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Impostor Syndrome: Fraudulent Participants in Qualitative Research Can Skew Results
Leah Z Rand1,2, Sarah McGraw3, Junyi Wang1
1https://ror.org/04b6nzv94Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.
Abstract:
We report on an experience with impostor research participants, people who misrepresent themselves, and identify characteristics that can be used by investigators to screen out such participants. We compare the responses of impostor and valid participants, showing that impostors meaningfully change qualitative study findings with implications for policy interventions or follow-on research informed by the study. It is important for investigators to be alert to the potential for impostor participants and plan their research accordingly.
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