What’s the project?
A group of researchers at Birmingham University are teaming up with McPin and the Unreal Charity on a new project.
This project aims to develop a free user-friendly self-help booklet about dissociation for young people (16 to 25 year olds). The booklet will be based on a combination of research and input from people with lived experience – that’s where we come in!
What is dissociation?
Dissociation involves confusing and upsetting feelings of unreality (feeling like life, people or things around you aren’t real), unfamiliarity, or disconnection in relation to your mind, body, or surroundings. In this project we will be looking at dissociation and the mental health issues associated with it including de-personalisation. Please click here for more information about these terms.
At present, there is a lot of information out there about other types of mental health and some (sometimes misleading) sources on social media, but very little reliable information about dissociation. We will be producing a booklet for people who want to understand their own experiences, how to seek help, and anything else you think should be included.
Find out more
Join a group of 4 young people aged 16-25 on a small project developing an information booklet for young people about dissociation. The booklet will give people the key facts about dissociation, answer the main worries people have when experiencing it for the first time, and will give self-care tips and advice on how to get more support.
From February– October 2025 you will join 3 meetings, online, each lasting up to 2 hours. There will also be up to 3 hours total of reading or tasks outside of these meetings. We may also arrange a meeting in person (Birmingham or London depending on people’s preferences, with an option to join online).
Tasks include:
Reading example booklets and thinking about what might be helpful in a booklet about dissociation
Sharing your thoughts and experiences (and listen to others) of dissociation so we can best understand what key information would help young people most who are in a similar situation, and what would have been helpful for you to know when you were first having these experiences
Review results from a study about attitudes & beliefs around dissociation and think about how this might impact what we include in the booklet
Give feedback on drafts of the booklet.
- Aged 16-25
- Be based in the UK and have stable internet connection
- Be able to verify age through I.D documents (more info below)
- Experience of dissociation and/or de-personalisation
- Able to attend online meetings (possibly one in person) with camera on
- Be able to share your experiences and think about what might be helpful to others
Payment is £25 per hour for meetings and offline tasks.
The co-ordinator on this project, Roya, and other members of the team will be available for 1:1 calls as an introduction to the project as well as throughout. You can always reach out with any concerns or request catch ups via email.
We will always ask what accesibility adjustments you need, including help with access to internet and adjustments in meetings or offline work.
For more information about how we support people in our meetings, please click here.
If you are interested in this opportunity, please email Roya at [email protected] with brief answers to the following questions:
- What is your name?
- What is your date of birth?
- Why are you interested in this specific opportunity?
- Please give details of any relevant experience of dissociation (formal diagnosis not required)
- Are there any other skills or experience that you would like to tell us about?
- Sometimes after talking about topics like mental health, people feel they need a little extra support or someone to chat to. What support do you currently have in place (e.g. supportive friends, family, health professionals or mental health charities)? Is there anything that we could do to support you or make your involvement experience better?
- How did you hear about this opportunity?
IMPORTANT:
Before joining the group, we will offer you a call with a member of McPin staff. Nothing scary! This is purely so you can meet us, ask us any questions, and for us to ask you about any accessibility needs, or any support you need from us. In this call we will ask for a form of age verification, a document with your photo, name and date of birth. This could be a passport, Student ID card, voter ID, access card, drivers’ licence, proof of age card etc. If you have any worries about not having an appropriate document, please reach out and one of our team can support!
Mental health issues affect everyone, but research does not always reflect this. We actively encourage underrepresented groups (ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ identities, neurodivergent and young men) to apply.
You are welcome to send your responses in audio or video format if preferred! If you need any help completing your expression of interest, you can get in touch with Roya.
Please click here to read The McPin Foundation’s privacy policy
9am on Monday 20th January 2025
Please note that the McPin Foundation regularly promotes opportunities on behalf of other institutions; we are not responsible for the continuation or contents of further correspondence with any project partners where we are not listed as the project main point of contact.
