The online survey takes about 20–25 minutes to complete. You can do it at your own pace, on a computer, tablet, or smartphone, at a time and place that suits you. You can save and return to it if you need a break.

Yes, absolutely. Your survey responses will be completely anonymous — we do not collect your name or any identifying information within the survey itself. You will be assigned a random unique ID number that is not connected to your identity.

If you choose to provide your email address for the prize draw or interview follow-up, this is stored separately from your survey answers in a password-protected file, so your responses remain anonymous.

All data is stored securely on the University of Stirling's encrypted servers (UK-based). Only the researcher and their supervisor will have access to anonymised data. Your name will not appear in any reports or publications.

No — the interview is completely optional. You can participate in just the survey if you prefer, and that contribution is equally valuable to the research. At the end of the survey, you'll simply be asked if you'd be interested in a follow-up interview. There is no pressure to say yes, and saying no will not affect your survey participation or prize draw entry.

Survey participants: You will be entered into a prize draw to win one of five £50 Amazon vouchers. Winners will be randomly selected after the survey closes and notified by email within 2 weeks.

Interview participants: You will receive a £25 Amazon thank-you voucher by email within 1 week of completing your interview (subject to university procedures). If you attend in person, you will also receive a £15 travel voucher.

Yes — taking part is entirely voluntary and you can withdraw at any time without giving a reason and without any penalty.

During the survey: Simply close your browser. No more data will be collected from you. However, any data collected up to that point may be kept and used in the analysis.

After completing the survey: You can withdraw your data within 2 weeks of completing the survey by emailing the researcher with your unique participant ID (shown to you at the end of the survey). After 2 weeks, your data will be anonymised and combined with other responses, making it impossible to identify and remove your individual contribution.

Interview participants: You can withdraw your interview data within 2 weeks of the interview by contacting the researcher. After 2 weeks, your transcript will be fully anonymised and used in analyses.

There are no foreseeable risks in taking part. However, some questions ask about memory and thinking changes, and about concerns regarding dementia. Reflecting on these topics might make you feel slightly uncomfortable or worried.

To help with this, you can skip any question you don't want to answer, and we will provide information about support services and resources at the end of the survey. For interviews, the researcher is trained in sensitive interviewing and will create a supportive, non-judgmental atmosphere — you can pause, skip questions, or stop at any time.

You can contact the researcher at any time before, during, or after the study:

• 📧 Ailin Chen: ailin.chen@stir.ac.uk
• 📧 Supervisor — Prof Vivien Swanson: vivien.swanson@stir.ac.uk

We aim to reply within 2 working days.

You can choose whichever format suits you best:

• 💻 Video call via Microsoft Teams
• 📞 Telephone call
• 🏛 In-person — at a private room at the University of Stirling or a local Brain Health and Dementia Resource Centre

If you attend in person, you will receive a £15 travel voucher in addition to the £25 thank-you voucher. Interviews are scheduled at a date and time that works for you, depending on availability. The interview can be conducted in English or Chinese.

Your anonymised survey data will be stored securely on the University of Stirling's encrypted servers (UK-based) for a minimum of 10 years after publication, in line with university research data retention policies, and then securely destroyed.

Any personal contact information (e.g. email for prize draw) is stored separately from your survey responses and deleted within 2 weeks of the prize draw closing (or within 6 months for interview contacts).

For interview participants, the audio recording will be permanently deleted within 3 months of the interview, once the transcript has been checked. Anonymised transcripts are kept for 10 years after publication.

Your data may be used in the researcher's doctoral thesis, academic journal publications, conference presentations, and reports for stakeholder organisations. You will not be identifiable in any publication.

Yes — findings will be published in the researcher's doctoral thesis and may also appear in academic journals, conference presentations, and reports for Brain Health Scotland.

If you'd like to receive a summary of the study findings, you can opt in at the end of the survey. We will send you a plain-language summary (2–3 pages) by email within 3–6 months of completing the study. You will not be identifiable in any report or publication.

If you wish to raise a concern with someone not directly involved in the study, please contact:

• 📧 Dean of Faculty — Prof Alistair Jump: a.s.jump@stir.ac.uk
• 📧 Data Protection Officer — Joanna Morrow: data.protection@stir.ac.uk

You also have the right to lodge a complaint about data protection with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).