Protecting Research Subjects and Unintended Consequences: The Effect of Guarantees of Confidentiality

There is significant concern among researchers and government administrators that individuals who serve as research subjects be protected from risks associated with empirical inquiry. Survey researchers frequently administer guarantees of confidentiality and anonymity in an effort to minimize subjects1 psychological harm and to increase the validity ofdata. This study tests the effect of guarantees of confidentiality and anonymity on (I) the evaluation apprehension of juvenile offenders who provided self-reports of past behavior soon after arrest, (2) their response rates to individual interview items, and (3) the quality of the subjects' responses. Findings are reported and implications for survey researchers are discussed.