Full project title: How do people become different? A research study.
Date: May 2019
Principal researcher: A/Prof. Andrew Francis
Student researchers: Emma Tyers and Gracie Johnstone
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Dear Participant,
You are invited to participate in a scientific research study being conducted by Emma Tyers (Doctoral student), Gracie Johnstone (Honours student) and Associate Professor Andrew Francis from The Cairnmillar Institute.
This study is interested finding out what elements of a person’s basic temperament and upbringing influence the kind of person they become and, importantly, makes them different from others. This is a complex question, however understanding human personality more closely will hopefully improve treatment and outcomesfor individuals who experience mental health issues such as mood and personality disorders.
Approval for this study has been granted by the Cairnmillar Institute Human Research Ethics Committee. This Plain Language Information Statement describes the study in a straightforward manner so that you can make a fully informed decision about whether you would like to participate. Please make sure you read this form carefully, and thank you for your time!
Why have I been approached?
We are seeking participants from the general population who are 18 years or older. You are invited to take part in this study if you meet these criteria.
What does participation involve?
You are invited to complete a survey that will take about 30 minutes to complete. You will be asked some basic demographic questions, and then questions about your general mood (e.g. ‘I found it hard to wind down’; ‘I felt that I had nothing to look forward to’; did you feel you were more interested in sex than usual?’) personality attributes (both health and unhealthy) that are represented to different degrees amongst all people (e.g. ‘have you often been distrustful of people?’; ‘I often wonder who I really am’) relationship with your parents and early childhood experiences and potential physical, emotional, or sexual abuse (e.g. ‘when I was young my mother/father was over-protective of me’; ‘my mother/father was physically abusive of me’; ‘Someone tried to make me do sexual things or watch sexual things’), and thoughts and behaviours in relation to reward and punishment (e.g. ‘do you often do things to be praised?’; ‘are you easily discouraged in difficult situations?’)
Participation is confidential and entirely voluntary, and you are able to withdraw your participation at any point during the survey by exiting your browser. Given the anonymous nature of the data, if you are able to provide sufficient details to us, we will be able to remove any data you have already submitted should you wish.
What are the risks and benefits of participating?
We don’t anticipate that there will be any specific direct or indirect benefits from participating in this study, although you may well learn a little about yourself through reflection in answering questions about your personality and past experiences.
There are no anticipated risks outside normal day-to-day activities. However, given the questionnaire will include questions about your family, the occurrence of potential abuse during your childhood, as well as questions about how you behave in different situations, there is the possibility that some people may experience concern or distress while completing the survey.
If you think these kinds of questions may be likely to cause you distress, you are advised not to participate in the study. If you do need immediate emotional support at any time, we urge you to contact the support services list below.
Beyond Blue
Call: 1300 22 4636
Visit: https://www.beyondblue.org.au
SANE Australia
Call: 1800 18 7263
Visit: https://www.sane.org
Blue Knot
Call: 1300 657 380
Visit: https://www.blueknot.org.au
Bravehearts
Call: 1800 272 831
Visit: https://bravehearts.org.au
What will happen to my information?
Your participation is entirely voluntary, and your data will be stored anonymously and confidentially. Your data will only be accessible by the Principal and Student Researchers. Your data will not be included in the study until you press submit at the end of the survey. By pressing ‘continue’ at the bottom of this page, you agree to participate. The data will be secured on a password-protected computer and destroyed after five years after any publications arising from the research.
The results of this project may be published in a thesis, scientific paper, or conference paper. The data will be aggregated across many participants, so no individual data will be published.
How do I get started?
Click the ‘Next” button (below) to begin your participation
Thank you for your time!
A.Prof. Andrew Francis
Principal Researcher
Cairnmillar Institute
9813 3400
andrew.francis@cairnmillar.edu.au
Emma Tyers Gracie Johnstone
Doctoral Student Honours Student
Cairnmillar Institute Cairnmillar Institute
9813 3400 9813 3400
11410@cairnmillar.edu.au 11480@cairnmillar.edu.au
Ethical Guidelines
This project is being conducted according to the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research(2007) produced by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia. This statement has been developed to protect the interests of participants in human research studies.
The ethical matters of this research project have been approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Cairnmillar Institute. If you have any complaints about any aspect of the project, the way it is being conducted or any questions about your rights as a research participant, then you may also contact the Secretary to the Human Research Ethics Committee. All contact details can be found below.
More Information
Any questions about your rights, or any concerns and complaints about this research project, should be directed to The Secretary to the Human Research Ethics Committee at The Cairnmillar Institute, 391-393 Tooronga Road. Hawthorn East, VIC 3123. Telephone +613 9813 3400, email: hrec@cairnmillar.edu.au.
For more information about the project, contact the principal researcher on 9813-3400 or andrew.francis@cairnmillar.edu.au.