Informed Consent Form

Confidence in Hypnotherapy Practice: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Richard Nongard
Doctor of Psychology, School of Behavioral Science
2200 E. Germann Rd., Suite 120, Chandler, AZ 85286
(800) 477-2254
richard.nongard@my.calsouthern.edu

You are being asked to take part in a research study. Before you decide to participate in this study, it is important that you understand why the research is being done and what it will involve. Please read the following information carefully and ask the researcher if there is anything that is not clear or if you need more information.
The purpose of this study is to explore how confidence manifests as a lived experience, specifically in hypnotherapy, and its potential impact on the experience of confidence from the hypnotist’s vantage point.

In this research study, participants will be volunteers who are both licensed mental health professionals and trained in hypnotherapy. After acceptance, this informed consent form will be signed digitally, and a Zoom interview session will be scheduled. The interview will last approximately 50–60 minutes, be conducted in English, and will be audio and video recorded. Interviews will then be transcribed, identifying data will be anonymized, and participants will then be sent a transcript of the interview as well as notes taken by the researcher and provided with an opportunity to revise or edit the data. The principal researcher will then interpret the data in the context of other study participants and draw conclusions from the research questions studied. Participants will be required to not share confidential or identifying information about their clients.

In this study, the discussion of the firsthand practice of hypnotherapy and practitioner confidence may create emotional responses or cause discomfort.

You may decline to answer any or all questions, and you may terminate your involvement at any time if you choose.

There will be no direct benefit to you for your participation in this study. However, we hope that the information obtained from this study may enhance training protocols for hypnotherapists, increase treatment options for psychological treatment, and help the profession to understand confidence as a phenomenon that literature shows is important in practitioner development.

Your responses to this interview will be anonymous. Every effort will be made by the researcher to preserve your confidentiality.

Measures taken to ensure confidentiality include:

• Assigning code names/numbers for participants that will be used on all research notes and documents.

• Keeping notes, interview transcriptions, and any other identifying participant information on a secure hard drive that is password-protected in the personal protection of the principal researcher and then deleted when the project is complete.

Participant data will be kept confidential except in cases where the researcher is legally obligated to report specific incidents. These incidents include, but may not be limited to, incidents of abuse and suicide risk.

If you have questions at any time about this study or if you experience adverse effects as a result of participating in it, you may contact the researcher whose contact information is provided on the first page. If you have questions regarding your rights as a research participant or if problems arise which you do not feel you can discuss with the principal researcher, please contact the Institutional Review Board’s Institutional Officer, Dr. Amanda Jandris at ajandris@calsouthern.edu.

Your participation in this study is voluntary. It is up to you to decide whether or not to take part in this study. If you decide to take part in this study, you will be asked to sign a consent form. After you sign the consent form, you are still free to withdraw at any time and without giving a reason. Withdrawing from this study will not affect the relationship you have, if any, with the researcher. If you withdraw from the study before data collection is completed, your data will be returned to you or destroyed.

I have read and understand the provided information and have had the opportunity to ask questions. I understand that my participation is voluntary and that I am free to withdraw at any time without giving a reason and without cost. I understand that I will be given a copy of this consent form. I voluntarily agree to take part in this study.