1. Personal data collected

The study will collect the following personal information from participants recruited through Prolific: First name and last name Personal email address Phone number Prolific Participant ID Survey responses and other research data collected as part of the study Where applicable, information generated through participation in the OurRelationship online relationship education program Where applicable, audio recordings of coach calls, where the participant has provided specific consent to recording The collection of participants' name, email address and phone number is necessary because this is a longitudinal research trial involving repeated assessments over multiple timepoints. Contact information is required to send participants study survey invitations and reminders, maintain contact across study timepoints, and, where applicable, arrange study-related calls with participants allocated to the coach-call condition. Participants will be allocated a unique study ID at trial commencement. This ID will be used to link participants' data across study timepoints (e.g., pre-intervention, post-intervention, 3-month, 6-month and 12-month assessments).

2. How personal data will be used

Personal information will be used solely for purposes directly related to the administration and conduct of the research study. Specifically, names, email addresses and phone numbers will be used to: send survey invitations and reminders; provide access to the intervention and control condition content contact participants regarding their participation in the study; arrange study-related calls where applicable; facilitate longitudinal follow-up; and link participants' responses across study timepoints. Personal information will not be used for marketing, advertising, or any unrelated purpose. After research data have been downloaded from Qualtrics, identifying information will be stored separately from participants' research responses. The research dataset will use a unique study ID rather than participants' names or other direct identifiers.

3. Lawful basis for processing personal data

Deakin University will be the data custodian for the research study. The processing of personal information will be undertaken for the purposes of conducting research in the public interest and in accordance with applicable privacy and research governance requirements. Participant consent will be obtained before research data are collected. The study has been reviewed through Deakin University's research ethics processes (Human Research Ethics Committee). Participants will be provided with information about the types of personal information collected, the purposes for which it will be used, how it will be stored and protected, who may access it, and how long it will be retained before providing consent. Where applicable, additional consent will be obtained for optional activities such as audio recording of coach calls.

4. Data retention

Identifying information, including participants' names, email addresses and phone numbers, will be retained only for as long as necessary to administer the study and complete required follow-up activities. Identifying information will then be securely destroyed in accordance with Deakin University requirements. Deidentified research data will be retained securely for 15 years from publication or completion of the study, whichever is later, in accordance with Deakin University requirements. Following this retention period, the data will be securely destroyed. If members of the research team leave Deakin University, the data will remain under Deakin University's custodianship and will continue to be stored on approved Deakin University systems for the required retention period.

5. Storage and security

Survey data will be collected using Deakin University's Qualtrics system. Data will be downloaded and transferred to secure electronic storage on the Deakin University Research Data Store (RDS) using Syncplicity. Identifying information will be stored separately from deidentified research data in a password-protected Excel file. Access to identifying information will be restricted to authorised members of the research team through their individual Deakin University accounts. The research dataset will be pseudonymised using participants' unique study IDs. Only authorised members of the research team will have access to the information required to link a participant's identity with their study ID. OurRelationship data will be generated and stored as part of participants' use of the online program. The OurRelationship program uses local authentication, with participants creating a username and password to access the system. HTTPS protocols and encryption are used to protect information in transit and at rest. OurRelationship is hosted on Kineo's Microsoft Azure Cloud Platform, which incorporates security measures including an Azure Application Gateway with a Web Application Firewall and Network Security Groups to control network traffic and help protect against unauthorised access. Deidentified research data will be accessible only to authorised members of the research team and approved collaborating researchers who require access for the purposes of the research.

6. Third parties with whom data may be shared Deakin University will remain the data custodian for the research data.

Approved researchers from collaborating universities or organisations may have access to deidentified research data for the purposes of analysis. Identifiable participant information will not be shared with collaborating researchers unless specifically authorised and required for the conduct of the approved research. Kineo US operates the OurRelationship platform and may process limited information required to provide and administer the online program. This may include information such as participant name, email address and engagement with the website. Kineo's systems are hosted on Microsoft Azure. Participants' research survey responses collected through Qualtrics will be stored on Deakin University's secure systems and will not be stored on the Kineo server. If participants are completing the OurRelationship program with a partner, some information entered into the program may be visible to their partner as part of the intervention. Research survey responses collected through Qualtrics will not be shared with their partner. No raw identifiable research data will be shared publicly or provided to researchers outside the authorised research team. Where required as a condition of publication, deidentified data may be provided to a journal publisher or deposited in an open or controlled-access research repository. Any such data will be deidentified so that participants cannot reasonably be identified from the dataset.

7. Exercising data protection rights

Participants may contact the research team to ask questions about the personal information held about them, request access to their personal information, request correction of inaccurate information, or ask questions about how their information is being used. Participants may also withdraw from the study at any time. Where a participant requests withdrawal and deletion of their identifiable information, the research team will consider and action the request in accordance with applicable privacy legislation, research ethics requirements, and Deakin University policies. Because identifying information will be separated from research responses after data collection, there may be a point at which it is no longer possible to identify an individual's data for deletion, particularly after data have been fully deidentified or incorporated into aggregated analyses. Participants will be provided with the relevant Deakin University contact details for privacy and research-related enquiries in the study information and consent materials.

8. Overarching privacy policies and standards

The study will comply with Deakin University's applicable privacy, research governance, information security and data management policies and procedures. Deakin University is the data custodian and will manage research data in accordance with its institutional requirements and applicable Australian privacy legislation. Participants will be provided with information about Deakin University's privacy arrangements and relevant privacy contact information as part of the study documentation. The study will also comply with applicable requirements governing the use of Prolific and will not commence collection of participants' direct personal identifiers through Prolific until written approval has been obtained from Prolific.