Description
This project is being undertaken as part of the Doctor of Philosophy in Public Health through the University of Southern Queensland.
Aims of this project are to explore the perceived benefits of urban green space on mental health in people living in regional areas and identify green space design and maintenance elements that influence mental health.
Participation
Your participation will involve contributing your thoughts and ideas in a group discussion (focus group) that will take approximately 60-90 minutes of your time. The focus group will take place on University of Southern Queensland Ipswich campus and Ipswich Council (487-535 West St, Darling Heights QLD 4350). Your participation in this project is entirely voluntary and if you do not wish to take part, you are not obliged to. If you decide to take part and later change your mind, you are free to withdraw from the project at any stage. Due to the collaborative nature of focus groups, you will be unable to withdraw data collected about yourself once you have participated in the focus group. If you do wish to withdraw from this project prior to participating, please contact the Research Team (contact details at the top of this form).
Your decision whether you take part, do not take part, or take part and then withdraw will in no way impact your current or future relationship with the University of Southern Queensland.
Expected benefits
This project may or may not directly benefit you. However, it may benefit the community by informing designs of parks (public green spaces) and policies that improve usage and hence improve mental health and the overall well-being of visitors and the local community.
Risks
In participating in the focus group, there are no likely to be any significant risks related to participation. But there may experience as feeling discomfort, anxiety, and feeling some pressure to reveal feelings or experiences to the group. Sometimes thinking about the sorts of issues raised in the focus groups can create feeling of discomfort or distress feeling. If you need to talk to someone about this immediately, please contact UniSQ Psychological and Counselling Clinic (psychological therapy and consultation for UniSQ staff and student: (07) 4631 1763; Lifeline (crisis support): 12 11 14; Beyond Blue (support service for depression and anxiety): 1300 224636; Harmony Place (mental health and wellbeing services for people from culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) backgrounds: (07) 3848 1600
Privacy and confidentiality
All comments and responses are confidential unless required by law. Please be advised that although the research team will take every precaution to maintain the confidentiality of the data, the nature of focus groups prevents the research team from guaranteeing confidentiality. Please respect the privacy of other participants and do not repeat what is discussed during the focus group with others. Group discussions will be audio recorded so that they can later be transcribed and only be used for research purposes. The recording will be only accessed and shared with research team members and future collaborators and may be reused in future research. All transcribed data will be de-identified and will not be made openly publicly available to ensure the confidentiality and anonymity of the data. Only de-identified data will be shared to ensure the privacy and confidentiality of the participants are maintained. Upon request, the research team will share a summary of the finding with participants.
Any data collected as a part of this project will be stored securely, as per University of Southern Queensland’s Research Data and Primary Materials Management Procedure.
Consent to participate
We would like to ask you to sign a written consent form (enclosed) to confirm your agreement to participate in this project. Please return your signed consent form to a member of the Research team prior to participating in the focus group.
Questions or further information about the project
Please refer to the Research team contact details at the top of the form to have any questions answered or to request further information about this project.
Concerns or complaints
If you have any concerns or complaints about the ethical conduct of the project, you may contact the University of Southern Queensland, Manager of Research Integrity and Ethics on +61 7 4631 1839 or email researchintegrity@usq.edu.au. The Manager of Research Integrity and Ethics is not connected with the research project and can address your concern in an unbiased manner.
Thank you for taking the time to help with this research project. Please keep this document for your information.
Research team contact details
Principal Investigator Details
Prof. Stuart Biddle
E-mail: Stuart.Biddle@usq.edu.au
Co-investigator details
Prof. Tracy Kolbe-Alexander
E-mail: tracy.kolbe-alexander@usq.edu.au
Phone: +617 381 26178
Hirbo Shore Roba, PhD student
E-mail: hirboshore.roba@usq.edu.au
Mobile: +614 3495 6010
If you wish to participate, please click on "Next" to complete the registration form
There are 3 questions in this survey.
