INTERVIEW GUIDE

• Face-to-face interviews: Greet interviewee upon arrival. Provide them with the information sheet and the consent form and gain consent. Provide them with the two questionnaires. Upon completion, explain that the interview will be recorded and begin the recording. For email interviews, email them the information sheet and consent form and ask them to return a signed form, either through unishare or in a password protected file. Give a timeframe of how long the interaction will last for (a month), the hours which I’ll be able to reply between (9 – 5), and a timeframe for general replies (3 days, then maybe send a reminder email to see if they got the email, and are still wanting to take part). • Ease interviewee in to make them a little more comfortable,

some starter questions: - “How are you?”

- “So, what course are you doing?”

- “How do you find your course?” (e.g. difficult, enjoyable, etc.). - “What do you want to do after university?”

- “And, how long have you been at the University?” (may be answered from initial course

question).

- “Have you moved away for university? or do you live around the area?”

• After starter questions, explain purpose of interview – would like to talk to them about anxiety. Inform them that they can stop the interview at any point, can avoid answering certain questions if it makes them uncomfortable, and that they can take a break if they need to. Then ask if it’s okay to continue. Questions in red are potential questions, depending on answers given.

1. “If you remember from signing up to this study, there was a list of symptoms that you may have experienced (have list on hand to provide, if necessary) – can you tell me what symptoms you’ve experienced from it?”

“Have you experienced any other symptoms that might not necessarily be on this list, for example, panic attacks or the like? If so, can you tell me what they are, what you consider your symptoms to be?”

2. “Okay, so you said you experienced ________ - can you tell me when you first started to notice them?”

“And how did you feel when you first experienced them?” “was there anything that you think may have triggered it?”

3. “Were you aware of what these things actually were when you first started to experience them?”

For example, did you recognise the symptoms of a panic attack e.g. feeling sick, trouble breathing? Or did you just want to be somewhere else?”

4. “And, after your first experience, what did you do?”

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5. “Did you ever speak to anyone about your experiences after these episodes?” (if they answer yes, start from question 10)

(if they answer no, start from question 6) 6. “Why did you decide not to tell anyone at all?”

e.g. more comfortable dealing with it on your own? Didn’t want to be a burden by telling people?

7. “So, you said____ - why did you feel __________?” (^ a follow up question to however the above question is answered)

8. “You said you’ve never actually spoken to anyone about your experiences, but have you ever considered talking to someone at all?”

“Why/why not?”

“You said you did consider it, and how did it make you feel?”

“You said you didn’t consider this, was there any particular reason why not?”

9. “Do you feel at all, as though there’s barriers that affect you from actually seeking help and speaking to some, either professionally or informally?”

“so for example, Stigma? Embarrassment? Judgement? Not being taken seriously?” 10. “Who, besides the people you’ve already spoke to (from question 5, if they have), have you

told about your anxiety?”

“and how did they react to this?” “were they understanding?”

“how long did it take for you to tell them?”

11. “Can you tell me why you decided to tell this person/these people?”

“so, you felt as though they would be more understanding about it/relate to it more?” 12. “How did telling them about this differ from telling them about something else?”

e.g. telling them about your day/a show/some news you heard, etc. 13. “Was it difficult for you to disclose this information to people?”

“why do you feel as though it was/wasn’t?”

14. “What caused you to ask for help?” (either professionally, or from friends/family/partner,

etc.).

“was there a particular experience/occasion that you felt may have influenced your decision?”

“not necessarily to ask for help, but just to discuss it with someone and discuss how you were feeling?”

15. “Regarding seeking help, what kind of situations do you think would have encouraged you to seek help from a professional?” (If they already have, maybe inquire about how long it took

and whether if there were certain things they knew earlier, they might have sought help earlier).

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being more aware of services, having more knowledge of these services and what they offer, reduction in stigma, etc.

16. “In your opinion, do you think if mental health wasn’t so stigmatised and more people understood it, you would have been more inclined to seek help?”

“Why is this?”

17. “Are you familiar with any of the anti-stigma work surrounding mental health?” (e.g. heads together, time to change)

yes - “What are your thoughts on them?”

“Do you yourself have personal experience with stigma?”

no – maybe provide some info on what they do, and then inquire about their thoughts on them?

18. “So, you said at the start that you lived away from home – do you feel as though actually being away from home, and being away from the things you’re used to, that your anxiety is more intense?” (if included, can be moved to a better position)

if they live at home: “even though you’re living at home, do you feel as though the pressures at uni, etc., make your episodes worse? Or do they have no affect?” 19. “Is there anything that you feel would be helpful to talk about that we might not have

covered during this interview?”

“is there any part of your experience that you feel I might be able to use to help other people? Maybe any advice you might have for others that I could pass on?”

e.g. any mechanisms you use to cope? Or any ways you may have found that make it easier to talk to people?

20. “Finally, do you have any other questions?”

• Turn off recording, provide/email debrief sheet and thank the interviewee for coming/emailing and taking part.

97 Appendix H: Debrief sheet