1. OVERVIEW

Sapien Labs is a 501(c)(3) non-profit research organization having its registered office and principal place of business at 1201 Wilson Drive, 27th floor, Arlington, Virginia, USA.

The Project

The Global Mind Project (previously the Mental Health Million Project) is a public interest project which aims to map to the mental health and wellbeing of millions of people around the globe. To maximise the impact of the project, the data generated by Global Mind Project is being made available for public interest projects such as for researchers in non-profits, universities and government, and to media organizations interested in reporting of results.

The Dataset:

The Global Mind project was officially launched in May of 2020. However the dataset consists of data collected from date July 2019 onwards. The dataset is appended on a daily basis as new data comes in. The dataset consists of anonymized data only, with no personally identifying information. All data is collected using an online assessment mental health tool called the Mental Health Quotient (MHQ). Data collection for the Global Mind Project has ethics approval from the Health Media Lab Institutional Review Board (Office for Human Research Protections Institutional Review Board #00001211, Federal Wide Assurance #00001102, IORG #0000850). Use of the de-identified dataset does not require separate ethics approval by the requester. All access to and use of Global Mind Project data is governed by the terms and conditions set out in this Data Access & Use Policy.

The Global Mind Advisory Committee

The Global Mind Advisory Committee (MHMAC) was established in 2020 to administer and provide oversight for the operation of data access arrangements. The Committee is responsible for developing this Global Mind Project Access & Use Policy and recognizes the importance of developing procedures, protocols and standards to support ethical safeguards surrounding data access and the reuse of data for research and reporting purposes.

2. DATA ACCESS PRINCIPLES

The procedures and processes that have been applied to provide access to Global Mind data derive from the key principles set out below:

i. To maximize the impact of the study, the data produced by the Global Mind Project is being made widely available to a range of users.

ii. All access to Global Mind data is governed by the procedures set out in this Data Access & Use Policy, which aim to be fair, open and transparent. The controls applied are proportionate to potential risks and are designed not to create unnecessary barriers to research;

iii. Global Mind data will be available to all bona fide researchers (whether in universities, government departments or charities), for research that can demonstrate public interest as well as to media organizations that intend to report on the data.

iv. The Global Mind data custodians are Sapien Labs

v. Access requests are reviewed by Sapien Labs to ensure the proposed use complies with this Data Access & Use Policy;

vi. Access to any and all survey and related data is managed by Sapien Labs.

Data Ownership

Sapien Labs remains the owner of the data in the Global Mind database. No organisation, commercial or otherwise will be allowed to gain control or ownership over the Global Mind data.

Ethical Considerations

Access to the data is granted in line with the terms of consent agreed with project respondents. When assessing data access requests, consideration is given to whether the proposed research is consistent with undertakings given to project respondents when they gave informed consent.

Commercial Use

Data from the Global Mind Project is for non-profit, educational or public interest purposes only. The data is not for commercial purposes. For avoidance of doubt, ‘Commercial’ means any research or other use that has, as its primary purpose, the development of products or procedures that may be sold or offered for profit or commercial advantage. All applicants must confirm that their use of the data is for non-profit research or public interest purposes only and not for commercial exploitation. Organizations may be asked to demonstrate the public benefits that are likely to flow from the data use. Data from the Global Mind Project cannot be used to support the application or development of any patents, patent applications, trade secrets, trade or service mark, copyright, or other intellectual and/or industrial property rights.

Conflict of Interest

No commercial involvement which may be a conflict of interest (personal or lab head)

Redistribution of Data

Global Mind data is for use only by authorized users who have signed this form. It is prohibited to share Global Mind Data with individuals who are not authorized users of the data. All potential users of the data are required to request access to the data directly from Sapien Labs. Access and invitations to the data (such as passwords) must be kept secure and not disclosed to anyone else.

3. DATA ACCESS PROCEDURES

Global Mind data is made available for researchers to undertake their analysis by requesting access to data from Sapien Labs. Sapien Labs provides the interface with researchers and reviews applications to ensure they comply with the terms outlined in this Data Access & Use Policy. If researchers cannot meet these criteria their applications are rejected at this stage. Applications for data are considered by Sapien Labs within 10 working days. Once access has been confirmed, authorized users will be sent an invitation to access the data and instructions on how to access and download the data for their own research purposes. All analysis conducted on Global Mind data by authorized users shall be performed in accordance with all applicable local and international laws and regulations. Once given access, authorized users can access and download the data as many times as required, as long it is only for their own research purposes and complies with this Data Access and Use Policy.

4. USER PRIVACY

All personal data about applicants and users submitted during this application process will be managed in line with the Sapien Labs privacy policy.

5. PUBLICATION

Results generated from the data may be published in peer reviewed journals or in other publicly available publications. All publications or public disclosures of results generated using Global Mind Data shall reference the recommended bibliographic citation provided by Sapien Labs or provide appropriate acknowledgement of Sapien Labs and the Global Mind Project. Sapien Labs asks that authors of publications based on Global Mind data should send copies of their published works or bibliographic information (e.g. doi numbers) to Sapien Labs for inclusion in a database of related publications (info@sapienlabs.org).

How to cite the Global Mind Project: Sapien Labs. (2026). The Global Mind Project: A real-time, large-scale platform for tracking global mind health and wellbeing. PsyArXiv. https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/vtzne. A DOI will be added to this citation once issued.

6. DISCLAIMERS

While all efforts have been made to ensure the dataset only includes respondents who provide honest and accurate responses, Sapien Labs bears no legal responsibility for the accuracy of the data supplied by respondents. Sapien Labs accepts no liability for any direct, indirect, consequential or incidental damages, claims, costs or losses arising from use of the dataset, or from the unavailability of, or break in access to, the service, for whatever reason. The user will indemnify and hold Sapien Labs, its directors or employees harmless against all claims of any kind whatsoever that may arise or result from the use of the data.

7. CONFIRMATION

By agreeing to this policy when submitting an access request, you confirm you have read the above terms and conditions and that you agree with the following statements:

i. I confirm that I will use the data for non-profit research or public interest reporting purposes only and will not use the data for any commercial purposes.

ii. I confirm that I have no commercial involvement which may be a conflict of interest to the research I carry out using this data.

iii. I confirm that the data will be used only by me and I will not share the data with other researchers without first seeking permission from Sapien Labs.

iv. I confirm that research conducted using the data will comply with all applicable regulations and conform to good research practices.

v. I confirm that I will not use the data to support any application for intellectual property rights.

vi. I confirm that any results generated using the data will be made publicly available (preferably in a publication that provides free and open access)

vii. I confirm that any publications or public disclosures of results generated using the data shall acknowledge and cite the contributions of Sapien Labs and the Global Mind Project, consistent with academic standards. By submitting the data request form you are agreeing to the terms and conditions laid out in this document.