Heads up: some academic research taking place

[RowanMumsnet]

Hello

Some researchers from a UK university are going to be collecting posts from some boards on Mumsnet over the next few weeks. They will be looking only at posts published from this point onwards. Selected posts will be anonymised (ie usernames will not be stored anywhere), and all processes will be GDPR-compliant.

EDITED BY MNHQ: to be clear, NO private or back-end data is being shared with the researchers and they will have NO access to any extra information about users. They will only be analysing published posts, ie things that are already in the public domain.

The researchers will analyse the text of the anonymised posts as part of their study. The full text of these anonymised posts will not be reproduced in the study - no pieces of text that make you or your situation identifiable will be published.

Once the study is complete, the database containing the anonymised posts will be destroyed.

Obviously we'd love to tell you what the study is about - but we can't because it will skew the results. However once the research has been completed we'll share it with you and you can read all about it. The academics running the study are people we've worked with before, and the topic is one we think lots of MN users will agree is interesting and useful.

IMPORTANT BIT: if you DO NOT want your posts to be considered for inclusion in the research, please shout here on this thread or email us on [email protected]

And of course let us know if you have any questions and we'll see if we can answer them.

Thanks

MNHQ

I'm going to guess an excel sheet.

@Jux

I reckon it's about swearing. Do we swear more when talking about baby names of when.we talk about Trump. Obvious, innit?

The Economist did actually analyse Mumsnet forums to this effect a few months back (without asking or telling us) - IIRC they concluded that MNers swear most when talking about their husbands/partners...

Count me out. Thanks

they concluded that MNers swear most when talking about their husbands/partners...

LTB probably accounts for half.

Out of curiosity, did the people who analysed the Trump threads (see earlier post) ever ask anyone?

I don't talk about parenting stuff on here, really, so I'm probably not one of the posters they want to analyse. Nonetheless I'd like to opt out please.

I would much prefer it if no one was allowed to replicate stuff on here.

But since that's not possible, at least I can limit it on this one occasion.

@Lweji

they concluded that MNers swear most when talking about their husbands/partners...

LTB probably accounts for half.

Out of curiosity, did the people who analysed the Trump threads (see earlier post) ever ask anyone?

I don't think they did actually for that one, although Professor Pedersen has done quite a few analyses of Mumsnet posts over the years and she's given us the heads-up about a few of them (as with this study, we didn't give them any access to anything private/back-end, they were just analysing what they could see on the public boards). We don't think GDPR materially changes the situation but it feels like it's changed the public conversation, and this time around our thinking was that - as we'd been given the heads up - informing MNers, while not strictly necessary, was in the spirit of the new regulations.

I’d also like to opt out, thank you.

^This isn’t Gdpr compliant as you are passing on personal data without telling us in the first instance our data will be used that way
Although posts will be anonymous- anonymous data can still be personal data. ^

All they are doing is using people's posts. That's all. There is no personal data. How on earth could your anonymous posts be construed as personal data? They might be personal, depending on what you've said, but no-one will be able to work out it's you (unless you've over-shared of course).

Apologies - crap formatting there!

unless you've over-shared of course

In which case, by posting on an open public forum, you've given implicit consent for that information to be, ahem, available to anyone in the public.

Anyone who doesn't realise this, well... be more careful with how much you share in future.

Well yes, of course, @Lweji!

I do sometimes wonder about posters on MN.

It would be highly amusing if this became one of the threads plagiarised by the Daily Fail.
"Mumsnet contributors object to university stealing their posts."

I do sometimes wonder about posters on MN.

Me too.

I wonder why people cant accept that others DO KNOW the site is public but on this occasion we've been given the option not to be included in somebody's research so we've taken that option as we have a choice for once.

MNHQ - did you start this thread because

a) the university asked you to do so (ethics committee or whatever), or

b) because legally you were advised to, or

c) you just thought it would be a nice transparent thing to do?

Do you wish you hadn’t bothered?

@PortiaCastis

Opt out all you like. It's the reasons given that are amusing and quite telling.

Did Rowan leave you to mind the thread while she nipped out for a cuppa, Lweji?
Maybe you should draw your horns in a bit...
Nobody needs your validation.

The amusing bits are those frothing because others have opted out

Did Rowan leave you to mind the thread while she nipped out for a cuppa, Lweji?

Yes. We're besties, can't you tell?

It is all getting a bit repetitive

PortiaCastis
The amusing bits are those frothing because others have opted out

Yup

A bit late I know, but can I opt out please

Opt out.

As I charge a fee albeit it be small to be analysed. Before I now type like someone now univested who can’t be arsed to RT does mumsnet get paid in monies or gifts for this?

*Uninvested

Don't include me or any of my usernames and don't include any data you have on me, thanks.