Information for Participants
HI and thanks for your interest!
A bit about me, my supervisors, and the research:
I am Maggie Brown – a PhD student at the University of Auckland. I work under the supervision of Dr. Elizabeth Peterson and Dr. Catherine Rawlinson.
I’ll be facilitating the focus groups, analyzing the data and writing reports. Just so you know, I have worked as a counsellor with gifted adults for over ten years and I present internationally about counselling and coaching gifted adults. I am also an experienced group facilitator.
The overall purpose of this study is to add the voices of gifted adults to key conversations emerging within the study of adult giftedness.
As a way of showing our appreciation, each focus group participant will receive a $20US book voucher (easy to use online).
The research will be used as partial completion of the requirements of my PhD, and possibly for academic publication and conference presentations. If you participate, a summary report will be available on request.
What is involved?
This is an online focus group interview using ZOOM – a web-based video conferencing app.
If you agree to participate, you will be asked to join 4 or 5 others online in a semi-structured group interview for about 60 minutes. I’ll moderate the group by prompting discussion using questions like these:
1. In what ways do you identify as gifted? What criteria do you use?
2. What do you think are the priorities for study and research in the field of adult giftedness? Why?
3. How do you think these these priorities might be addressed?
Technology Information:
I’ll send instructions on how to use ZOOM, and offer you an opportunity to trial it with me prior to the focus group session.
The session will be video recorded (via ZOOM) and I’ll also use an audio recorder ‘just in case’. I’ll then transcribe the data (I’ll ask permission to record and transcribe the data as part of the Informed Consent process).
Data storage:
At the end of the focus group session I’ll download all files to a secure hard drive on a password-protected University of Auckland computer and delete all original files.
On completion of the study, all data will be kept in a secure facility at the Department of Psychology, University of Auckland. Everything will be password protected and held for six years, and then permanently deleted.
This is important to all of us.
Because you’ll be participating in a group with others, including me, your responses will not be confidential during the session.
However, beyond that and once the focus group session has ended, your identity will remain confidential.
Your name and identifying information will be removed from your responses (a pseudonym will be used from then on), and stored separately.
Prior to the focus group session, I’ll email you to request some demographic information. I’ll use that to compose the groups, and for analysis of the study data. If I do report demographic information I’ll take all care to present it in a way that doesn’t personally identify you.
Benefits of Participating:
If you participate, you’ll have a unique opportunity to share ideas, experiences and views with other gifted adults from around the world, and to contribute your voice to this field of study.
Potential risks
Remember, this is not an anonymous study – your name will be used during the focus group session.
Also, because we recruit some participants from social media sites of interest to gifted adults, it’s possible you may meet each other through your online activity. In order to protect privacy and maintain confidentiality, all participants will be asked to agree to not name or discuss other group members or their responses outside of the focus group session. This is important.
Withdrawing from the study:
Participation in the study is voluntary. You will be able to withdraw from the study at any time without giving a reason, by emailing me (Maggie Brown). If you decide to withdraw during the focus group session, you can simply exit or stop answering questions.
Once video recording of the focus group has commenced withdrawal of your data is not possible.
Further information:
If you’d like any other information please contact me or my supervisors:
Maggie Brown: maggie.brown@auckland.ac.nz +64 9 373 7599
Dr. Elizabeth Peterson: e.peterson@auckland.ac.nz +64 9 923 9693
Dr. Catherine Rawlinson: c.rawlinson@auckland.ac.nz +64 9 373 7999 ext 48736
For any queries regarding ethical concerns, you may contact the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee:
University of Auckland, Research Office, Private Bag 92019,
Auckland, New Zealand 1142.
Telephone +64 9 373-7599 ext 83711. Email: ro-ethics@auckland.ac.nz.
Approved by the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee on February 26, 2018 for three years. Reference Number 020764.