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Article History

Received: 3 September 2024

Accepted: 3 March 2025

First Online: 14 March 2025

Declarations

:

: This study falls under the category of exempt research as detailed by the Department of Health and Human Services 45 CFR 46.104(d)(3)(i). Under this category, IRB review was not required because the research has confidentiality protocols in place to protect respondent anonymity. Identifying information belonging to respondents is not standard content in our analytical datasets. 45 CFR 46.104(d)(3)(i) parts A and B also exempts this study from the requirement of informed consent: "(3) (i) Research involving benign behavioral interventions in conjunction with the collection of information from an adult subject through verbal or written responses (including data entry) or audiovisual recording if the subject prospectively agrees to the intervention and information collection and at least one of the following criteria is met: (A) The information obtained is recorded by the investigator in such a manner that the identity of the human subjects cannot readily be ascertained, directly or through identifiers linked to the subjects; (B) Any disclosure of the human subjects’ responses outside the research would not reasonably place the subjects at risk of criminal or civil liability or be damaging to the subjects’ financial standing, employability, educational advancement, or reputation". At the start of our surveys, we provide informational text ensuring participants that the survey is completely confidential and summarize how the data will be used.

: The authors declare no competing interests.