Research Instrument Package for PPD

Companion to: Postpartum Depressive Symptomatology and Everyday Decision-Making

Scenario Battery · Interview Guide · Informed Consent · Resource Card

Non-clinical, non-diagnostic behavioral research

Prepared by: Johnson, R.

This is only a research project.

Table of Contents

Part A. Everyday-Decision Scenario Battery 3

Part B. Semi-Structured Interview Guide (Phase 2) 6

Part C. Informed Consent Form (Template) 8

Part D. Universal Resource Card 10

Part A. Everyday-Decision Scenario Battery

This battery is the study's primary information-gathering instrument. It presents eight short, realistic postpartum vignettes, each ending in a choice, across three decision domains. Scenarios are deliberately written without an objectively correct answer: the aim is to profile how a decision is made, not to grade the choice. Every scenario captures the same dimensions to allow comparison across items.

Administration note. Present scenarios in a randomized order within blocks. Record decision latency automatically. Offer the defer option as a genuine, non-penalized choice. Two scenarios are re-presented near the end of the session, unannounced, to index choice instability.

Domain 1: Routine, low-stakes

S1 Dinner tonight [Routine]

It is late afternoon. The baby has just settled, and you have roughly thirty minutes before they are likely to wake. Dinner is not planned.

Make a simple meal you have made many times

Try a new recipe you saved recently

Order something in

Decide later / cannot decide right now

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

S2 The errand list [Routine]

You planned three errands today: groceries, a pharmacy pickup, and returning a package. Time and energy are short, and realistically you can do one of them well.

Groceries

Pharmacy pickup

Return the package

Do none today / cannot decide

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

S3 A last-minute walk [Routine]

A friend texts, inviting you on a casual walk in about an hour.

Say yes and start getting ready

Suggest a later time

Decline for today

Leave it for now / cannot decide

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

↻ Re-presented later in the session (instability check).

Domain 2: Tradeoff, resource-constrained

S4 Buy now or wait [Tradeoff]

An item you need is $40 today. A sale next week might drop it to about $28, but it could also sell out before then.

Buy it now

Wait for the possible sale

Ask someone's opinion first

Cannot decide

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

S5 Rest or finish [Tradeoff]

The baby is napping. You could rest too, or finish a task that has been nagging at you.

Rest now

Finish the task

Do a little of the task, then decide

Cannot decide

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

S6 The family invitation [Tradeoff]

A relative invites you to a weekend gathering. Going means logistics and energy; staying home means rest, but perhaps some guilt.

Go

Go briefly

Decline

Cannot decide

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

↻ Re-presented later in the session (instability check).

Domain 3: Consequential, other-directed

S7 Fussier than usual [Other-directed]

Your baby has been a little fussier than usual today but is eating, sleeping, and otherwise seems fine.

Call the pediatric advice line

Ask an experienced friend or relative

Wait and keep an eye on things for now

Cannot decide

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

S8 Accepting help [Other-directed]

A relative offers to take the baby for two hours so you can rest.

Accept the help

Accept, but stay nearby

Decline for now

Cannot decide

Captured: latency (auto), selection, then Confidence 0–10 ___ | Difficulty 0–10 ___

End-of-block load items (NASA-TLX style)

Administer after each domain block. Each item is rated 0 (very low) to 10 (very high). These index perceived cognitive load (Hart & Staveland, 1988).

Mental demand. How mentally demanding was this set of decisions?

Effort. How hard did you have to work to make these choices?

Frustration. How stressed or frustrated did you feel while deciding?

Hurried. How rushed or pressed for time did you feel?

Scoring summary (per participant). Aggregate across scenarios: mean latency, count of defer selections (avoidance), count of reversals on re-presented items (instability), mean confidence, mean difficulty, and mean load. These become the Phase 1 outcome variables.

Part B. Semi-Structured Interview Guide (Phase 2)

Interviews follow the quantitative phase and are drawn purposively from Phase 1 participants across the symptom range. The goal is to explain the Phase 1 patterns in participants' own words, addressing the qualitative and integration research questions. The guide is semi-structured: use the questions as anchors, follow the participant's lead, and probe gently.

Opening and consent refresh

Reconfirm consent, the right to pause or stop at any time, and that nothing here is an assessment of them.

Remind: there are no right or wrong answers; I am interested in your experience of deciding.

Warm-up

To start, what does a typical day look like for you right now?

When you think about the decisions you make in a day, big or small, what comes to mind?

A recent real decision (walk-through)

Tell me about a decision you made recently that stuck with you. Walk me through it from the beginning.

Probe: What made you start thinking about it? What options did you weigh? How did you land on a choice?

Probe: How did you feel during it? Afterward?

What makes deciding easy or hard

Are there kinds of decisions that feel easy right now? Can you give an example?

Are there kinds that feel especially hard? What makes them hard?

How do energy, sleep, mood, or time pressure show up when you are deciding?

Stuck moments and strategies

Is there a time recently when you felt stuck, or put a decision off? What was that like?

When a decision feels like too much, what do you do?

Who or what helps you decide?

Connecting to the patterns (explanatory)

These questions gently probe the phenomena measured in Phase 1 without disclosing the participant's scores.

Some people say they second-guess or change their minds more than usual during this period. Does that resonate? Tell me more.

Some people say small, everyday choices can feel bigger than they used to. Does that fit your experience?

Closing

Is there anything about how you make decisions right now that we have not talked about?

How was this conversation for you?

Interviewer reflexivity. After each interview, journal your impressions, your own reactions, and any assumptions you noticed, per the reflexive thematic analysis approach (Braun & Clarke, 2006). Watch your language for any framing that implies deficit or judgment.

Part C. Informed Consent Form (Template)

Template notice. Bracketed items must be completed and the whole form approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) before use. This is a model, not legal or regulatory advice.

Study title

Postpartum Depressive Symptomatology and Everyday Decision-Making: A study of how everyday choices are made.

What this study is, and is not

You are invited to take part in a research study about how people make everyday decisions during the months after having a baby. This is a research project only. It is not medical care, it is not therapy, and it will not diagnose you with anything. No result from this study will be used to judge your health, your capacity, or your fitness as a parent.

What you would do

Complete a short, private questionnaire and a set of brief everyday-decision scenarios on a computer or device. This takes about [XX] minutes.

Some participants are later invited to an optional interview about their experience. You may take part in the survey without agreeing to an interview.

Risks

Risks are minimal. Some questions ask about mood and may prompt reflection. You may skip any question, pause, or stop at any time. Everyone who takes part receives a resource card with support options, regardless of their answers.

Benefits

There is no direct benefit to you. The study aims to improve general understanding of everyday decision-making during this period.

Your choices and your rights

Taking part is entirely voluntary.

You may pause, skip questions, withdraw, or ask to have your data removed at any time before analysis, with no penalty.

If anything is unclear, you may ask questions before agreeing, and again at any point.

Privacy and data

Your responses are de-identified and stored securely and encrypted. Contact details, if you provide them for the optional interview, are kept separately from your responses. Data are retained and destroyed on the schedule approved by the IRB. This study does not create or share medical records.

Important limitation on use

Findings from this study are reported only at the group level. This study cannot and will not be used to assess, describe, or draw conclusions about any individual participant's rationality, mental capacity, competence, or fitness for any purpose, including legal or custody matters.

Comprehension check (please initial)

____ I understand this is research, not medical care, and it will not diagnose me.

____ I understand I can stop at any time without penalty.

____ I understand my results will not be used to judge me as an individual.

Contact

Researcher: [Name, role, email]. IRB / research office: [contact]. If you have concerns about your rights as a participant, contact [IRB contact].

By continuing, you confirm that you are [18+] , that you have read and understood this form, and that you agree to take part. Signature / e-consent: ______________________ Date: __________

Part D. Universal Resource Card

Shown to every participant at the end of participation, regardless of any response or score. Because it is universal, it is never a signal about a particular person's answers. Verify all numbers for the study's region before use, and add local resources.

If you are worried about your safety or someone else's right now, call or text 988 (the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, available 24/7 in the U.S.).

These are general support resources, not a referral or a diagnosis. Availability and numbers can change; confirm current details for your area.