Participate in research studies

If one in seven Australian women are predicted to develop breast cancer, why don’t more people acknowledge the risks and cut down their alcohol consumption?

The Cancer Council found the number of breast cancer cases linked to alcohol as much higher than previously estimated with one in five breast cancer cases linked to alcohol, women aged 35-54 are at the highest risk for cancer due to excessive alcohol consumption according to a 2019 Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report.  

With women aged 35-54 at the highest proportional cancer risk due to excessive alcohol intake, a new anonymous online survey is seeking to understand behaviour and devise interventions and advice to turn the tide and raise awareness.

We believe that every woman deserves a drink but that no woman deserves breast cancer. We believe that prevention is the best cure.

Are you a woman aged 35-54 years old living in Australia?

If so, you can help us understand women’s lives, alcohol use and beliefs about health prevention. Participants will complete an online anonymous survey which will take about 10-15 minutes. To thank you for your participation, at the end of the survey you can enter the draw to win one of five $100 shopping vouchers.

The online survey is open. Your participation will help to inform breast cancer prevention programs, if you or anyone you know is interested in completing the survey, please visit this link.

Organised sport is often viewed as one important setting for accumulating physical activity.  Therefore, we are interested in investigating coaches' perceptions of professional development materials (I.e. coaching resources such as websites, workshops and print materials) and their role in enhancing physical activity levels.
 

Are you at least 17 years and above? Do you usually cook dinner/evening meals at home?

If yes, we would like to invite you to participate in our study!

Participants will complete an online survey sharing about their home cooking practices, and whether they use herbs and spices for flavouring. The entire survey will take about 20 minutes to complete.

Find out more and/or participate in the study.  

This study is investigating the psychology of drink choices. In this study, you will complete several questionnaires about your beverage consumption habits and dieting behaviour, and choose a drink from a computerised vending machine display. Your height and weight will also be measured.

The session will take approximately 15 mins.

Participants will be presented with images of various doorways, and pictures of objects or people inside of them. They will need to imagine walking through the doorway, and judge whether they believe that they could pass through without turning their body sideways. Three short questionnaires will be administered. Please note that participants’ shoulder width and height will be measured at the beginning of the study.

Participants will complete several cognitive tasks on the computer, fill in questionnaires, and taste and rate a selection of drinks. Participants’ height and weight will also be measured.

The questionnaires and tasks will take around 70 mins. Following the session, you will be asked to complete short online surveys each day for a seven-day period. The study as a whole is estimated to take a total time commitment of 90 minutes.

If you are interested in participating please visit https://flinders.sona-systems.com/default.aspx?p_return_experiment_id=1747 or
contact joshua.mcgreen@flinders.edu.au.

There is a need to better understand what factors contribute to successful parent and coach relationships in youth sport. This is important because parents and coaches strongly influence psychosocial outcomes developed through youth sport. They also impact participation in, and enjoyment of, youth sport. Examining models of successful parent and coach relationships are necessary to address a clear gap in the field of sport parenting (Harwood, Knight, Berrow and Thrower, 2019). This project will undertake a series of interviews with parents and coaches in youth sport to explore their experiences and perceptions of successful parent and coach relationships in youth sport.

What will I be asked to do?
You are invited to voluntarily participate in a once-only individual interview (in person or via skype) or a focus group discussion. Interviews will last approximately 30-60 minutes and focus groups will last approximately 30-60 minutes. All interviews and focus groups will be recorded for transcribing purposes. Participants will not be given the opportunity to review and edit their transcripts. Skype interviews will be video recorded for audio data only (i.e., video recording will not be used, only audio data used for transcription purposes).

What benefit will I gain from being involved in this study?
Your involvement in this study will directly contribute to developing effective and efficient education and training programs to optimise coach and parental involvement in youth sport. The development of educational resources is a novel step in this regard, yet there is a need to inform resource development with evidence-based topics that enhance parental involvement in youth sport, including how to cultivate positive relationships between parents and coaches. An email summary of the projects findings can be arranged for each participant or an oral presentation at local sport club.

Will I be identifiable by being involved in this study?
We cannot assure anonymity but can ensure confidentiality by de-identifying all recorded data and using pseudonyms in any resulting publications. All files will be stored on a password protected server and Onedrive file, in which access will be restricted to the researchers and a transcription service. These files will be destroyed after 5 years in storage. Your comments will not be linked directly to you. Even though information provided will be treated with the strictest confidence by the researcher, as the researcher is a mandated reporter, disclosure of illegal activities will need to be reported by the researcher to the relevant authorities.

Are there any risks or discomforts if I am involved?
There are no risks or discomforts if you are involved. However, there are some burdens including:

1. Time burden: As interviews and focus groups can last for up to an hour, participants will be verbally reminded that they can withdraw from the interview or focus group at any time.
2. Lack of anonymity: For convenience, a sign will be provided to participants before the interview to print and attach to doors or office windows if they are located in a workspace. Participants will also be encouraged to consider participating in the study at ‘low peak’ times to reduce burden of incidental people and if possible, suggest using quiet space at home or in a booked space to reduce burden of incidental people. In the unlikely event that participants experience discomfort and/or distress during an interview or focus group, participants can access free support from Lifeline (13 11 14) and Beyond Blue (1300 22 4636).
   

How do I agree to participate?
Contact sam.elliott@flinders.edu.au for more information including information sheet and consent form.

Validation of a Supplements Intake Questionnaire among female athletes and non-athlete controls

If you are female and self-described as a non-athlete (no organised sport or training), we would like to invite you to take part in our nutrition research. We want to know which supplements different groups of people take, and are asking various groups to be part of our research, including yourselves as young adults in the general population.

Participation will require you to fill out a questionnaire, which has some questions about the types of supplements you take. We would also like you to complete an online dietary intake diary, recording all foods, drinks and supplements taken for 8 different days.

This dietary intake recording will take place over 4 weeks, selecting random days to record your intakes. The questionnaire and dietary intake recording will be repeated a month after the first were completed. In appreciation for your participation in our research, we will analyse your food diary and provide detailed dietary feedback in a non-judgemental way. Your participation in this research study will remain confidential. For further information, please contact:

Claire Flower

You are invited to participate in a research interview that aims to explore nursing and allied health professionals’ perceptions of why avoidable hospital readmissions for aspiration pneumonia and constipation occur and how their incidence can be reduced. These interviews will form part of a larger study designed to develop an intervention to reduce the occurrence of these readmissions.

You are eligible to participate if you are a nurse, physiotherapist, occupational therapist, dietician and/or speech pathologist currently working in a hospital in South Australia. You can be working as a clinician or in a managerial/leadership position. You can have a dual academic-clinical role.

The interview will take approximately 45 minutes (this will depend on how much information you want to share). Interviews can be held either at Flinders Medical Centre, Flinders University, over-the-phone or in a public place (library or café), whichever is convenient for you. Confidentiality will always be upheld, particularly when interviewing in public places. Interviews will be conducted by one of three researchers from the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University.

There are no foreseeable risks to participating in this project. Taking part is completely voluntary and you are under no obligation to participate. Your choice to participate or not will have no influence on your employment status or conditions.

If you are interested in participating, or want more information, please contact:

Dr Rebecca Feo
Email: rebecca.feo@flinders.edu.au
Phone: +61 8 8201 3502

Kristi Urry
kristi.urry@flinders.edu.au

Health Behaviours of University Students

Study load has been associated with decreased physical activity and increased stress. This research project aims to assess how movement behaviours and health outcomes are influenced by changes in study load in university students across the duration of a semester. This study will act as a pilot study to provide important insight into where interventions to enhance student health and well-being are best positioned.

The research is completed in two phases:

• Phase one: visit 1 approx. 20 min & visit 2 approx. 40 min to be conducted early in Semester 2, 2019 +
• Phase two: visit 3 approx. 20 min & visit 4 approx. 40 min) to be conducted late in Semester 2, 2019.

• Wear 2 small activity monitors (one on your wrist and one on your upper thigh) for two sets of 8-day periods to measure movement behaviours.
• Take 2 minutes each night to record your sleep times and time spent in study and paid employment during the monitoring period.
• Complete five short questionnaires during two of the data collection visits (I.e. visits 1 & 3).
  

The promotion and Engagement of Contemporary Sports for Girls and Young Women: Implications for Netball

This project aims to find out the impact that wide ranging contemporary sports participation is having upon netball in South Australia. The information gained from the study will help us understand the current landscape of female sports participation and will enable the development of strategies to ensure netball can adapt to societal changes and other pressures.

The research is completed in two phases:

• Phase 1: We are seeking girls and young women participating in sport to complete the survey. This will take 10-20 minutes.
  
• Phase 2: We are seeking stakeholders (club officials, coaches, umpires, players and organisation organisers)  to take part in focus group interviews.

A new clinical tool to assess fitness-to-drive in obstructive sleep apnoea

If you have sleep apnea or snoring, or if you consider yourself free from any sleep problems we invite you to participate in a research study to help us characterise sleep disorders better.  This study is being conducted at the following location:

Adelaide Institute for Sleep Health, Adelaide SA.

The study will involve completing a 45 minute questionnaire asking about your sleep, health and lifestyle. Depending on your answers in the questionnaire, you may be invited to have an overnight sleep study at our sleep centre.

If you are interested in participating in this study, please email:
aish.sleeplab@flinders.edu.au.

Clarifying the role of arousal-hyperventilation in obstructive and central sleep apnoea: Testing fundamental pathophysiological mechanisms

Volunteers will undergo a one night sleep study with additional respiratory and intramuscular

Flourishing in rural schools: Graduate teachers' perceptions of their wellbeing in their new profession.

This project will investigate graduate teachers’ understandings and perceptions of their sense of wellbeing and the influences on their flourishing in their first rural teaching appointment. Wellbeing is more than happiness; it involves increasing the flourishing in one’s life by improving and growing one’s positive emotions, positive engagement, positive relationships, positive meaning, and positive accomplishments (Seligman, 2011).

This project will survey as many graduate teachers in rural, regional, and remote locations as possible, then offer the opportunity to participate in follow-up interviews and/or participant journaling to explore their wellbeing in more detail.

Sisu trait survey: How is the Finnish concept of 'sisu' experienced in Australia?

Participate in a short (< 10 min) online survey to help create a generalisable tool for measuring 'sisu' across different cultures.

The term 'sisu' refers to "extraordinary determination, courage and resoluteness in the face of extreme adversity. An action mindset which enables individuals to reach beyond their present limitation, take action against all odds and transform barriers into frontiers. An integral element of Finnish culture and also a universal capacity, which we all share." (https://sisulab.com/sisu-about/)

The survey is part of the 'Sisu at Work' project, conducted by the University of Helsinki and VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd. in collaboration with Flinders University.

More information about the survey, project and sisu, as well as the researchers’ contact information can be found on the survey website.

Continuously monitoring alcohol use and health behaviours using a smartphone app and breathalyser: Pilot study

This study is part of the project titled “Continuously monitoring alcohol use & health behaviours using a smartphone app and breathalyser: Pilot study”.

This project will investigate the feasibility of using smartphone base applications in a general population, and to determine whether the information gathered can be used to detect time and contexts associated with alcohol use behaviour. Based on the data gathered, an individual intervention package can then be tailored for the user to improve the outcomes of an alcohol use disorder.

To be eligible for the study, individuals must be:

• at least (1) 18-years old and willing to produce identification which confirms their age; and
  
• drink regularly (weekly at minimum) as part of their normal life / social activities.

Flinders University nutrition research, together with CSIRO’s Nutrition and Health Research teams are finding ways to motivate and support people to improve their eating habits.  Advances in technology means we are starting to deliver some of our studies online.

“Shifting My Nutrition Score in 28 Days” is a new study where we are testing nutrition advice delivered via email.

For this study, participants will be required to complete two questionnaires, and will receive two emails over a four week period which will be specifically tailored to help improve eating habits.

Find out more if you are interested in participating in this study.

As an appreciation of your time, you will be given the opportunity to go in the draw to win a gift voucher to the value of $100 when you complete the 4-week study.

If you have any further questions or queries about the study, you can contact 28dayshift@csiro.au.

This study is approved by the CSIRO Health & Medical Human Research Ethics Committee and Flinders University Social and Behavioural Research Ethics Committee (SBREC).

Parents of children aged 1-5 years are invited to participate in this study to test out a newly developed short tool that measures young children’s food intake.  

Participants will complete an online survey reporting their child’s food intake on two occasions and answer a few questions about themselves and their family.

Find out more and/or participate in this study.

This project will investigate different motions of the hand and wrist and compare these to the motion of the lower limbs during walking. This project is supported by the Flinders University College of Science and Engineering.