CONSENT FORM – ONLINE SURVEY Understanding the shifting mental health and wellbeing landscape of 2SLGBTQIA+ Nova Scotians and New Brunswickers You are invited to take part in a research study being conducted by Patrick Hickey, a graduate student in Psychology and Neuroscience at Dalhousie University. The purpose of this research is to improve our understanding of the current mental health of and the impact of discrimination for 2SLGBTQIA+ people living in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick using data collected from an online survey. Participants must be 18 years of age or older at the time of completing the questionnaire, must identify as a member of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, and currently live in either Nova Scotia or New Brunswick. If you choose to participate in this research, you will be asked to answer a series of questions about different aspects of mental health and experiences of discrimination in an anonymous online survey. The survey should take approximately 35 minutes. We are looking for a maximum of 1,000 people to participate in the survey. Your participation in this research is entirely your choice. You do not have to answer questions that you do not want to answer, and you can stop the survey at any time if you no longer want to participate. To stop, you can close your browser at any time during the study. After each section of the survey, you will be asked if you would like to submit your responses and continue to the next section. If you select yes, your responses will become part of the study, and you will not be able to remove your responses. Unsubmitted sections of the survey will not be included in the study. If you complete the survey and change your mind later, I will not be able to remove the information you provided as I will not know which responses are yours. Your responses to the survey will be anonymous. This means that there are no questions in the survey that ask for identifying details such as your name or contact information. However, you will be asked at the end of the survey if you are interested in completing an interview about your experiences at a later date. If you select yes, you will be brought to a separate survey page to enter your name and email address. Your name and email address will not be connected with your responses to the survey and researchers will not be able to link your responses to your name or email. All responses will be saved on a secure Dalhousie server. Only Patrick Hickey, honours student Rae Nicolas, and researchers Dr. Shannon Johnson and Dr. Elizabeth Cawley will have access to the survey results. I will describe and share general findings of this research in my PhD dissertation. After completing analyses and reporting the results, data will be stored indefinitely on secure Dalhousie servers and may be used for future research under Dr. Johnson’s supervision. The risks associated with this study include questions about experiences with discrimination and mental health, which may be difficult for you depending on past experiences. Specific details about discriminatory experiences are not asked for in the study, but you may not wish to participate if you feel that questions about discrimination will negatively impact your mental health. Information about specific mental health resources is listed below and will be provided again at the end of the survey. The Trevor Project The Trevor project specializes in providing support to young LGBTQ individuals, reach a counsellor 24/7. https://www.thetrevorproject.org/ Trans LifeLine Trans LifeLine provides trans peer support for our community. Call 877-330-6366 (Canada) or 877-565-8860 (United States). https://translifeline.org/ Crisis Services Canada Receive suicide prevention services and connect with a responder immediately by calling 1-833-456-4566. https://www.crisisservicescanada.ca/en/ Canadian Mental Health Association Find non-emergent mental health resources, information, and programs in your local area. https://cmha.ca/ There will be no direct benefit to you in participating in this research. The research, however, might contribute to new knowledge on the mental health of and impact of discrimination on members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. To thank you for your time you can choose to enter a draw for a chance to win one of ten $50 gift cards at the end of the survey. Your contact information for the draw will not be linked in any way to your survey responses. You can ask any questions you have before or after participating. Please contact Patrick Hickey (patrick.hickey@dal.ca) or Dr. Shannon Johnson (902-494-4504) if you have any questions. If you have any ethical concerns about your participation in this research, you may contact Research Ethics, Dalhousie University at (902) 494-3423, or email ethics@dal.ca (and reference REB file # 2024-7421). | 