Student Primary Investigator, Melanie Gunn
melaniegunn@trentu.ca Trent University
Supervisor, Dr. Karen Blair
kblair@trentu.ca Trent University
You are being invited to participate in a research study. Please read this consent form so that you understand what your participation will involve. Before you consent to participate, ask any questions you need to be sure you understand what your participation will involve.
TITLE OF THE STUDY: Women in Sports
INVESTIGATORS: This research study is being conducted by student researcher, Melanie Gunn and her supervisor, Dr. Karen L. Blair from the Psychology Department of Trent University.
If you have any questions or concerns about the research, please contact melaniegunn@trentu.ca or kblair@trentu.ca.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: The current study aims to understand more about women’s experiences of pressure to be less/more feminine/masculine within the context of sports. We want to look at who, where (within sports, such as at practice or competitions/games), why women experience gender pressure within sports, the differences in gender pressure across different sports, and views on their body image within sports. We are interested in hearing from anyone who identifies as a woman (including transgender, nonbinary, and cisgender) who is 16 or older and has played any sport for a minimum of 1 year.
WHAT YOU WILL BE ASKED TO DO: If you choose to participate in this study, you will be asked to provide some demographic information, including your age, gender identity, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, as well as demographic information relating to your participation in sports, such as number of sports played, and types of sports played. We will also ask for information regarding your experiences of gender pressure (e.g., pressure to be more/less masculine/feminine) and body image within the context of sports.
Questions will focus on who, where, and why you experienced gender pressure within sports, what qualities you felt were targeted by gender pressure, and your view of your body within and outside the context of sports.
The survey will take approximately 15-30 minutes to complete (time varies based on the survey dynamically adjusting based on your responses and individual differences in length of responses to open-ended questions). You will not be asked to provide any identifiable information during the survey, and no identifiable information will be received by the researchers.
VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION AND WITHDRAWAL: Participation is entirely voluntary. You can choose whether to participate or not. If any question makes you uncomfortable, you can skip that question. Participants can end the study at any time by clicking the “withdraw” button at the bottom of the survey or by closing their browser. Clicking the withdraw button will let you choose if you want to delete your data provided to that point or to allow your partially completed survey to be used in the study. After clicking the withdraw link and indicating your preference for how your data should be handled, you will be forwarded to the final page of the survey and have the option to proceed to the prize draw entry form. If you withdraw from the study by simply closing your browser or navigating away from the survey, your partial data may be used in the analyses if enough data was provided to make it useful. Your choice of whether to participate will not influence your future relations with Trent University or the investigators.
CONFIDENTIALITY: The study is entirely anonymous, and no identifiable information will be received by the researchers. No identifiable information will be included in future publications or research papers. When research findings are disseminated, they will be done so in aggregate form; no identifying information will be shared, and any quotes used will be selected to ensure they cannot identify the participant. Dissemination will include scholarly dissemination: conference presentations, publications, and knowledge mobilization; social media posts, infographics, blog posts, etc. Researchers and students affiliated with the supervisor’s lab (Trent Social Relations, Attitudes and Diversity Lab) will have access to the raw data in the future. On the prize draw page, participants will also have the option to enter their email address to receive a summary of the study’s findings when the study is completed. The prize draw page is an entirely separate survey, and your email address will not in any way be associated with the data you provide during the survey itself.
If you would like to further protect your privacy, please provide an email address that does not contain your name or any other potentially identifying information. The email address you provide for this study will only be used for the purposes described and will never be shared with any third parties. The site for completing this survey, Alchemer.com, is used for all survey data collection in our laboratory. The servers that host, transmit, and store our data are all located in Canada. Alchemer encrypts data in transit, at rest, and on all backups. Access to the Alchemer Application is also available only through secure HTTPS.
POTENTIAL BENEFITS: The current study may benefit science by allowing researchers to know more about women’s experiences of pressure to be less/more masculine/feminine within the context of sports. The present study may benefit participants by allowing them to think more about their personal experiences of pressure to be more/less masculine/feminine both within and outside the context of sports. Many participants may find it rewarding or interesting to think about the questions asked in the study and to reflect on the gender pressure they have experienced in the past in their sports. However, the researchers cannot guarantee that you will receive any benefits from participating in this study.
WHAT ARE THE POTENTIAL RISKS TO YOU AS A PARTICIPANT: Potential risks for participating in this study are minimal. However, it is possible that you may experience upsetting thoughts or feelings as a result of thinking about some of the personal information you are asked about in this study, such as how and why you experienced gender pressure. If you become upset or uncomfortable at any time during the survey, you may either skip the questions that are upsetting you, or you may withdraw from the study without penalty. When skipping a question, you will receive one reminder that a question was missed, just to ensure that it was not missed accidentally. Then, you will be able to proceed to the next page by indicating that you purposefully left the question unanswered. To withdraw, you may simply close your browser or click the withdrawal link at the bottom of the survey at any time. If you wish to take a break from the survey and return later, you may click the “save and continue” button, which will ask you to provide an email where you will receive a link that will bring you back to your partially completed survey. This email will not be saved or associated with your response in any fashion, and you are under no obligation to return to the survey. However, please note that the emails often end up in junk or spam folders, so be sure to check those folders if you wish to continue with your response. Additionally, various sources for help will be provided at the end of the survey, should you need it.
Note that agreeing to this consent form does not waive your rights to legal recourse in the event that you experience any harm from this study. There are no conflicts of interest in conducting this study, and the data will not be used commercially in any way.
INCENTIVES FOR PARTICIPATION: At the end of the survey, participants will be redirected to a prize draw survey where they can provide an email address in order to be entered into the study’s prize draw. Participants will be entered into a single prize draw for a $50 (CAD) gift card at the end of the study. At the conclusion of the study, one randomly selected participant will win a $50 gift card (CAD). All gift cards will be in Canadian currency, and participants will be provided with a list of options from which to choose their gift card (e.g., Chapters, Amazon, Harvey’s, etc.) or the option to donate their winnings back to the research. They will be notified by email of their selection in the prize draw, which is done randomly.
COSTS TO PARTICIPATION: There are no costs to participation, besides 15-30 minutes of your time to complete the online survey associated with this study.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE STUDY: If you have any questions about the research now, please ask. If you have questions later about the research, you may contact:
Melanie Gunn Dr. Karen L. Blair
Department of Psychology Department of Psychology
Trent University Trent University
Peterborough, Ontario Peterborough, Ontario
melaniegunn@trentu.ca kblair@trentu.ca
This study has been reviewed by the Trent University Research Ethics Board; the study number is 28840. If you have questions regarding your rights as a participant in this study, please contact:
Anna Kisiala
Coordinator, Research Conduct and Reporting
c/o Office of the Vice President, Research and Innovation
Trent University
1600 West Bank Dr
Peterborough, ON K9L 0G2
705-748-1011 ext. 7866
annakisiala@trentu.ca
CONSENT: By clicking on the consent button, you are agreeing to participate in this study. Research participation is voluntary, and even by consenting now, you may reconsider your involvement at any time and decline to continue participating. You may print this form for your records. Please ensure that all questions and concerns regarding this research, as well as what you are being asked to do, have been addressed and completely understood. You can contact a member of the research team at any time or if you have a question after participation has been completed.