Reflections on and insights into joining a multi-disciplinary cybersecurity research project.

By Dr Ramsay Meiklem

While the AP4L team is currently completing work and preparing publications, I have offered to give an overview of time on the AP4L project and the insights it has given me.

It has been 6 months since I joined the team based at University of Strathclyde, and it has been an interesting and eye-opening experience. My first step when joining the team back in January was getting to grips with the overall project, especially understanding who the outcomes of AP4L are intended to support and why. The opportunity to attend the all-hands meeting early on was an excellent chance to see where the different teams were focusing their efforts and the work to date, as well as what was to come.

As a first step into cybersecurity and privacy as a domain, addressing the challenges faced by the four populations being explored in the project (i.e. Leaving the Armed Forces; LGBTQIA+; Living with Cancer; Relationship Breakdown) when sharing their significant life transitions online is both interesting and challenging in itself, as touched on the April blog and earlier updates by my colleagues Dr. Ryan Gibson and Prof. Wendy Moncur.

Understanding Life Transitions and Language

One of the early tasks was undertaking a scoping literature review to understand the information disclosure practices of people undergoing the life transitions described above. When searching for literature, knowing what you are looking for requires a thorough understanding of the language and key terms often associated with relevant works and articles. The search queries designed for this review had been sourced from relevant literature, and further refined and critiqued by two individuals from each population to ensure the terms were representative. This resulted in exhaustive but appropriate queries that would return as many relevant articles as possible. For example, almost 80 terms were included to cover the LGBTQIA+ population and how they may be described within the literature.

This care with language is also applied to reporting the results of the scoping review (and all other works), as it is our responsibility as authors to use appropriate and representative language when discussing these diverse populations and their identities (e.g. the term “veteran” may seem acceptable to describe someone who has left the Armed Forces, but can vary in meaning depending on state and the term “ex-Service member” has been shown to be more acceptable [1]).

Reaching the Hard-to-Reach

While my previous research experiences are primarily based in digital health, the methods and principles of co-designing for vulnerable populations can be applied to many situations and problems. As discussed previously, each approach and method have advantages and disadvantages when working with vulnerable populations and asking them to reflect on sensitive times in their lives, often with a team of people they do not have an established relationship with. However, efforts must be made to include these populations to ensure their unique and complex needs are addressed by the solutions intended for them.

One of the other tasks I carried out was assisting in further recruitment of participants for our workshops, primarily through engagement with regional and national charities and organisations supporting the populations of interest.  The general overview of the current study (i.e. listing all four desired populations) may also not appear immediately relevant or applicable to potential participants, so connecting with organisations who support a specific population and providing materials such as posters that are clearly designed and intended for their audience often proves more effective.

By building relationships with these organisations, the number of potential participants can be increased, and the support of the organisation also lends credibility and trust to the research team and the work advertised. The flexibility of the workshop protocol, offering both in-person and online workshops where preferred or appropriate, also increases the reach to potential participants, whether they prefer to attend in-person with a known support network or attend from further afield online, with the option to remain anonymous while still contributing to the sessions.

Conclusions

This project has been a step out of my normal area of familiarity, but I appreciate the efforts being made into resolving the issues and challenges faced by individuals undergoing significant life transitions and managing their privacy during these sensitive periods. The opportunity to apply co-design methods in a different domain and understand the needs and unique challenges of these populations has been a useful learning experience and we hope to share the outcomes of our work so far with everyone soon.

[1] Burdett, H., Woodhead, C., Iversen, A. C., Wessely, S., Dandeker, C., & Fear, N. T. (2013). “Are You a Veteran?” Understanding of the Term “Veteran” among UK Ex-Service Personnel: A Research Note. Armed Forces & Society, 39(4), 751-759. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X12452033