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Article History

Received: 5 May 2025

Accepted: 29 October 2025

First Online: 5 November 2025

Declarations

:

: Informed consent was obtained digitally: the first page of the Google Form included a consent statement outlining the purpose of the study, the voluntary nature of participation, the approximate time required, and the right to withdraw at any point without penalty. Respondents were required to indicate agreement by clicking “I consent to participate” before they could proceed to the questionnaire. Privacy and confidentiality were protected by designing the Google Form to collect no identifying information (such as names, phone numbers, or email addresses). Responses were stored securely in a password-protected account accessible only to the research team. All data were reported in aggregate form, ensuring that individual participants could not be identified. The study did not obtain formal ethical approval from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) due to the minimal-risk nature of the survey. However, measures were taken to minimize risks to participants: ensuring anonymity, using non-sensitive survey items, and maintaining secure storage of the data. These safeguards align with internationally accepted ethical standards for social science research.

: Not applicable.

: Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

: The authors declare no competing interests.