Ethical review procedures in international internet-based intervention studies

However, the jurisdiction of research ethics committees (RECs) or institutional review boards (IRBs) is bound to geographical state or country borders. How can researchers deal with the geographical boundaries in the jurisdiction of RECs/IRBs versus the worldwide, open character of international internet-based research? Should ethical approval be sought in each country where participants will be recruited? In this paper, we want to share our challenges in setting up the ethical review procedures in an international internet-based mHealth intervention study, to further the discussion on ethical procedures in internet-based research.

Automated summary

This paper discusses the challenges of ethical procedures in international internet-based research, as well as how to deal with the geographical boundaries of RECs/IRBs and the worldwide, open character of such research.