The study reduces risk primarily by

• A. Using a secure online survey
• B. Conducting a face-to-face interview
• C. Mailed paper surveys
• D. Requiring parental consent for all students

Answer: (A)

Protecting participants’ privacy and data security is how risk is most effectively reduced in this context. Using a secure online survey helps protect responses through encryption, proper authentication, and secure storage, which lowers the chance that identifiable information is exposed. It also minimizes the physical handling of data, reducing opportunities for loss or theft compared with paper methods. In contrast, a face-to-face interview can raise confidentiality risks because notes or recordings may be more easily overheard or accessed, and there’s a greater chance that sensitive information is shared in environments where others could be present. Mailed paper surveys carry similar data-security concerns, including the potential for lost or misdelivered materials and greater risk of breach if papers aren’t managed carefully. Requiring parental consent for all students is an important ethical safeguard, but it doesn’t directly reduce the participant’s risk during data collection in the same way that secure data handling does.