Introduction to behavioral research on the Internet.

By Michael Birnbaum. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001, 267 pages. Paper, $36.40. Psychological Experiments on the Internet. Edited by Michael Birnbaum. New York: Academic Press, 2000, 317 pages. Cloth, $59.95.

It is obvious from the recent spate of books on Internet research methods that researchers are becoming aware of what a valuable tool the Internet can be. The advantages are many, including ease of data collection, no need for laborious data coding and entry, and the ability to contact a large, diverse population with little to no expense. However, the disadvantages are clear, too. Many people are unfamiliar and uncomfortable with the use of computer technology. Others raise legitimate concerns about whether such research is valid and reliable. Still others question the ethics of Internet research.

This pair of books addresses many of the concerns that a behavioral researcher might have about how and when to use the Internet for research. Birnbaum and his colleagues have done an excellent job addressing the big questions: What kind of research can one do on the Internet? How does one go about recruiting participants? What sort of designs should one use? How does Internet research compare to laboratory research?

Birnbaum's Introduction to Behavioral Research on the Internet, a textbook of sorts, is good for both the novice student and the more established researcher. This book covers everything from the basic (experimental methodology to simple HTML) to the advanced (data analysis and interactive Web pages). It does seem almost too ambitious at times, and so I would recommend studying the chart on p. xiii carefully. Here and in the accompanying text (pp. xii-xiv) Birnbaum presents a breakdown of chapter content, which allows an instructor to select the chapters most appropriate for his or her students' learning. This descriptive preview, a thoughtful inclusion, will prove helpful to those already familiar with experimental methods.

Chapters 9 and 11 cover the use of two programs Birnbaum has included on the accompanying CD-ROM. Chapter 9 discusses the use of SurveyWiz, a handy program that helps design Web page surveys. The program (found on the CD-ROM under Example Files\CHAP_09\ surveywiz.htm) combined with the instruction on HTML earlier in the book, should make designing surveys a snap. Chapter 11 covers a similar program, FactorWiz (found on the CD-ROM under Example Files\CHAP_11\factorwiz. htm), that helps create Web pages for factorial designs. Both programs are quite useful for researchers and students who are not quite comfortable with advanced HTML and forms.

Part IV of the book, Programming Techniques, is another useful section for researchers who have some basic knowledge of HTML. This section covers the use of JavaScript, a programming language that allows Web pages to be dynamic and interactive. JavaScript is excellent for such experimental tasks as random assignment, prompts, and date and time information. Again, the instructions provided are helpful and work well with the previous information on HTML.

This book would be an ideal text for a class on using the Internet in behavioral research. It contains information found in an introductory research methods text and in an introductory HTML text in one streamlined volume. It would also be a useful supplement to classes on research methods, data analysis, and Internet design. The accompanying CD-ROM is an excellent source for student exercises, Web links, and other supplemental information. Once you discern the organization of the CD-ROM (open index.html in the uppermost directory first) it is easy to navigate and use.

For researchers who are looking for something beyond a "how-to" guide, I would recommend Birnbaum's edited volume, Psychological Experiments on the Internet. This book has a decidedly different tone. Although some chapters discuss the mechanics of setting up Web pages (e.g., Baron and Siepmann's chapter, "Techniques for Creating and Using Web Questionnaires in Research and Teaching"), most of this book addresses the theoretical issues behind behavioral research on the Internet (e.g., Krantz and Dalal discuss issues of validity in Internet research).

Psychological Experiments on the Internet is organized using three sections. The first covers historical perspectives and the pros and cons of Internet research. Section Two gives examples of actual studies based on the Internet. Section Three gives the "how-to" information (although it does assume some prior knowledge of HTML). This organization is one of the book's strengths, in that, like the previous volume, it allows readers to pick and choose the information that will be of personal use.

Of the chapters, I found Birnbaum's own (Chapter 1, "Decision Making in the Lab and on the Web") to be the least useful. It presents a formula-heavy description of decision-making models that were complex and not helpful to my understanding of Internet research. However, he does raise a number of excellent points in his discussion about the "population" (or lack thereof) of Internet users and the lack of researcher control over sampling.

Chapter 2 (Krantz and Dalal's "Validity of Web-Based Psychological Research) is a particularly thoughtful discussion of the population of Internet users. They note the oft-cited criticism that psychology "has become the study of the behavior of the suburban White American college sophomore" (p.48), and go on to consider whether Internet research is a way to redress this problem. They present a summary of large-scale demographic research online and conclude that the Internet does not necessarily "provide an appropriate medium for gathering globally representative samples" (p. 54) at this time. The authors also discuss comparisons between results of traditional and Internet research and conclude that there is a strong correlation between the two.

Of particular interest to sexuality researchers will be Chapter 6, Bailey, Foote and Throckmorton's "Human Sexual Behavior: A Comparison of College and Internet Surveys." We might assume that the Internet would be a particularly useful place for sexuality research, given its anonymous or semi-anonymous nature. However, it would seem that issues of self-selection and volunteer bias would still come into play. This chapter compares the results of a pencil-and-paper survey and an Internet survey. The authors find differences in demographic data between their college group and the Internet group, but not with regard to the majority of behaviors, and only slight differences in attitudes. This suggests to the authors that "the Internet is at least as good a source for some forms of data collection as the `subject pool' in colleges" (p. 166). In other words, the emerging trend seems to be that Internet research does not cure the problems of modern sexuality research, but it does not necessarily present new ones, either.

The third section of this book, the "how-to" section, is useful, but probably not as helpful to novices as Introduction to Behavioral Research on the Internet. Accordingly, I would say that Birnbaum's two books work well together, although they are certainly good as stand-alone volumes as well. One serves well as a guide to creating Internet experiments and the other is an excellent overview of the theoretical issues behind Internet research.

My biggest criticism of these books (especially Psychological Experiments on the Internet, which is less instructional and more theoretical in nature) is the lack of a strong critical stance. This is my own bias, to be sure, but I prefer books on research methodology to incorporate a healthy dose of critical theory or some sort of political stance. There is not a discernable discussion of Internet issues such as the "digital divide" (although this is hinted at in a number of chapters) or of the ethics of online research. The books contain no serious criticism of traditional research methods or suggestions for anything beyond an experimental paradigm.

While I think the books reviewed here are exciting and useful, I suggest that scholars looking for a broader perspective on Internet research check out Jones's (1999) edited book Doing Internet Research: Critical Issues and Methods for Examining the Net. Jones (1999) incorporates discussion about combining quantitative and qualitative methods, other types of analyses, and research ethics. My personal criticism, however, should not detract from the value of Psychological Experiments on the Internet as a whole. The book fills a notable gap in Internet research literature: a serious, comprehensive examination of online behavioral research from a variety of perspectives.

REFERENCES

Jones, S. (Ed.). (1999). Doing Internet research: Critical issues and methods for examining the Net. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Reviewed by Blaise Astra Parker, M.S., University of Georgia, Department of Psychology, Athens, GA 30602-3013; e-mail: [e-mail].