Interview

Description

This project examines self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) in Australia.

The purpose of these interviews is to gain a detailed understanding of the circumstances under which SMSF holders withdraw money prior to retirement. The interview seeks to gain insights into the reasons given for these withdrawals, the process through which money is withdrawn and the consequences and/or impacts of withdrawing this money. This may include fraud victimisation.

You are invited to participate in this stage of the research, as you have indicated that you have withdrawn funds from your SMSF prior to retirement.

What does participation involve?

Your participation will involve an audio recorded interview held over the telephone with one of the above researchers (Cross). The interview will take approximately one hour of your time and will be at a time that is suitable for you. You will be offered the use of WhatsApp to conduct the telephone interview, as this is an encrypted communication service that offers greater protection than regular landline/mobile phone calls. Should you wish to use another form of secured communication, please ask the research team, who may be able to accommodate this.

Questions will include:

  • Can you please tell me under what circumstances you withdrew funds from your SMSF?
  • Have there been any consequences to the withdrawal/s?
  • Has the withdrawal of funds affected your financial security?

Your participation in this research project is entirely voluntary. If you do agree to participate you can withdraw from the research project without comment or penalty. You can withdraw anytime during the interview. You can also withdraw up to seven (7) days after the interview has taken place. If you request to withdraw from the project, all of your details, notes and audio recording will be destroyed.

Your decision to participate or not participate will in no way impact upon your current or future relationship with QUT, SISFA or SMSF Association.

You will not be given the opportunity to review your interview transcript, based on some of the risks outlined further below.

What are the possible benefits for me if I take part?

It is expected that this project will not directly benefit you. However, it may help to improve the way that organisations such as SISFA and SMSF Association communicate and assist their members. It may also improve the way that organisations such as Scamwatch, educate and create awareness against fraud to the community.

Given the rise of SMSF holders in Australia, this research is an important step to better understanding the circumstances in which individuals withdraw money from their SMSF, and the consequences/impacts of these actions. It will further assist with the improvement of ways to better strengthen and protect SMSF holders into the future.

What are the possible risks for me if I take part?

There are a number of risks associated with your participation in this interview. It is important that you consider these carefully prior to your participation.

First, it is important to note that the current legislation governing SMSFs allows the withdrawal of funds prior to retirement in a very small set of restricted circumstances. If you have withdrawn funds outside of this situation, you are likely to have committed an illegal activity.

Second, depending on your circumstances, taking part in an interview may cause you feelings of distress and/or anger. This may vary depending on the circumstances that you have withdrawn funds and the consequences of these actions. Being asked to talk about this, may bring up negative feelings and experiences for you, as a result of these circumstances and/or your current situation. This is particularly the case if you have withdrawn the money as a result of fraud victimisation.

It is important to note that the research team does not have any obligation to report any of the findings to any authority (such as the Australian Tax Office). If you have withdrawn funds out of your SMSF prior to retirement, this will be captured through your annual audit. Taking part in an interview does not subject you to any greater level of exposure than what you will currently face in the routine auditing of your SMSF.

It is also important to note the steps that have been taken by the research team in these circumstances:

  • The research team will only collect the minimal amount of personal information required to enable an interview to take place. This will likely include your first name, and a telephone number. No other personal information will be collected. Some demographic questions will be asked but these will not be able to personally identify you.
  • Two weeks (14 days) after the interview has taken place, all contact details and communications will be destroyed. For this reason, the research team will be unable to communicate personally with you after this time to share any findings. It is also the reason why a transcript of your interview is not being provided for review.
  • All audio recordings will be destroyed once transcription is complete. Transcription is being undertaken by a professional firm. It is not possible to participate in the project without giving consent to an audio recording of the interview.

QUT provides for limited free psychology, family therapy or counselling services (face-to-face only) for research participants of QUT research projects who may experience discomfort or distress as a result of their participation in the research. Should you wish to access this service please call the Clinic Receptionist on 07 3138 0999 (Monday–Friday only 9am–5pm), QUT Psychology and Counselling Clinic, 44 Musk Avenue, Kelvin Grove, and indicate that you are a research participant.

Alternatively, Lifeline provides access to online, phone or face-to-face support, call 13 11 14 for 24 hour telephone crisis support.

If you require financial counselling, you can contact Financial Counselling Australia on 1800 007 007.

The research team is unable to provide you with any advice or guidance on your current situation. If you have specific questions about your SMSF, please contact one of the peak bodies below for further assistance:

The research team is also unable to commit to particular timeframes around the publication of findings from this research project. This can be frustrating for participants, who are keen to see how their contribution has been used in the project.

Academic timeframes are usually long in nature (years rather than months). Publications are also subject to processes and restrictions put in place by funding bodies and publishers. This is beyond the control of the research team. Progress and updates on this project will be available on the publications page of this website.

Please check back every few months to see what has been happening with the results of the project. As stated above, we will be unable to provide you with personal updates as we will be destroying all personal contact details two weeks (14 days) after the interview is complete.

What about privacy and confidentiality?

All comments and responses are anonymous and will be treated confidentially unless required by law. As stated, there is not obligation on the research team to report any findings to authorities (such as the Australian Tax Office). The full names of individual persons are not required at any stage during the interview.

Any data collected as part of this project will be stored securely as per QUT’s Management of research data policy.

This project is funded by Ecstra (formerly Financial Literacy Australia). A professional transcription firm will be used to transcribe the interview and they are bound by a requirement of confidentiality.

The recording will be destroyed upon successful completion of the transcription. The data will only be available to the two researchers named on this page (Cross and Basu). No other person or organisation (outside of the professional transcription firm) will have access to the recording generated during this interview. This includes the funding agency (Ecstra), who will only be able to access the outputs arising from this project, not the data itself.

Any identifying information provided during the interview about you, or others, will be de-identified/redacted after the transcription process. The names will be replaced by group classifications such as “bank”, “partner”, “business 1” etc.

Responses gained during these interviews will be used by the two researchers (Cross and Basu) to write up the findings of this research project. In addition, the insights obtained in these interviews are likely to also form the basis for other publications and projects about the same topic by these two researchers into the future.

How do I give my consent to participate?

Due to the nature of the research project a verbal consent mechanism will be used. This is to ensure that the research team do not have written records of any participants.

At the beginning of the telephone interview, the researcher (Cross) will talk you through the consent form and the risks involved. At the completion of this, you may ask any further questions of the researcher. Once you are satisfied with this and wish to participate in the interview, Dr Cross will ask the following question:

Having been read and understood all of the risks associated with this interview, do you consent to participate in the interview process?

This section will be audio recorded and will form part of the overall transcription.

What if I have questions about the research project?

If you have any questions or require further information, please contact one of the listed researchers:

What if I have a concern or complaint regarding the conduct of this research project?

QUT is committed to research integrity and the ethical conduct of research projects. If you wish to discuss the study with someone not directly involved, particularly in relation to matters concerning policies, information or complaints about the conduct of the study or your rights as a participant, you may contact the QUT Research Ethics Advisory Team on +61 7 3138 5123 or email humanethics@qut.edu.au.

Thank you for helping with this research project.