Participant Information & Consent Form
A survey by the Free Speech Union and Save Mental Health
Title: The Impact of Cancellation on Mental Health
Introduction
If you are over the age of 18 and have experience of cancellation, we invite you to take part in this survey to help us understand the impact of cancellation on mental health. What we mean by 'cancellation' includes, but is not limited to, any of the following happening in response to you saying or doing something to which others objected: being bullied; harassed; ostracised; suspended from work or a university course; loss of income or income earning opportunities; loss of reputation; loss of friendship; exclusion from a friendship group; online or public 'mobbing'. If you have experienced any of the above or something similar, and would potentially be interested in telling us about what happened, please read the following information carefully and decide whether or not you consent to take part.
What will my participation involve?
You will be asked to complete an online questionnaire. Your responses will be anonymous but you will be given a participant code. Please keep a note of this in case you need to contact us. In addition to basic demographic information, such as age, sex and ethnicity, you will also be asked to provide some information regarding the nature of your cancellation experience, as well as your mood. Some questions will ask for a scaled response, and some will allow you to provide more detailed responses. If there are any questions that you do not feel comfortable answering, please feel free to skip them. When you are asked to provide more detailed responses, please indicate if you do NOT want us to report any of the information you have shared with us. At the end of the questionnaire, you will be provided with some ‘debriefing’ information.
How might it affect me?
You may find that recalling experiences of cancellation is upsetting. Please consider carefully if you are prepared to go ahead, particularly if you have mental health problems that might be worsened by thinking about past events. If you start the survey and, while completing it, decide you do not wish to continue, you are free to withdraw at that point, without penalty. If, after completing and submitting the survey you then decide you want your data to be removed, please contact us at: admin@save-mental-health.uk with your Participant ID, before 30 November 2025. After this date your anonymised data will have been amalgamated into the dataset for the study and cannot be removed.
How will my data be managed and stored?
All data collected will be anonymous, treated in complete confidence and stored in a secure manner. No information that enables identification of any individual will be used.
How will the data be used?
The data from this survey will provide the Free Speech Union and not-for-profit group Save Mental Health with important information about the effects of cancellation on mental health. The anonymised findings from the survey will be publicised widely to raise awareness of the effects of cancellation and identify any shortcomings in current mental health provision.
Consent
Please note that by continuing with the survey at this point and clicking on the link below, you are consenting to take part:
https://qualtricsxmrt7zw4ztq.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0kwiVdVTnNnaWOO