Covid Cognition
UNE’s School of Psychology would like to invite you to participate in the research project described below.
This research is being conducted as part of an Honours thesis in the School of Psychology at the University of New England.
Research Project
Can an online brief assessment battery detect COVID-19-related cognitive and functional impairment?
Aim of the research
This study aims to investigate the relationship between cognitive impairment following recovery from COVID-19. We are interested in the effect COVID-19 has on executive function, and how it may affect everyday living. This is a comparative study which will also examine the differences between those who have and have not had COVID-19.
Invitation to participate
As part of an Honours thesis in the School of Psychology at the University of New England, Grant Schulz invites you to participate in the research project, described below. His supervisor is Dr. Deborah Apthorp.
Online Experiments For this study, you will be asked to answer some basic demographic questions, complete four cognitive tests and fill in two brief questionaries. It should take no longer than 45 minutes to complete. The questions in the questionnaires are not of a sensitive nature; rather they are general, and will help to enhance our knowledge about cognitive functioning and quality of life after COVID-19. Downloading Inquisit You will need to download a small computer program called Inquisit Player to carry out the tasks on your computer. This is perfectly safe and can be deleted with a single click immediately afterwards. Confidentiality We will not be collecting any identifying information in this study, and thus it is not possible for any individual to be identified by name in any publication of the results. Participation is voluntary Please understand that your involvement in this study is voluntary and your right to stop participating at any time without recourse or reason will be respected. However, once you begin, any anonymous data you provide cannot be withdrawn. Use of information Information from the study will be used as part of an Honours thesis, which is expected to be completed in October 2021. Information may also be used in academic journal articles and conference presentations, as well as blog posts, preprints, and newspaper articles, before and after this date. At all times, we will safeguard your identity by presenting the information in a way that will not allow you to be identified. Storage of information During the study, all electronic data will be kept on Cloud UNE, UNE’s centrally managed cloud server managed by the research team, as well as on Millisecond’s secure servers for Inquisit. Any data downloaded from the servers will be kept on a password protected computer. Only the research team will have access to the data. At the end of the study, de-identified data will be uploaded to a public data repository, the Open Science Foundation (OSF), in the interests of open science and replicability. It will also be indexed on UNE’s Open Access database, RUNE. All the data collected in this research will be kept indefinitely. Ethical Approval This project has been approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of New England (Approval No. HE21-142, Valid to 01 June, 2022). Upsetting issues It is unlikely that this research will raise any personal or upsetting issues, but if it does you may wish to contact Mental Health America: 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to reach a 24-hour centre, or text MHA to 741741 to reach a text line – OR, if in the UK, contact Samaritans on 116 123, 24 hours a day or text SHOUT to 85258. Should you have any complaints concerning the manner in which this research is conducted, please contact: Research Ethics Officer Thank you for considering this request.
Research Services
University of New England
Armidale, NSW 2351
Tel: (02) 6773 3715.
Email: humanethics@une.edu.au
Contact
Feel free to contact the student researcher, Grant Schulz, with any questions about this research.
Email: gschulz3@une.edu.au
Phone: (07) 3666 6480
You may also contact the supervisors on this project.
The principal supervisor - Dr Deborah Apthorp
Email: dapthorp@une.edu.au
Phone: +61 2 6773 4315
The co-supervisor - Dr Clara Murray
Email: cmurra30@une.edu.au
Phone: +61 2 6773 1793
If in the UK, you may contact Professor Frances Quirk
Email: frances.quirk@nhs.scot
Phone: +6 17900161885
Online implied consent for participants
- I have read the information contained in the Information Sheet for Participants
- I agree to participate in the following four cognitive tasks, two surveys and basic demographic questions.
- My participation will be compensated at the agreed rate by Prolific Academic
- My contribution is anonymous
- Information concerning my identity will not be collected
- I may withdraw at any time
- If I withdraw, I will not receive payment for my participation, but there will be no other consequences or follow-up
- I agree that the anonymous research data collected for the study will form part of a thesis and may be published, or presented at conferences at a later date
- I agree that my anonymous data may be publicly available on the OSF once the study is completed
- I am 18 years of age or older.
- In preservation of anonymity, I understand that no name or signature is required of me to give consent.
By clicking “I wish to proceed", I am agreeing to participate in this study.
*When you click on “I wish to proceed”, you will be prompted to download a small program called Inquisit Player, which will help in collecting accurate data. Once the experiment is complete, which should take approximately 30 - 45 minutes, you can delete Inquisit.*
*At the end of the study, you will be given a confirmation code which you can provide to Prolific for payment.*
