The Ethics of Participant Recruitment: What You Need to Know

Participant recruitment is the lifeblood of any research study, but it’s also one of its most ethically sensitive steps. How you find, invite, and interact with participants can make or break the credibility of your research — and it’s not just about following regulations. Ethical recruitment builds trust, ensures valid data, and protects the rights of participants. 

At Leger Opinion, ethics are central to every phase of participant recruitment. Here’s a closer look at the key ethical principles you need to know — whether you’re just starting your research journey or preparing for ethics board approval. 

One of the foundational pillars of ethical research is ensuring participants give informed consent. This means individuals must freely agree to take part in the research after being fully informed about what participation involves. LEO panelists consent to being contacted for research, but most universities also require survey-level consent—typically via a form at the start of the survey, especially when collecting sensitive or personal information. 

Researchers must ensure that any survey or recruitment communication is clear, avoids deception, and genuinely informs participants about: 

• The purpose of the study 

• The expected time commitment 

• Any potential risks 

• How their data will be used 

Ethical recruitment also means recruiting participants in ways that prioritize data quality and representativity, without exploiting or misleading individuals. 

Leger Opinion sets itself apart by avoiding river sampling — a method where random users are pulled from uncontrolled online ads. Instead, LEO’s academic panelists are recruited via online and traditional awareness tactics, ensuring demographic diversity and minimizing bias. This hybrid recruitment method is reinforced by rigorous profiling and regular updates every six months, helping to ensure that samples are fresh, diverse, and accurately reflect the target populations.  

Privacy is another cornerstone of ethical recruitment. Participants must feel confident that their personal information will be handled securely and respectfully. 

Leger Opinion operates with high data protection standards: 

• No personal identifiable information is collected unless participants give explicit consent  

• Unique identifiers are used to anonymize responses  

• Data is stored securely on Canadian servers and managed under strict confidentiality protocols  

Researchers must also be prepared to explain to ethics boards where data is stored, who has access, and how long it will be retained. Leger’s practices are built to make those conversations easier, offering transparency and flexibility based on academic requirements. 

Compensating participants fairly for their time and effort is another key ethical consideration. However, incentives should never be so large that they coerce participation. 

LEO panelists are rewarded with LEO points, which they can redeem for gift cards, PayPal transfers, or prepaid cards. Points are awarded based on the survey’s complexity and time commitment, ensuring a fair exchange without undue influence. 

Participants also have the chance to win prizes through contests, further encouraging engagement without pressure. 

Ethical recruitment requires that the initial contact — the survey invitation — is clear, neutral, and free from bias. 

LEO’s invitations are standardized across English and French, providing generic information about the survey’s topic, estimated duration, incentive, and deadline. They don’t include leading or promotional language, helping ensure that participants aren’t influenced or misled before they agree to participate. 

If you’re working with Leger, you can be confident that your survey invitations will meet the expectations of most university ethics boards. 

Maintaining a representative sample without overburdening participants is a balancing act. 

Leger Opinion uses sophisticated algorithms to pull samples that match census benchmarks for age, gender, and region. Recruitment is carefully monitored to avoid over-soliciting participants, and no panelist receives excessive reminders to respect their autonomy and as to not seem too promotional or end up in their spam folder. 

Ethically, this approach minimizes participant fatigue, reduces attrition, and ensures the study remains voluntary and informed at every step. 

Ethical participant recruitment is more than a box to tick for grant approval. It’s a commitment to conducting research that respects, protects, and values the people who make it possible. 

By partnering with experienced, ethical data collection experts like Leger Opinion, researchers can focus on the big questions — confident that every invitation, every sample, and every datapoint is handled with integrity. 

As you plan your next study, keep ethics at the forefront. Your participants — and your research outcomes — deserve it.