The connection between personality and methods used for romantic relationship dissolution



INFORMATION SHEET



Introduction and study purpose

You are invited to take part in a study which examines the relationship between your personality and methods with which you ended your last romantic relationship. In the long run the information you provide might contribute to us understanding how different people end relationships and how the pain caused by this event can be minimised.



Before you decide whether or not to participate it is important that you understand what the research involves. Please take the time to read the following information carefully and discuss it with the researcher if you have any questions. For more information contact Rico Fischer who conducts this research under the supervision of Dr Elaine Duncan, at the address below.



What will I have to do if I take part?

You will first be asked to read all the provided information and, if you wish to take part, to provide consent showing that you understand what participation will entail. Following that you will be asked your age, sex and some information about a romantic relationship which has ended in the past year. You will also be asked to provide a unique identifier should you wish to withdraw at a later date. The unique identifier will consist of your birthday and the first two digits of your postcode (i.e. 9992G3)



Participation will take approximately 10 minutes and you will complete two questionnaires. One questionnaire asking you about your personality and one about methods which you either used in the past to end a relationship or which were used to end a relationship with you.



Afterwards, you will have the opportunity to opt in for a raffle to win a £50 voucher for a brand or company of your choice. Please note that you will have to provide your email address to partake. Though only the primary researcher will have access to this information it still means that your data is not completely anonymous anymore.



Do I have to take part?

No, you are under no obligation to take part; it is up to you to decide whether or not to take part. You can withdraw at any time if you wish, without giving a reason. You do not have to answer any questions you do not wish to. Also, you have the opportunity to request the removal of your data at any later point.



What are the possible disadvantages and risks of taking part?

You will be asked to share information relating to your experience of a relationship which has ended in the past. As breaking up is sometimes painful this could make you feel bad. Please think about that before continuing. If you decide to join you can quit the survey at any time. If you finish the survey but afterwards feel that you have been in any way affected by the questionnaire, links to advice and information about coping with break-ups will be provided at the end of the questionnaire.



What are the possible benefits of taking part?

We cannot promise that the study will help you personally. However, the results should help our understanding of the individual methods that people with different personalities use to end romantic relationships. This, in turn, is expected to be beneficial to developing educational programs for young adults to reduce the amount of suffering experienced through breakups.



What if there is a problem?

If you have any concern about your participation in the study, please get in contact with the supervisor of this project Dr Elaine Duncan.



What will happen to the information that you give?

Upon completion of the research, all data you provide will be anonymised and securely stored in accordance with the GCU Data Protection Guideline. All information that you have provided will be destroyed after one year. The data will be analysed and written up for a level four undergraduate research project (Module Number: MHC821090). It will potentially be published afterwards in an academic journal.



Will my taking part in this study be kept confidential?

Yes. Ethical and legal practice will be followed, and all of your information will be handled in confidence. The only personal information that you have to provide will be your age, sex and unique identifier; all data that is collected will be anonymised. Only if you wish to join the raffle to win a voucher will you also be asked to provide your email address.

All information is stored securely and will be destroyed after the study has been completed. The responses that you provide will be treated in confidence. Your rights are protected under the Data Protection Act and any information that might identify you will not be shared outside of the research team. No identifying information will appear in any documents, the final report or any academic presentations or journal articles.



Who has reviewed the study?

The Study has been given Ethical approval by the Department of Psychology, Social Work and Allied Health Science ethics committee at Glasgow Caledonian University.



Further information and contact details

You can get more study information or discuss the project with the research team from

Rico Fischer (principal investigator) – ricofischer@me.com

Dr Elaine Duncan (supervisor) – e.duncan@gcu.ac.uk



What happens next?

If you are happy to participate in the study after reading the information on this sheet, please complete the consent form and the following questionnaires. In case you would like to find out anything else about the study please do not hesitate to contact the principal researcher Rico Fischer at the email address above.



Thank you for taking the time to read this study information sheet.