You are being invited to participate in a research study entitled Story Trails: Evaluating the Impact on Activity Levels and Sense of Connectedness to Nature. This study is being conducted by three researchers: Dr Christina Thatcher (Cardiff University), Dr Dylan Adams (Cardiff Metropolitan University) and Ellyse Hopkins (Cardiff Metropolitan University).
You are being invited to participate in this study because you have listened to the ‘Becoming Bright’ Story Trail based at the Lisvane and Llanishen Reservoirs.
Why are we doing this research study?
The purpose of this study is to understand the impact to Story Trail participants’ activity levels as well as how the Story Trail might connect them to nature.
Who can participate in this research study?
Adults who have listened to the ‘Becoming Bright’ Story Trail based in the woodland at the Lisvane and Llanishen Reservoirs are invited to take part.
What will I be asked to do and how much time will it take?
If you agree to take part in this study, you will be asked to complete a short survey which should take around 5 minutes. This survey will ask you about yourself, your activity levels and your experiences of listening to the story, ‘Becoming Bright’, in the woodland at Lisvane and Llanishen Reservoirs.
You will have the option of leaving your email address to be contacted for a follow-up chat about yourself, your activity levels, your sense of connectedness to nature and the Story Trail. This chat should take around 20 to 30 minutes and is completely voluntary.
Will being in this research study help me in any way?
You may find it beneficial to reflect generally on your experience of listening to this story, walking to the woodland and connecting to nature. We also hope that your participation in this study may reveal some relationship between these things. It may also help us to develop future Story Trails around Wales.
What are my risks of being in this research study?
We believe there are minimal risks associated with this research study; however, a risk of breach of confidentiality always exists and we have taken steps to minimize this risk as outlined in a section below.
How will my personal information be protected?
To the best of our ability your answers in this study will remain confidential. We will minimize any risks by allowing this survey to be completed anonymously.
All data from the questionnaire will be stored securely on Cardiff University's JISC Online Surveys platform. Any CSV or Excel downloads of this data from the JISC platform will be stored securely on Cardiff University's One Drive.
What happens if I say yes, but I change my mind later?
You do not have to be in this study if you do not want to. If you do not want to take part, then you do not need to complete the survey.
If you begin the survey, but do not complete it, then this will be treated as a withdrawal from the study. There are no penalties or consequences of any kind if you decide that you do not want to participate.
However, if you complete the survey you will not be able to withdrawal your answers since they are anonymous. We will take your completion as consent to participate.
Who can I talk to if I have questions?
If you have questions about this project you may Dr Christina Thatcher (thatcherc@cardiff.ac.uk).