COMMUNITY ENGAGED RESEARCH STUDY

Study # 30003801
Version Date: April 15th, 2026
Version Number: V2

Principal Investigator: Dr. Lara B. Aknin, Simon Fraser University (laknin@sfu.ca)
External Collaborators: Dr. Ashley Whillans, Harvard University; Dr. Samantha Heintzelman, Rutgers University
Research Assistant: Tori Kazemir (tnk2@sfu.ca)
Funding: Harris Manchester College: 2024 World Happiness Report

This study is being conducted to better understand the use of community engaged research in the fields of social psychology, developmental psychology, and public health. As part of this study, you will be asked to complete a short survey about your community-engaged research behaviors, your opinions and perceptions of community-engaged research, and barriers you have faced when trying to engage in this work.

You are eligible to take part in this study if you (1) are an adult (18+ years), (2) are able to read and understand English, (3) have access to a device with internet access, and (4) are a researcher in social psychology, developmental psychology, and/or public health.
The survey will take approximately 10-15 minutes to complete, and you will earn one entry into a draw where up to three winners will get to choose between receiving a $50 Amazon gift card or a $50 donation to a charity of your choice. We cannot estimate the exact odds of winning the draw prize because we do not know the number of people who will provide their information. However, all participants who provide their contact information for the draw prize are eligible, and each participant has an equal chance of winning the draw prize.

Your participation is completely voluntary. You are free not to answer any questions or complete any tasks that you find uncomfortable, and you may choose to withdraw your data from the survey at any time. Refusal to participate or withdrawing/dropping out after agreeing to participate will not adversely affect you. The expected benefits for you are being entered into the prize draw described above. The expected benefits for the researchers are to gain insight into the research question. This study has minimal risk to participants.

You will be asked to complete the survey on an online platform called SurveyMonkey. SurveyMonkey does not record, nor even have access to, any identifying information, so your participation is completely confidential. Any data you provide may be transmitted and stored in countries outside of Canada, as well as in Canada. It is important to remember that privacy laws vary in different countries and may not be the same as in Canada. The security and privacy policy for the web survey company can be found at the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/legal/security/.

Your responses to the survey will be anonymous. However, a combination of the information you provide as part of the demographic survey may point to specific participants even if you do not share your name. Because your responses will be anonymized, once you close the survey, your responses cannot be withdrawn. All data collected from this survey will be stored on password-protected computers in a locked office and/or on password-protected cloud servers. Only the Principal Investigator, Dr. Lara B. Aknin, her collaborators, and research team will have access to this information. Please note that your data will be shared with two external collaborators outside of Canada, in the United States. All information you provide is strictly confidential. To help improve science, your anonymous survey response data will be shared with other researchers (see below).
In line with current best practices in psychological research, electronic data may be preserved for future use in open science initiatives. Open science initiatives allow for researchers from different universities to share their data upon completion of studies, in an effort to stimulate further use and exploration of existing data sets. Data is uploaded to an online forum in the form of a computer software file, and these files are stripped of any information that could identify participants (e.g., names, email addresses), to ensure confidentiality and anonymity.

The findings of this study may be included in a student project, conference presentation, or publication.

You are free to discuss your participation in this study, and to obtain copies of the result upon the study’s completion, by contacting Dr. Aknin (laknin@sfu.ca). By consenting you have not waived any rights to legal recourse in the event of research-related harm.

Who to Contact for Concerns about the Rights of Research Subjects?

At Simon Fraser University: If you have any concerns about your rights as a research participant and/or your experiences while participating in this study, please contact the Director, Research Ethics and Security at hreb@sfu.ca or 778-782-6593.

Your secondary contact is the principal investigator:

Dr. Lara Aknin
Department of Psychology
Simon Fraser University
8888 University Drive
Phone: (778) 782-9563
Email: laknin@sfu.ca

You will now be asked about your preferences for participation and data storage.

Question Title

First, do you agree to participate in this study? By clicking “I agree” below, you are consenting to participate, and certify that you have received sufficient information describing the procedures, that you have received an adequate opportunity to consider the information above describing the study, and that you voluntarily agree to participate in the study.

Please note that you must agree to the statement below in order to proceed with the survey.

If you do not wish to participate in this survey, please close the browser window now. (Required.)

Question Title

Second, if you agree to participate in this study, may we share your anonymous responses on the Open Science Framework for unspecified future research, which is current best practice to improve transparency and replicability in science? Note: you may select any option to proceed. (Required.)

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