03/06/2026
We have a lot of grandparents that visit the Playcentre that care for grandchildren. If you are interested in taking part in the study please get in touch. The contact details are at the end of the post.
Grandparenting Across Cultures: Participant Information Sheet
You are being invited to take part in a research study. Before you decide whether to take part it is important for you to understand why the research is being done and what it will involve. Please take time to read the following information carefully.
What is the purpose of this study? Grandparental caregiving is increasingly common worldwide, yet it remains relatively understudied. There is limited research on how grandparents’ caregiving practices, personal values, and relationships with their grandchildren relate to children’s social development. This is the aim of our study. This study will be conducted across multiple sites, including the United Kingdom, Italy, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, to explore potential cultural differences in these associations.
Do I have to take part? Taking part is entirely voluntary, and refusal or withdrawal will involve no penalty or loss, now or in the future. You are free to withdraw from the experiment at any time without explaining why during the interview. And may request your data be deleted up to one week after the interview.
What will the study involve? If you agree to take part, you will be asked to complete an online questionnaire, which will take approximately 30–40 minutes, and an online interview via Zoom or telephone, which will take approximately 15 minutes. The questionnaire will ask about your relationship with your grandchild, your personal social relationships, your values, your reflections on interactions with your grandchild, and your grandchild’s values and social understanding abilities. During the interview, you will also be invited to speak freely and without interruption for a few minutes to introduce your grandchild to us. There are no right or wrong answers; we are interested in your personal experiences and perspectives. As a thank-you for your time, you will receive a £10 gift token upon completing the study.
Are there any possible disadvantages or risks in taking part? Taking part in this study involves minimal risk. Some participants may experience mild emotional discomfort when reflecting on their caregiving experiences. Answering questions about personal values or relationships may also feel slightly sensitive for some individuals. We will do our best to ensure that your participation in this research is handled securely, confidentially, and with respect for your rights as a participant. You may skip any question you do not wish to answer and may stop taking part at any time without giving a reason.
Confidentiality – who will have access to my personal data? This is a collaborative project between the University of Cambridge and the University of Sussex. Personally identifiable data will not be made available outside of the study team. We will be using any personal information you give us to undertake this study, and the University of Cambridge and University of Sussex will act as Joint Data Controllers for this purpose. The legal basis for using your personal information is to carry out a task (i.e. academic research) in the public interest. We will keep identifiable information about you only for as long as necessary for the study. Your rights to access, change or move your information are limited, as we need to manage your information in specific ways for the research to be reliable and accurate. If you withdraw from the study, we will keep the information about you that we have already obtained. To safeguard your rights, we will do our best to only use the minimum personally identifiable information possible. For further general information about the University of Cambridge’s use of your personal data as a participant in a research study, please see https://www.information-compliance.admin.cam.ac.uk/data-protection/research-participant-data.
What will happen to the study results? Group results, without any means of identifying the individuals involved, may be presented at conferences and written up in journals. Non-identifiable data may be shared with other researchers or the public as part of collaborations, joint projects or open access provisions.
Who should I contact if I have questions? The study is organised by the Department of Psychology at the University of Cambridge, led by Prof Claire Hughes ([email protected]) and Ms Yining Shi ([email protected]), in collaboration with Dr Elian Fink at the University of Sussex ([email protected]).
Ethics Committee Approval. This project has undergone the review procedure of the Department of Psychology Research Ethics Committee at the University of Cambridge (reference ID: 9943.320).
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