How our participants give consent to take part in Understanding Society and how we communicate consent information with them.
The overall mechanism for gaining consent for participation in the Study is oral. Participants are sent details about Understanding Society in advance letters, information leaflets and are given information by interviewers if taking part in a face-to-face or telephone interview. These communications give participants information about the purpose of Understanding Society, how they were selected, who funds the Study, how the data will be used and how we protect participants from harm and maintain the security and confidentiality of their data. Participants indicate their consent by answering questions. Participants are also informed that Understanding Society will contact them each year to ask them to participate.
For Study components that go beyond the usual questionnaire, situation specific consent is sought. Information about specific consents is given to participants in an information leaflet and/or by the interviewer. Consent is indicated orally or is written.
You can find the information leaflets for each wave of the main survey in the main survey fieldwork documents section. Information leaflets for the Innovation Panel can be found the IP fieldwork documents section.
Information that is conveyed by interviewers can be found in the questionnaires for the relevant waves. You can find the main survey questionnaires here and the Innovation Panel questionnaires here.
Summary of consents for the main survey and Innovation Panel (IP)
All waves
Main and IP: Basic survey. Consent: oral.
Communications: advance letters, information leaflet, participant handbook
Wave 1
Main and IP: Link educational records of adults aged 16-24 and children age 4-15. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link health records of adults aged 16+ and children aged 0-15. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
IP: Link DWP records of adults aged 16+ and children aged 0-15. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
Wave 2
Main: Nurse visit following interview for a subset of adults in the General Population Sample component. Consent: oral (most procedures), written for blood samples for research and/or genetic analysis.
Communucation: information leaflet
IP: Link health records of adults aged 16+ and children aged 0-15. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
IP: Link educational records of adults for those who turned 16 since the Wave 1 consent and those who did not consent before. Adults aged 16-24 and children aged 4-15. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
Wave 3
Main: Nurse visit following interview for subset of adults in BHPS sample component. Consent: oral (most procedures), written for blood samples for research and/or genetic analysis.
Communication: information leaflet
Wave 4
Main: Link educational records of adults who turned 16 since the Wave 1 consent and those who did not consent before. Adults aged 16-24 and children aged 4-15. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link health records of adults aged 16+ and children aged 0-15. Those who did not consent before and those who turned 26. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link benefit records of adults aged 16+. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
IP: Link DWP records of adults aged 16+. Consent: written
Communication: information leaflet
Wave 5
Main: Link HMRC records of adults aged 16+. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link higher education statistics agency records. Original sample member or new entrant finished higher education on 1995 or after from a UK institution, continuing sample member received a higher educational qualification since Wave 1. Consent: oral.
Communication: information conveyed by interviewer
Main: Link HMRC records of adults aged 16+. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link records from DVLA. Adults who are licensed drivers with access to a car/van for personal use which is registered in the UK. Consent: oral.
Communication: information conveyed by interviewer
Wave 6
Main: Link educational records of adults for those who turned 16 since the Wave 1 consents and those who did not consent before. Adults aged 16-24 and children aged 4-15. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link health records of adults rising 16. Consent: written.
Communication: information leaflet
Wave 7
Main: Link to educational records. Respondent is a rising 16 year old, or was born after 1978 and went to school in the UK and is either a new entrant since Wave 4, has no consent information, was asked consent and rejected only once or gave consent but form is not present or is present but not valid. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link to educational records. Respondent is the responsible adult of any child aged 2-15 in the household where the child is either a new entrant since Wave 4 or at this wave, there is no educational consent on record for that child, the educational consent has only been asked and rejected once for that child, or consent has been given for that child but there is no form on record, or the form is on record but is not valid. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link to educational records. Respondent is currently living in England and is the responsible adult of any child in the household born in 2008 or later and NPD consent was given with a valid form on record for the sample member. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link to benefits records. Adults who had not previously given consent, including new entrants. Consent: oral.
Communuication: information leaflet
Wave 8
Main: Link to HMRC records. Respondent is eligible for HMRC consent questions having not given consent before or is a new entrant. Consent:oral.
Communication: information leaflet
Main: Link to energy consumption records. If property is in England, Wales or Scotland and any household respondent is the home owner or renter of the property. Consent: oral.
Communication: question
IP: Link DWP records of adults aged 16+. Consent: oral
Communication: information leaflet
Wave 9
Main: Link to education records. Respondent is a rising 16 year old in this wave and has never completed an adult interview or was a rising 16 year old in the last wave. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
IP: Link records to Credit Reference Agency (CRA) records and also to be passed on to the FCA for adults aged 16+. Consent: oral.
Communication: question
IP: Link to DWP records of adults aged 16+. Consent:oral.
Communication: information leaflet
IP: Link to information about employers of adults aged 16+ in paid employment. Consent: oral.
Communication: question
Wave 10
IP: Link to Electoral Register of adults aged 16+. Consent: oral.
Communication: question
IP: Link DWP records of adults aged 16+. Consent: oral.
Communication: information leaflet
IP: Link to information from Twitter account of adults aged 16+ who have a Twitter account. Consent: oral.
Communication: question