INFORMATION LETTER
Dear participant,
First, thank you for your interest! Before the experiment starts, it is important that you are informed about the procedures. Therefore, we would like you to read this information letter carefully. Please do not hesitate to ask for clarification about this text or the general procedure. If anything might be unclear, the researcher will answer your questions.
Goal of the study
The goal of this study is to examine whether we are able to distinguish between participants with crime knowledge and participants without crime knowledge based on their responses.
Procedure
In this study, you will first be instructed to read a crime story and do a memory game. Afterward, you will be asked to do a computerized task while we assess your responses. In this task, you will first memorize a list of target items. Afterward, you will see several sequences of word and picture items. Your task exists in deciding whether this item is a target, crime-related, or unfamiliar item. It is important that you are comfortable and remain focused throughout the experiment. Before you start with the task, there will be practice blocks to familiarize yourself with the task. The total duration of the experiment will be 15 minutes and there will be multiple opportunities for you to take a break.
Voluntary participation
There are no consequences if you decide now not to participate in this study. During the experiment, you are free to stop participating at any moment without giving a reason for doing so. If you wish to terminate your participation at any time, press Control+Q on your keyboard to exit the experiment. Within seven days after participation, you are allowed to withdraw your data from this research and your data will be deleted permanently.
Discomfort, risk, and insurance
As with any research at the University of Amsterdam, a standard liability insurance applies.
Your privacy is guaranteed
Your personal information (e.g. name, date of birth) remains confidential and will never be shared with third parties. Research data that are published in scientific journals will be anonymous and cannot be traced back to you as an individual.
Sharing anonymized research data
Completely anonymized data can be made publicly accessible. The research data will be shared anonymously, but freely accessible on the internet via a public database. The research data that will be shared will not contain any personal information such as name, address, date of birth, and date of participation or any other information that would make it possible for others to directly identify you. If you do not agree to make your anonymized research data publicly accessible, you cannot participate in this study.
Compensation
As compensation for your participation, you will receive 10£ or your local equivalent. Based on your performance during the task, you have the chance to obtain an additional bonus of 1£.
Further information
Should you have questions about this study at any given moment, please contact the responsible researcher; Bruno Verschuere (b.j.verschuere@uva.nl). Formal complaints about this study can be addressed to the Ethics Review Board; Arnold van Emmerik (a.a.p.vanemmerik@uva.nl).
By clicking “I wish to proceed”, you declare that:
- you are 18 or older.
- you have read and understood the information.
- you agree to participate in this study and agree with the use of the data that are collected
- you reserve the right to withdraw your participation from the study at any moment without providing any reason.
Thank you and best regards,
Franziska Regnath
Margreet Klein Willink
Ine Van der Cruyssen
Bruno Verschuere
Download a PDF version of the informed consent statement: