
ABOUT THE STUDY
What is the ECHO project?
The ECHO project is designed to develop our understanding of relationships in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual/aromantic, plus (LGBTQIA+) community in the UK and Ireland. We want to understand what makes some relationships healthy, while others become unhealthy or violent. We are also interested in how these experiences relate to mental health and wellbeing. We are doing this research to understand more about different types of negative experiences within LGBTQIA+ relationships, and what kinds of support might be useful for people who are going through something like this.
Who is conducting the study?
The study is being conducted by a team of researchers based at Dublin City University School of Psychology. The research is supervised by Dr. Áine Travers and funded by the Wellcome Trust. Learn more about our team here. If you have any questions about the study or what participation would involve, please contact Dr Travers at aine.travers@dcu.ie
How do I know if I am eligible to take part?
To take part, you must be over the age of 18, living in the UK or Ireland, and part of a sexual or gender minority. Sexual or gender minorities include anyone who identifies as part of the LGBTQIA+ community, as well as people who may not identify as part of the community, but who experience same-sex attraction, have had same-sex relationships in the past, or who do not identify with the gender they were assigned at birth. You do not need to have had any negative relationship experiences to participate. We need to hear from a wide variety of people with lots of different experiences.
What will I be asked to do if I participate?
If you participate, you will be asked to complete an online survey that will take around 45 minutes to complete. The survey will ask questions about your life, relationships and mental health. Some of the questions will ask about difficult life experiences, including whether you have ever experienced violence in an intimate relationship.
You will also be asked to provide an email address so that we can invite you to participate in a follow-up survey once per year over the next three years. For each study you complete, you will receive a One4All voucher, to compensate you for your time.
Taking part is completely voluntary - you can opt out at any time, up until your data has been anonymised. For example, if you take part in the first survey and then decide you don’t want to receive any further emails, that’s no problem, you just have to let us know by contacting us, using the contact details at the bottom of this page. See here for more information about data protection.
What if I am feeling distressed?
If you are feeling especially vulnerable at the moment, and feel that answering questions about difficult experiences you have had might cause you a very significant amount of distress, we advise you not to take part in the study. If you are currently feeling distressed about your experience with a difficult and abusive relationship and are struggling, visit our Help & Support page for contact information of services in your area.