You may well have questions about participating in this research – and that is totally normal! There is no question too small – or too embarrassing – to ask, and we have tried to anticipate some of these questions and have provided the answers here. If these FAQs don’t answer your question, please do not hesitate to get in touch with the lead researcher, Sharif Mowlabocus.
Q: What kinds of questions are you going to be asking in the interview?
A: The questions vary but touch upon the following themes: – defining chemsex and the practices that fall under this heading; discussing the media response to chemsex; identifying the ‘shape’ of a chemsex event; discussing the management of negative effects and ‘comedowns’.
Q: Will you ask me about my sex life?
A: The discussion touches upon issues of intimacy but does not ask you to discuss your sex life in any detail. You can be as candid or as private as you like but there are no questions discussing specific sexual practices. You will not be asked about how often you have sex, what kinds of sex you have or anything to do with specific sexual activities.
Q: What about my use of drugs? Will you ask me about that?
The discussion will talk about drug use in a general sense, but you do not have to discuss your individual use of drugs if you don’t want to.
Q: I’m worried my information might be shared with other people, perhaps even people I know.
A: This is an important issue. You are discussing your personal life with a researcher and you have every right to raise this question. Sharif is an experienced researcher who must comply with a very strict code of ethics. He is trained to perform research in a confidential and sensitive manner. Anything you say will be kept in strict confidence by Sharif, and will never be shared with anyone. This is a priority and a condition of the University of Sussex granting permission for this research. Even if you know Sharif on a personal basis, he is bound by institutional research rules not to discuss the contents of the focus group outside of the interview itself, or even whether you have participated in this research. At no point will your name or any other identifying information about you be made public.
Q: What if I say something that I later want to take out of the interview?
A: You have the opportunity to redact part or all of you contribution to the research, providing you contact Sharif within six weeks of the interview taking place. It is very easy to do this. Email Sharif at: s.j.mowlabocus@sussex.ac.uk. You must give your full name when asking for the redaction (deleting of a specific piece of information). You will not face any penalty for asking for this redaction but you must let Sharif know within six weeks of the interview or focus group. You can also contact Sharif if you have any concerns about the contents of the discussion.
Q: What will you do with the interview recording? How will it be used?
A: Sharif has been commissioned to write a book about gay life in the UK and the focus group discussion will form part of the research for a chapter on chemsex. Sharif will also be presenting research at conferences and will publish journal articles too. Your ideas and opinions will help shape the contents of these outputs.
After your interview, Sharif will transfer the interview recording to a secure hard drive. Sharif will analyse the recording alongside many others. He may extract quotations that are particularly important or interesting. These quotations will not include your name, location or any other identifying information. Where necessary, Sharif will change details to ensure complete confidentiality.
Finally, after this project is completed, Sharif will securely wipe the external hard drive and write over the drive to ensure full deletion of contents.
Q: I still have questions!
A: No problem! You can contact Sharif via email at: s.j.mowlabocus@sussex.ac.uk. He is always happy to chat to you about any concerns or queries that you have.
PARTICIPANT CRITERIA – Please read before applying
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