Explanatory Statement - Kenya

Research Study: Improving vaccine knowledge and misinformation resistance through the mobile-based game Cranky Uncle Vaccine

You are invited to take part in this study. Please read this Explanatory Statement in full before deciding whether or not to participate in this research. If you would like further information regarding any aspect of this project, please contact the researchers via the contact details provided.

What does the research involve? This research is being conducted to assess the effectiveness of a game that teaches critical thinking. The game covers the topic of vaccination. The study is being conducted by John Cook at Monash University in collaboration with Doris Njomo at the Kenya Medical Research Institute. The survey and game will take up to 60 minutes to complete.

Why were you chosen for this research? You were chosen for this research because you have indicated that you are an adult living in Kenya.

Consenting to participate and withdrawing from the research You may decide not to participate in the research after reading this explanatory statement and have the right to withdraw from the research at any time. To withdraw, follow the Settings link on the About screen within the game – then uncheck “Allow collection of anonymous game data.” This will automatically withdraw you from the research study.

Possible benefits and risks to participants This game aims to help individual participants become more accurately informed about vaccination and better able to identify vaccine misinformation. There are no risks to participants and all information that is recorded will be completely confidential and only used for research purposes.

Confidentiality The data recorded through this survey is completely anonymous at the point of collection, and the research team will not have access to participants' identifying information. Once collected, the already anonymous individual responses may be summarised for use in reports, journal articles, and conference papers.

Storage of data The anonymous survey data will be stored on a password-protected university computer, and destroyed after 5 years.

Contact This research is being conducted by John Cook through Monash University, with Doris Njomo at the Kenya Medical Research Institute. If you have any questions about this study, you may contact John Cook via email at john@skepticalscience.com for questions or to report a research-related problem. You may contact Dr. Doris W. Njomo at the Kenya Medical Research Institute, Nairobi Tel; 2722541 during the study and in the future. If you have concerns about human rights, ethics and welfare issues you may contact the Head of the KEMRI Scientific and Ethics Review Unit; Tel; 020-722541, mobile; 0717 719477 or email seru@kemri.org. You can also contact: The Executive Officer Monash University Human Research Ethics Committee (MUHREC) Room 111, Chancellery Building E 24 Sports Walk, Clayton Campus Research Office Monash University VIC 3800 Tel: +61 3 9905 2052 Email: muhrec@monash.edu