Who can participate? I am asking any African immigrant between 16 and 24 years old to take part in a research study to learn more about their educational experiences back home and at a high school in Massachusetts. Complete the screening survey here to see if you qualify.
Why am I doing this study? I am doing this study because I am interested in learning more about how African Immigrant Youth build on their origin country experiences while attending high school in the United States in preparing for life after high school.
What will you be asked to do? If you choose to participate in this study, you will be asked to answer a series of semi-structured interview questions over the phone about your educational experiences in your home country and your educational experience in the United States.
How long will it take? The telephone interview will last about 1 hour at the most.
Do you have to be in the Study? Will you get in trouble if you are not in it? Your participation is voluntary. The decision of whether or not to take part in this research study is completely voluntary. If you do decide to take part in this study, you may leave at any time without consequence. If you wish to end participation, you should contact Gifty at Gifty.Debordes-Ja001@umb.edu. There is no penalty for choosing not to participate.
What are the benefits and risks of participating in this study? This study involves minimal risk. The primary risk associated with this study is the emergence of negative or distressful feelings when answering questions about your experiences in school. There is no direct benefit to you by volunteering to participate in this study. The only anticipated benefit is contributing to the academic literature on the educational experience of African immigrant students.
How will your privacy be protected?
Your part in this research is confidential. That is, the information collected for this project will not be published or presented in a way that would allow anyone to identify you. Information gathered for this project will be stored in a locked file cabinet, and only the research team will have access to the data.
Cost and Compensation: After completing the survey and telephone interview, you will receive a $20.00 electronic gift card to Amazon. This electronic gift card will be delivered to you by email or text message.
Do you have any more questions? You have the right to ask questions about this research before you decide to participate. The contact information is
- Email: Westafricanboston@gmail.com;
- Phone: 508-659-2343.
If you have any questions or concerns about your rights as a research participant, please contact a representative of the Institutional Review Board (IRB), at the University of Massachusetts Boston, which oversees research involving human participants. The Institutional Review Board may be reached by telephone or e-mail at (617) 287-5374 or at human.subjects@umb.edu.