(a) Relevance & Research Question:
A research grant by the Austrian Ministry for Science and Research enables a research group from the Johannes Kepler University of Linz to design, implement, and evaluate a “secondary student online panel” (“SchülerInnenOnlinePanel”; see Altrichter et al., 2008) together with secondary school students. After the implementation process the online panel will be provided for youth research by students as well as researchers (www.opinioncorner.at).
(b) Methods & Data:
Design and implementation of the panel are evaluated with both quantitative and qualitative methods such as log file analyses, online-surveys, qualitative interviews, (video-) observations, and a reflective research diary.
(c) Results:
Firstly, the proposed paper points out the pros and cons of developing (design of website, marketing and recruiting of young people) a youth online panel in contrast to common adult panels. Specialty of the current development process is the collaborative partnership between social scientists, students from upper secondary schools, and their teachers.
Secondly, the paper outlines some preliminary results of the evaluation of the project regarding panel quality - panel size, sociodemographics of the users, survey response rates, page views, and results of a usability study.
Finally, the paper discusses challenges emerging when implementing an online panel for youth research such as recruitment of young people.
(d) Added Value:
An important focus of analyses will be on gender aspects which, as we hypothesize from former experiences with new technologies (see Paseka 2008), might be a relevant aspect in students’ application of the online panel.