Some things you might like to know about helping out with research at the University of Nottingham
Where can I find details about current research projects?
There are a few ways you can find out about our new projects:
1: You can sign up for our newsletter by contacting -katherine.dyke@nottingham.ac.uk
2: You can see a list of our studies and express interest in different projects by going here.
3: You can look at the 'Ongoing Research' section on the website.
Why do some studies have age limits?
Lots of our studies are focused on young people. This is because older people with TS have often developed compensatory strategies to suppress their tics. These changes may be reflected by structural and functional changes in the brain. This makes it difficult for us to determine what is due to pathology and what is due to the developed compensatory mechanisms.
Other reasons for having set age limits include aiming to study a time when tics are at their maximum intensity for most people or looking at times when many people are able to suppress their tics for a short period of time.
You can read more about this here
How do 'inconvenience allowances' work?
An inconvenience allowance is a small financial thank you for helping with the studies. Usually this takes the form of a cash payment when you come to Nottingham. The amounts can vary between different studies, but you should be told exactly what this is before signing up.
What happens to the findings of the studies once they are finished?
Once we have finished collecting all the data and analysing it, we write the studies up to be published in scientific journals. Sometimes these are free for everyone to see, but occasionally there may be a charge to access them. If this happens, the best thing to do is give us an email so we can send you a copy. We may also present the findings at scientific conferences and meetings.
Can people find out if you took part in the research?
Only if you want them to! Whenever you take part in one of our studies you will be given an ID number, so your name and other personal details will not be able to be connected to you. In some studies where we take videos, we may ask you for permission to show these for teaching/research purposes but we would only ever do so if you agreed to this.
What happens if you don't like it?
If you come in for a study and don't like it you can stop any time! We know it can be hard to stay still in an MRI scanner and that not everyone likes answering questions about their tics, and that's absolutely fine.