Carrie Burnett, a graduate student in the Cognitive Neuroscience of Stress Lab in collaboration with the Social Determinants and Minority Stress Lab at Saint Louis University, is inviting you to participate in this research study.
The title of this study is Exploring the Role of Dissociation and Sexual Trauma in Self-Harm Behavior Among the Autistic Community. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of different experiences autistic adults commonly face and to better understand how social stressors may impact stress biology and increase the risk of self harm. We anticipate this study will provide a better understanding of the impact of experiences like dissociation, trauma and neurodivergence has on autistic adults.
Your participation in this study will involve in-person collection of one saliva sample by a research team member, one hair sample via self-collection or by research team member and completion of a survey that will take about 40-60 minutes. Following collection of samples questions in this survey will ask about identity variables, including questions about types of neurodivergence, experiences with gender identiy, and attitudes in your state around gender issues. Survey questions will also ask about the presence of various mental health experiences such as alexithymia, dissociation, past experiences of trauma, and experiences with self-harm behaviors.
The risks to you as a participant are minimal. This study involves the use of your personal information; there is always a small chance that a loss of confidentiality will occur, or risk of boredom and discomfort when reporting experiences and emotions.
The results of this study may be published in scientific research journals or presented at professional conferences. However, your name and identity will not be used only for contact and compensation, and stored separate from your data and your record will remain confidential. The researchers will store all data associated with your participation connected to a number, not your name or contact information. These numbers will be sequential four-digit numbers (e.g., 1001, 1002, etc.). Personal contact information will be kept separate from your data. To protect confidentiality data from this study will be protected on encrypted computers and only stored on SLU protected databases. The Saint Louis University Institutional Review Board (the Board that is responsible for protecting the welfare of persons who take part in research studies) or other University officials may review your research study records. State or federal laws or court orders may also require that information from your research study records be released.
Your data and samples collected as part of this research, even if identifiers are removed, will not be used or distributed for future research studies.
Participation in this study will not benefit you directly. Your participation will benefit others by helping researchers in understanding risk factors that transgender adults face.
You can choose not to participate. If you decide not to participate, there will not be a penalty to you or loss of any benefits to which you are otherwise entitled. You may withdraw from this study at any time.
If you have questions about this research study, you can call Carrie Burnett at (314) 977-2296. If you have questions about your rights as a research participant, you can call the Saint Louis University Institutional Review Board at 314-977-7744 and reference IRB #34507.