You must be between 18-25 years of age and a college student in order to consent to participate in this study. This study is investigating the views of college students and their perceptions of sexual relationships. If you have any questions about signing up for the study, completing the online survey, or obtaining your credits on the Sona-System, etc., email Dr. Mori’s research team at drmorislab@gmail.com or call Dr. Mori’s research lab at (657) 278-4508.

This project, “Perceptions of Sexual Relationships,” is being conducted by Principal Investigator & CSUF Psychology Professor Lisa Mori and her research assistants. It involves assessing perceptions and judgments of sexual matters which may or may not meet criteria for sexual assault.  Participation in this study entails completing an online survey and will take about 15-30 minutes to complete. In this study, you will be asked to provide information about yourself (for example, your age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc.). You will also be asked questions regarding your personal sexual experiences or possible personal experience with sexual assault. Next, you will read true stories on the topic of sexual assault, with one of the stories containing subject matter related to suicide. Afterwards, you will be asked to complete questions about the stories you have read to ensure understanding of their content. Next, you will be asked questions on your views of sexual incidents in general, your perceptions of rape and rape victims, and your beliefs about gender roles. Next, you will be asked to read a description of a sexual encounter between a couple in a relationship. Once you have completed reading the description, you will be asked to respond to several questions regarding what you have read. These questions are to assess your perceptions and opinions about the sexual incident described.

The topic of the study may cause stress or discomfort for some.  Should you become distressed by your participation in the study, for CSUF students, you may contact the CSUF Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) Center, located in the Student Health Center – East Building, phone (657) 278-3040. For all participants (CSUF students and non-CSUF), should you become distressed as a result of your participation in the study, helpful resources include the Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network website (https://rainn.org) which has access to the National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline, (800) 656-HOPE (4673), as both provide free and anonymous crisis counseling 24/7.you may also contact the National  Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 1-800-273-8255,  which also provides free and anonymous crisis counseling 24/7. You may also contact Dr. Mori, the principal investigator and a licensed (clinical) psychologist at lmori@fullerton.edu or by telephone at (657) 278-3761. Any incidents brought to the attention of Dr. Mori or her research assistants of significant distress of CSUF students that occur as a result of participating in this study, although unlikely, will be reported by Dr. Mori to the appropriate parties (e.g., CAPS for crisis assistance during hours of operation; 911 after hours).  

If you have questions regarding your rights as a human participant in research, please contact the CSUF Institutional Review Board at irb@fullerton.edu or by phone: (657) 278-7640; their office is located in MH-103. Your participation is anonymous and voluntary; that is, the information you provide will be confidential and used for research purposes only. No names or identifying information are collected, so no names or identifying information will be presented or published in connection to professional presentations, reports, or publications of the study. Your anonymity will be protected to the extent allowed by law. To further assure anonymity, code numbers will be assigned to all completed surveys.  Additionally, no e-mail addresses are gathered or stored by SONA or the survey submission data program. All electronic copies of the data will be kept on Dr. Mori’s password protected lab and office computer hard drives for up to ten years post-publication or post-presentation of these data. All data/records will be kept confidential to the extent provided by law. 

You may refuse to answer any question or terminate your participation in the study at any time without penalty.  [CSUF Psychology students only:] If you choose not to participate after reading this consent form, you will not receive experiment credit. If you end your participation prematurely, you will receive credit for the time of study participation completed (to the nearest half hour).

We hope that results of this survey may be helpful to college health professionals about how college students perceive sexual incidents which may or may not be sexual assault, to what extent they believe one is responsible for his/her sexual actions, and what factors may influence these beliefs.

Thank you for your research participation.   

By clicking "I Agree" below, I understand that I am consenting to participate in this study, “Perceptions of Sexual Relationships."