Ohio University Consent Form





Title of Research: Preferences in candidate selection using LinkedIn

Researchers: Lisa S. Paik, Manoela Z. de Oliveira, Rodger W. Griffeth





Over the past years professional online networks, such as LinkedIn, have been increasingly used to screen, recruit and hire professionals. This study is being conducted to understand what users of LinkedIn think about it as a tool for hiring purposes. We also aim to gather more information about what the possible impacts are of using LinkedIn in selection processes.



If you agree to participate, you will be asked to answer a brief survey about your experience using LinkedIn for your work. You will also be required to perform a task using LinkedIn and provide information about the task performed. Therefore, you should not participate in this study if you don’t regularly use LinkedIn to screen, recruit, and select professionals for work positions.



Your participation in the study will last about 20 minutes and no risks or discomforts are anticipated. It is important that you are aware that no compensation will be provided (except the access to general results from this study for those participants who are interested), and that you may not benefit personally by participating in this study. However, the study is important to science and society because it will provide organizational researchers, HR professionals, and LinkedIn users with more precise information about the uses of this popular tool. Further, it will help us to better understand how the use of this tool impacts selection process.



All the information you provide about yourself and the company where you work will be kept confidential. We will never reveal any data you provided to your employer or clients, and we assure that just our research team will have access to the data provided. Additionally, while every effort will be made to keep your study-related information confidential, there may be circumstances where this information must be shared with:

* Federal agencies, for example the Office of Human Research Protections, whose responsibility is to protect human subjects in research, and

* Representatives of Ohio University (OU), including the Institutional Review Board, which is a committee that oversees the research at OU.



If you have any questions regarding this study at any time, please contact Manoela Oliveira (manoela.oliveira@gmail.com). If you have any questions regarding your rights as a research participant, please contact Jo Ellen Sherow, Director of Research Compliance, Ohio University, (740)593-0664.



By clicking the button “I agree to participate in the study”, you are agreeing that:

• you have read this consent form and have been given the opportunity to ask questions and have them answered

• you have been informed of potential risks and they have been explained to your satisfaction.

• you understand Ohio University has no funds set aside for any injuries you might receive as a result of participating in this study

• you are 21 years of age or older

• your participation in this research is completely voluntary

• you may leave the study at any time. If you decide to stop participating in the study, there will be no penalty to you and you will not lose any benefits to which you are otherwise entitled.

