Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Will I get paid for participation?
Yes. You will be paid $25 for each of the four surveys, for a total of $100. Payment will be given in the form of a $25 Visa gift card, and will be mailed to you after both you and your partner have both completed at least 80% of the online surveys.
How will this study benefit me and my spouse/partner?
There is no direct benefit to you and your spouse/partner, but the information gained from this study will be used as an empirical basis to guide both researchers and clinicians in how they can best serve military couples who are becoming parents.
Are there any risks to me and my spouse/partner for participating in this study?
The only possible risk to you and/or your partner is the potential for minor distress from answering various questions about your life, romantic relationship, family, and child. This risk is minimal, and we can provide resources for you to seek out in the event that you do experience distress.
How will this study benefit others?
This study will be examining the factors related to resiliency in military couples transitioning to parenthood. The findings will be used to provide an empirical basis to guide interventions or any other means of serving military couples who are becoming parents.
So what exactly do I have to do?
All you have to do is to login to our surveys at each of the various time points indicated (i.e., the third trimester of pregnancy, 4 months after birth, 8 months after birth, and 12 months after birth) and complete the questionnaires. Also, double check to make sure you spouse/partner completes the survey as well. That’s it!
What if I don’t fit one or more of the necessary requirements to participate in the study?
The goal of our study is to examine how military couples transition to first-time parenthood. So, unfortunately if you don’t meet the requirements for participation you are ineligible for the present study. However, we hope that this doesn’t deter your interest in participating in future studies! We are always looking for good and interested participants, so stay tuned for another opportunity!
How do I know my results will be kept strictly confidential?
Keeping your responses completely confidential is very important to us. As we are both therapists and researchers, we have a great deal of experience in keeping personal information confidential. Multiple steps are taken to keep your results confidential. The online survey host (survey monkey) is the online medium that provides the survey and stores the data at servers on their location. This location is physically secured with 24/7 surveillance, security guards, servers are kept in a locked cage, in a SAS70 Type II certified facility. Only Dr. Jared Durtschi (Principle Investigator) and Kristy Soloski (Co-Investigator) will have access to the raw data, and that will be kept in a locked file cabinet, and in an office that is locked when not occupied.
Your name and address are required so we can mail you the $25 Visa gift card at the completion of both mother and father completing the survey. For our accounting and tax record purposes, and to be in keeping with Kansas State University policy, prior to receiving your first payment ($25 gift card), our K-State accountants will need to obtain your name, address, and social security numbers. That will never be connected or stored with your data, however, and will be requested by the K-State accountants, and you will receive your payments through the K-State accountants.
Your names and emails will be gathered as part of the survey so we can match your data with your spouse/partner, and to make it possible to email you the link for the follow-up surveys, and to give you payment for participation. After all the data is gathered, all names will be removed from the data files with your responses, and you will instead be given an anonymous ID number for identification. All findings, presentations, and publications resulting from this study will only be used in summary form, not looking at specific participants.
How will my results be used?
The results to this study will be used to determine any possible resiliency factors that couples have when transitioning to parenthood. These results will support empirical articles for publication in scholarly journals presenting the resiliency factors. Further, these findings will provide an empirical basis to guide interventions or any other means of serving military couples who are becoming parents.
Do I have to finish the survey or engage in all 4 waves of data collection?
Our hope is that you and your partner will complete each of the four surveys. However, your participation in this study is entirely voluntary. That being said, if you decide to not finish a survey, or not complete additional follow-up surveys, you are free to do so. However, if you do not complete the survey, and do not participate in the additional follow-up surveys, you will not be paid if you don’t complete the majority of the survey (i.e., at least 80% of the survey).