Participant Information Sheet
 
 King’s College Research Ethics Committee Ref: HR-20/21-22837
 
We would like to invite you to take part in a research study. Before you decide, you need to understand why the research is being done and what it would involve for you.
 
What is the aim of the study?

We are conducting this study to find out how different types of extremely challenging or distressing experiences can affect individuals. We are particularly interested in hearing about experiences that may have caused you to question the kind of person you are or the kind of world we live in. These are things that you feel you may have done or failed to do, or things that others did or failed to do.

 
Who can take part?
 
You can take part in this study if are over 18 years old and live in the UK. If you had a frightening or upsetting experience but it didn’t cause you to question yourself or others you may still be able to join in our study. 
 
What will the study involve?
The study will involve filling in a brief online questionnaire which should take you no more than 20 minutes. The questionnaire will be about situations you may have experienced or witnessed and still bother you, your emotional wellbeing, mental health, thoughts, feelings and beliefs since your challenging experience. We will not ask you for any personal information which could identify you at all. We will never aim to identify you from your answers.
 
Do I have to take part?
Participation is completely voluntary. You should only take part if you want to and choosing not to take part will not disadvantage you in anyway. Once you have read the information sheet, please contact us if you have any questions that will help you make a decision about taking part. You are free withdraw at any point of the project, without having to give a reason. Withdrawing from the project will not affect you in any way. 
 
How do I withdraw from the research?
You are free to withdraw from the study at any time, without having to give a reason, by closing your browser. As participation in the online questionnaires is not linked to your personal details, the investigators will not be able to identify you. As such, researchers will not be able to destroy your online questionnaire data if you chose to withdraw from the study.
 
Your rights to access, change or move your information are limited, as we need to manage your information in specific ways in order for the research to be reliable and accurate. If you withdraw from the project, we will keep the information about you that we have already obtained. To safeguard your rights, we will use the minimum personally-identifiable information possible.
 
What are the possible risks of taking part?
It is important to take care of yourself and to only write as much as you feel comfortable sharing. We do not think that it is likely that those taking part in our study will become very distressed as a result. If the study questionnaires do prove very distressing for you, study researchers will be available to help and will provide contact information for various organisations. If necessary, researchers can put you in touch with experienced health professionals.
 
What are the possible benefits of taking part?
There is no direct intended benefit to taking part, although some people find it helpful to have the chance to express their feelings about distressing events. It is hoped that the things you tell us will help us better understand how individuals may have been affected by a wide variety of distressing experiences. This will enable us to find better ways of meeting the needs of those who are affected.
 
Data Handling & Confidentiality 
We know these are sensitive topics, and we want to assure you that this survey is anonymous and 100% confidential. Your responses will be combined with those of many other individuals and will never be connected to you personally. Your assessments will be kept for 10 years following completion of the study and then will be destroyed. The assessments that you complete will be stored under an anonymous ID number and will be kept securely in locked cabinets or on secure servers at King’s College London. The results of this study may be published to help others who have experienced potentially upsetting experiences, but we would not publish any details that might identify you. We will also make some anonymous study data available to other scientists. We would not share your personal details or other information that is likely to identify you.  
 
Data protection statement
The sponsor and data controller for this project will be King’s College London (KCL). The University will process your personal data for the purpose of the research outlined within this information sheet. Your data will be processed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). You can provide your consent for the use of your personal data in this study by completing the consent form that has been provided to you. If you would like more information about how your data will be processed in accordance with GDPR please visit: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/research/support/rgei/research-ethics/kings-college-london-statement-on-use-of-personal-data-in-research
Questions, comments and requests about your personal data can be sent to the King’s College London Data Protection Officer Mr Albert Chan info-compliance@kcl.ac.uk. If you wish to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office, please visit www.ico.org.uk.
 
What will happen to the results of the study?
The results of this study will be published in scientific journals and summaries for relevant stakeholders with the aim of informing future research studies to support veteran wellbeing as well as clinical practice and policy. We would not publish any details that might identify you. 
 
Who should I contact for further information?
If you require any further information or have any questions about this study, please do not hesitate to contact Dr Victoria Williamson or Prof Neil Greenberg, who oversee this study at King’s College London.  
 
Dr Victoria Williamson 
  • Email: victoria.williamson@kcl.ac.uk
  • Address: King’s Centre for Military Health Research (KCMHR), Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN), Weston Education Centre, Cutcombe Road, London, SE5 9RJ).
  • Tel: 0207 8485347 / 07490092960
 
Prof Neil Greenberg
  • Email: neil.greenberg@kcl.ac.uk
  • Address: King’s Centre for Military Health Research (KCMHR), King’s College London, Weston Education Centre, 10 Cutcombe Road, London, SE5 9RJ.
  • Tel: 0207 848 5351
 
What if something goes wrong?
If this project has harmed you in any way or if you wish to make a complaint about the conduct of the project you can contact King's College London using the details below for further advice and information: The Chair of the Research Ethics Subcommittee, on rec@kcl.ac.uk. 
 
 
Thank you for reading this information sheet
and for considering taking part in this research.