Below you'll find answers to some frequently asked questions. If you can't find the answer anywhere in this list please feel free to email your question to us at sexualethics@adulttoynlingerie.com.

Who do you want to participate?

Young women and men 16 to 25 years old.

What does the project involve?

We'll be conducting an in-depth conversation with you. The interview will take about an hour of your time. All your comments will remain entirely confidential. No-one will know your name or your family name or where you come from. We will not tell anyone what you tell us. However if you are 16-18 we are required by law to tell someone if you tell us you have been physically or sexually abused or neglected or that there is a risk that they will be hurt in the future. We would also have to tell someone if you said you might hurt yourself or someone else.

These interviews are the first stage of this project. If you just want to do an interview and nothing more that is fine.

Later we'll develop a pilot educational program for other young people based on the input from your interviews. So your input will really help other young people.

Finally we'll first run and then assess this educational program. Participants will be followed-up after six months to see whether our new strategies have been working.

Where should I live?

We're seeking young women and men from certain specific areas of NSW.
Namely in Sydney's inner city (for example - Woolloomooloo, Elizabeth Bay, Kings Cross, Surry Hills, Redfern, Ultimo, Pyrmont and the Sydney CBD), Sydney's northern beaches and Penrith.
We'll be travelling to these areas to conduct interviews.

Can I do my interview by telephone?

We'd prefer to see you face-to-face, but if you'd prefer to use the phone that's fine.

Do my parents need to know?

If you're 16 or 17 years old you are legally still a minor, so we are legally bound to seek your parent or caregiver’s permission. If you are interested we have an information sheet for your parents that explains the project and we'll ask you to get their signature on a consent form.

Can I bring a friend or a partner with me?

That would be fine if you feel okay about talking about these matters with them but they would also need to agree to be part of the discussion and sign a consent form and agree not to tell anyone what was said in the interview. So that means they would have to be willing to be part of the research too.

Why are you conducting this research?

We want to find new ways of running education programs for young people to help prevent sexual assault and violence.

How's this research different from studies already completed?

We're beginning by asking YOU for your views about sex and relationships. We are also including young men who are often left out of these discussions and programs. So we want to hear from a range of young women and men including same sex attracted young people about your feelings and thoughts about sex and relationships. Your views will have a direct impact on the education program we develop.

What kind of questions will you ask me?

We want to hear from you if you are in a relationship, been in one, had sex or thinking about it. How are you working these things out? What is important to you? We won’t ask you about what you actually do but want to talk more about how you work out what you want, how you know what your partner wants; for example. We want to hear about the good things that have happened and if there have been difficult ones how you handled this. What does having sex with someone mean to you? What kinds of things do you think should be included in anti-rape education?

What will be the outcome of the research?

Information from your interview & others will have a direct impact on the design of a new education package aimed at preventing sexual violence amongst young people like yourselves. When the research is finished we will produce information for young people on what we find and also produce conference papers and journal articles.

When will the interviews be scheduled?

We will be conducting the Sydney city interviews during February, March, and April. We will work out with you a convenient time.

Regional towns will follow over April and May.

Why is NSW Rape Crisis Centre involved in this project? Do I have to have been raped to be interviewed?

NSW Rape Crisis provides counselling and support to victims of sexual violence and has been doing so for 30 years. They are also very committed to preventing sexual assault in all its forms and that is why they are working with the University of Western Sydney on this project.

We want to hear from young people about the positive and the difficult issues that arise in sexual relationships. We see this as very important to build into rape prevention education but we aren’t assuming that you have experienced sexual assault yourself. However, if you have we would still like to hear from you about your relationships.

What do I do now?

If you would like to be interviewed send us an email to sexualethics@adulttoynlingerie.com telling us your name, how old you are and what suburb you live in. If you would rather talk to someone ring Amanda Carmody the chief researcher on 05 4736 5175 and leave a message and a phone number. You can also call Aaron on 0418 553253 or text him and he’ll ring you right back. Once we have talked with you, we will send you an information sheet and consent form that you need to return to us.

If you can't find the answer to your questions anywhere in this list please feel free to email your question to us at sexualethics@adulttoynlingerie.com.