Please read these terms and conditions carefully. By taking part in this research you agree that you have read these terms and that you agree to them. Failure to comply with these terms and conditions may result in your disqualification from receiving an incentive, and/or taking part in a research session. ‘We’ is Springer Verlag London, 4 Crinan Street, London N1 9XW, UK.

1. This research is open to invited recipients aged 18 and over. The research is open to legal residents of the United Kingdom and all countries worldwide. However, the incentive cannot be claimed if you are a resident of Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria or where otherwise prohibited or restricted by law or regulation.

2. Confidentiality. Participants agree to respect the secrecy of any materials or ideas discussed or generated as a result of the research activity and agree to not disclose such ideas or concepts to any third party. In addition, participants agree that any ideas that are generated as a result of participation in this research will become our property and, if necessary, upon request you agree to execute such documents as may be necessary for us to obtain, maintain or exercise its ownership rights.

3. We do not accept responsibility for lost data or damaged data or delay as a result of any network, computer hardware or software failure of any kind. Proof of sending will not be accepted as proof of receipt.

4. Personal data created during research sessions (videos pictures and notes) will be stored for a maximum of 10 years or until participants tell us otherwise. Contact details will be deleted after 5 years of non-engagement or until participants tell us otherwise.

5. All information submitted by entrants is subject to and will be treated in a manner consistent with Springer Nature Privacy Policy. By participating in research activities, all participants consent to the use of their personal data by us for the purposes of the administration of this research activity and any other purposes to which the participant has consented.

6. Participants must attend the session and follow the instructions shared with them via email. More information about how to participate and details on the incentives are part of these Terms and Conditions. If for some reason you or Springer Nature need to cancel the session, you will not receive the stated incentive. Springer Nature will endeavour to inform you about any cancellations and rescheduling of the session(s), if possible within 24 hours prior to the session(s). If you are more than 15 minutes late to a session, Springer Nature has the right to reschedule the session.

7. In research activities, the session may be interrupted or terminated in case of, but not restricted to, the following:

- language barriers or constraints (undeclared before commencement)

- unacceptable background noise or interference

- difficulties in establishing and maintaining a suitable telecommunications connection.

- Instructions to talk aloud are not followed

- Reasonable efforts are not made to complete the task presented

- If the session is terminated, the participant will not receive an incentive.

8. The research and survey sessions are limited to one session per person. If we suspect that an entrant has used multiple aliases or email addresses to submit more than one survey, only one entry will be considered.

9. In the case of a survey, no entries from agents, third parties, organised groups or entries automatically generated by computer will be accepted. No incomplete, illegible or corrupted surveys will be accepted.

10. Incentives will be as stated. The incentives cannot be transferred and there is no cash alternative. Incentives are subject to availability and we reserve the right to substitute any incentive with another of equivalent value without giving notice.

11. All taxes, costs, liabilities, and unspecified expenses associated with the incentive, or its use, are the sole responsibility of the participant. Participants may be asked to confirm their name, their email, and physical address. It is the participant’s responsibility to check with their employer whether they are eligible to receive an incentive if it is offered and inform us if they are not eligible.

12. Participants must claim their incentive within 90 days of notification. In the event of any participant failing to claim their incentive after 90 days following notification, the incentive will be forfeited in full. In the event that a participant is not eligible to claim their incentive, a donation to a charity (nominated by us) may be made in lieu. Participants should ensure they are eligible to claim the incentive offered, in particular, ensuring that any incentive is permissible according to the laws of the country they are employed in.   

13. We reserve the right to modify these rules, suspend or discontinue the research activity at any time, including without limitation where it is necessary to do so due to circumstances beyond the reasonable control, or if it cannot be guaranteed that the research activity can be carried out correctly for technical or legal reasons, or if we suspect that any person has been manipulating the administration of the research activity or has acted unethically in any other way.

14. To the fullest extent that may be excluded by law, we accept no responsibility for error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operations or transmission, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to or alterations of entry materials, or for technical, network, telephone equipment, electronic, computer, hardware or software malfunctions of any kind, or inaccurate transmission of, or failure to receive entry information on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any web site or any combination thereof. We are also not responsible for any injury or damage to a participant's or any other person's computer related to or resulting from playing or downloading any materials in the research activity, or for mailed-in or submitted research responses or data that are lost, late, misdirected, damaged, incomplete or illegible. 

These terms and conditions shall be governed by English law and the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction.