A rose by any other name: participants choosing research pseudonyms

Abstract

How do researchers name people respectfully in research projects? In an interview study on aspects of aging, 38 participants were invited to choose their own pseudonyms for the research. The resulting discussions show that the common practice of allocating pseudonyms to confer anonymity is not merely a technical procedure, but renaming has psychological meaning to both the participants and the content and process of the research. The care and thought with which many participants chose their names, and the meanings or links associated with those names, illuminated the importance of the process of naming. There was evidence of rules and customs around naming that further confirmed its importance both within their sociocultural worlds, and as an act of research, affected by issues of power and voice, methodology, and research outputs. We invite researchers to consider a more nuanced engagement with participants regarding choosing pseudonyms in research.