As many of you know, I’m currently pursuing a Masters in Psychology at The New School in New York. My thesis project is a short survey to be taken by two people close to each other. I’m hoping you can help!
The survey takes about 10-15 minutes, and each person takes the survey separately. Your survey will prompt you to provide the name and email address of the person close to you (romantic partner, family member you live with, close friend or roommate). So give them a heads up!:)
The formal letter is below, and the link to the survey will take you to a consent form that outlines the project. In brief: I’m interested in studying the interpersonal effects of practice, how it influences our relationships and how we are in those relationships.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Regardless of whether you are able to help out or not, I appreciate you taking the time to read this. I hope to get to share practice in person with you soon.
With warmth,
Jen
Dear Prospective Participant,
My name is Jen Whitney, and I’m a Clinical Psychology Student at The New School for Social Research in New York City. As part of my Master Thesis under the supervision of Dr. Doris F. Chang, I’m exploring the characteristics of interpersonal relationships through the study of two people in a close relationship. Specifically the following relationships:
-Romantic Partners
-Family members living together
-Very close friends who see each other daily/near daily
-Close roommates
This study uses a series of online questionnaires for both you and your Close Relationship Other, looking at your perception of yourselves, your relationship, and of your Close Relationship Other. You must sign up with a Close Personal Relationship person in mind, and provide us with their name and email address so that we may contact them to complete the study. We ask that you notify them in advance, so they are not unduly surprised to hear from us.
The survey will take around 10 minutes to complete. Individuals who complete the survey in full will receive a $5 electronic gift card each, upon completion by both you and your Close Relationship Other. To ensure confidentiality, IP addresses will be retained only to confirm eligibility to receive the gift card; addresses will be separated from individuals’ survey responses after the gift card is issued.
Participation is completely voluntary and all responses are completely confidential, including from both people in the relationship. You will not be able to see your Close Other’s answers, and they will not be able to see yours. All identifying information will be used solely to ensure accurate matching of participant and observer. Thereafter information will be exchanged for ID numbers and results reported in aggregate.
As thanks for your efforts, at the close of the study, you will have the opportunity to opt into receiving a brief analysis of your relationship based on all the data we have collected. We cannot provide any specific details as to how each of you answered, but will provide feedback from the aggregated data of all participants, for example “You and you partner are highly skilled in disagreement resolution, keep up the good work!”
If you have any questions about what this might entail in depth, I’m very happy to answer them. If you would be able to participate, please click this link to complete the consent process and take the survey.
Warmly,
Jen Whitney
M.A. Candidate, Clinical Psychology
The New School for Social Research
Jennifer Whitney 