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In this article, we report on a web-based survey of 517 qualitative researchers' perceptions of the risks inherent in qualitative unstructured interviews. Although emotions manifest during these qualitative interviews may be viewed as “natural” in the context of the types of losses experienced by the interviewees, the emotional responses cannot be identified in an Institutional Review Board (IRB) review of the proposal. The mitigation of this emotional response is, however, the responsibility of the researcher, and ethics education and short courses must include such instruction. Psychological harm to the researcher, although rare, is a possibility for which researchers must be prepared. The authors conclude by suggesting six principles of ethical conduct for qualitative researchers. These principles should be useful to IRBs and included in ethics and qualitative methods courses.

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The purpose of this study was to understand the experience of students as they progressed through three specific online graduate courses in health promotion studies delivered primarily by asynchronous computer conferencing. Focused teleconference discussions were conducted with approximately 45 students from the different courses and the transcripts subjected to qualitative analysis. Themes that emerged included what new students appreciated most when adapting to learning online, factors that contributed to learner satisfaction, and the difficulties encountered by students taking a course when the content was not as well suited to the instructional method. The findings are discussed in relation to the three components of Garrison, Anderson and Archer’s (2000) Community of Inquiry model of learning: cognitive, social and teacher presence. Implications are presented for assisting students with the process of adapting to online learning and enhancing the ‘fit’ between course content and online instructional methods.