvage the study at this point, I believe, would be for them to change it to an observational one.

Never fuck with fandom, y'all.

Comments

[raisedbymoogles.livejournal.com]

This is one of the few times the real world and fandom are in agreement. "Yep, this guy's a tool."