Principal Investigator: Dr Dan Bowers

Telephone: 01443 483637

Email: dan.bowers@southwales.ac.uk



STUDY TITLE: Posture & pressure management: Exploring social psychological explanations for compliance with clinically prescribed seating functions.



We would like to invite you to take part in our research. Before you decide, we would like you to understand why the research is being done and what it will involve for you. Please email us if anything is unclear. Please take time to decide whether or not to take part.



What is the purpose of the study?



We are researching opinions about the features of your wheelchair and how you are using these as well as seeking information about how you are helping to prevent issues such as pressure ulcers and to manage your posture with/without any features that have been prescribed by a clinician. We are also interested in how you see yourself in comparison to other wheelchair users and what sort of friendship and social groups you consider yourself to be part of.



Why have I been invited?



We are particularly interested in the opinions of adults who are users of either powered or manual wheelchairs. We are therefore approaching undergraduate and recent graduate students who are using this equipment as well as other adults in employment and inviting them to take part in this survey.



Do I have to take part?



No. Taking part in this research is entirely up to you. It is up to you to decide if you want to volunteer for this study. We will describe the study in this information sheet. If you agree to take part, we will then ask you to read and sign an online informed consent form.



What will happen to me if I take part?



This research should take no longer than 30 minutes. You will be asked to complete some questionnaires which ask about the features of your chair, the types of pressure relieving/posture management activities you engage in and your view of yourself in relation to other wheelchair users. The type of questions included have been used in similar studies to elicit opinions from other users.



Also within the survey you will be asked for details of your age, gender, whether your wheelchair use is something you have always experienced or whether this has happened later on (and if so, how long you have been using your chair) and whether you have used other types of chairs prior to this one. All questions are voluntary and you can elect not to answer specific items if you are uncomfortable with them.

