title: Methodological and Ethical Challenges in a Web-Based Randomized Controlled Trial of a Domestic Violence Intervention.
abstract: The use of Web-based methods to deliver and evaluate interventions is growing in popularity, particularly in a health care context. They have shown particular promise in responding to sensitive or stigmatized issues such as mental health and sexually transmitted infections. In the field of domestic violence (DV), however, the idea of delivering and evaluating interventions via the Web is still relatively new. Little is known about how to successfully navigate several challenges encountered by the researchers while working in this area. This paper uses the case study of I-DECIDE, a Web-based healthy relationship tool and safety decision aid for women experiencing DV, developed in Australia. The I-DECIDE website has recently been evaluated through a randomized controlled trial, and we outline some of the methodological and ethical challenges encountered during recruitment, retention, and evaluation. We suggest that with careful consideration of these issues, randomized controlled trials can be safely conducted via the Web in this sensitive area.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Practice, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Australia.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-0220-4985
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tarzia
authors.affiliation: Department of General Practice, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Australia.
authors.forename: Jodie
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-8793-0427
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Valpied
authors.affiliation: Centre for Interdisciplinary Trauma Research, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Jane
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-3453-023X
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koziol-McLain
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing & Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States.
authors.forename: Nancy
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6691-3684
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Glass
authors.affiliation: Department of General Practice, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Australia.
authors.forename: Kelsey
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-7532-5147
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hegarty
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017579:Domestic Violence / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000941:ethics* / Q000379:methods*; D012107:Research Design; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000941:ethics / Q000379:methods*
keywords: domestic violence; eHealth; ethics, research; research design; web-based trials