Ravalier PhD Theis.pdf - Anglia Ruskin Research Online

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Complete anonymity and confidentiality throughout the questionnaire, log and interview phases were
essential. With the first two of these stages anonymity was ensured in two ways: individuals either completed the
questioning for each stage online with no personally identifiable mentioned, or individuals completed a hard copy
and returned via stamped addressed envelope to Jermaine Ravalier at Anglia Ruskin University, again without the
inclusion of any personally identifiable information. Simply by taking part in the survey and log elements of the
study individuals had given consent to take part, and they were informed numerous times previously as to the
nature of these studies.
Informed consent was gained for the focus groups and interviews by initially explaining the nature of the
study, and asking individuals to complete a consent form should they wish to take part. Additionally participants
were given a copy of an Information Sheet specifically designed for these two stages. Anonymity for interview
participants was assured by data kept in a locked cupboard on premises outside of the participating organisation,
and no identifiable information kept on the recordings of the interviews (which were kept in hidden, passwordprotected
files on two separate personal computers). Additionally, when interviews were transcribed no
identifiable information was included and neither was any personal information contained. Confidentiality was
ensured during the focus groups by making one of the ground rules at the beginning that ‘what stays in this group
meeting stays in the group meeting’, and again any analysis of the group work was anonymised by removing any
personally identifiable information. Finally, individuals were offered the opportunity to withdraw information from
the interview phase at any time. The same offer was not made for the previous phases however, due to the lack of
personally identifiable information recorded during these processes.