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Article History

Received: 13 March 2023

Accepted: 6 November 2023

First Online: 28 November 2023

Declarations

:

: The author declares that there are no competing interests.

: This study is not biomedical research directly covered by the Declaration of Helsinki and has not undergone ethical review at our institution. The survey is within the scope of a normal social survey, and the question items in the questionnaire are not invasive. However, referring to the three principles outlined in the Declaration, the author prepared a survey implementation plan and questionnaire, which were confirmed by the divisions in charge at the city hall, who did so from the perspective of the citizens (the study subjects). In addition, before preparing the research plan, the detailed research design was reviewed by the council’s review committee for funding, which included government practitioners, to evaluate the appropriateness of the overall design.

: For the on-site survey, the name of the survey and the entity conducting the survey were displayed on posters at two locations in the booth, and questionnaires were distributed to willing city hall users. The enclosed request letter clearly stated (1) the purpose of the survey; (2) that the responses were voluntary and aggregate results will be used only for academic purposes; (3) the name of the organization conducting the survey, the person in charge, address, contact telephone number, and e-mail address; and (4) procedures to be followed if participants wished to receive the survey results. Moreover, points (1) and (2) were clearly stated again at the beginning of the questionnaire, along with the name of the organization conducting the survey. The questionnaire also explained that the individual responses would not be shared with the city hall, and the participants would not be inconvenienced due to the content of their responses. No independent written consent forms were provided, and questionnaires were only distributed at the survey booth. Responses were completed away from the city hall and mailed using the enclosed stamped return envelopes. These measures ensured that participation was voluntary.