Online studies
Table of contents
Online studies
-
Have AVAYA running (AVAYA IX (softphone)) to call parents/answer calls
-
Have Lab Calendar and email open to respond if the caregiver messages
-
Have the DRDB system open to reschedule if necessary
-
If the parent does not enter the room in 5 min, call to check if they have problems accessing the link using AVAYA
- Plan to set up the testing at least 10-15 minutes before the testing begins. This will provide enough time to:
- Ensure the program is running
- Verify your internet connection and battery
- Locate the study weblink
- Prepare your tracking sheet (participant ID, condition, etc)
- Disable all computer notifications (e.g., emails)
- Answer calls/emails from parents to reschedule
- Log into password-protected Zoom room
- Check that your settings allow multiple people to share their screen in Zoom
-
Open zoom and admit participants to the call
- After admitting participants, welcome and greet them!
with adults (SONA system)
Sona Guidelines
Study Type:
- Online Study - for studies that are online, with no need for time slots/interactions with researchers. You provide a link and a deadline, and students complete it in their own time before the deadline.
- Standard (lab) study - this is used when:
- Participants come into your lab/research space during the time slots you provide.
- It is a Zoom interview or something similar, where they must interact with the researchers/other participants during a time slot you provide. With this option, you can supply a meeting link when you post your timeslots.
The Study Type is one of the only things that can’t be changed after a study is set up, so make sure you select the correct study type.
Credit: If you are going to be running a study where you offer cash or credit, set it up as a for-credit study. It’s easy in a credit study to just give cash (and assign zero credit) but a cash study we cannot give credit. Study Name: Please make the study name your name. This will be updated for your study number once your study is approved.
Brief Abstract: This should be your catchy title. This is what students will see while scrolling through the list of experiments.
Detailed Description: This should contain information on what participants will be doing, but also where they should go and what number/extension they should call the on day of their experiment. You also need to list the names of all researchers who are associated with this study (including faculty, graduate and undergraduate students).
Eligibility Requirements: You can list any requirements for your study here. You can also add these to the pre-screen restrictions to ensure that only participants who meet your requirements can see and sign up for your study. The pre-screen restrictions can be found in the top right corner of the main study page once you have finished setting up your study.
Duration and credit: Students are awarded 0.5 credits for each half hour of participation rounded up. For example, if your study is 1 hour and 15 minutes long, you should offer 1.5 credits.
Researchers: Multiple researchers can be added to a single study. If you have more than 1 person working on a study, you should also enable “researchers at timeslot level” which is located in the advance settings further down. This will allow you to see who scheduled what timeslots. If you need someone added as a researcher please email(cadieum@mcmaster.ca) their full name and their McMaster email address.
MREB code: All studies must include the MREB approval code. This can be found on the MacREM website (https://reo.mcmaster.ca/macrem). You do not need to send me your approval certificate, you just need to put the approval code in this section.
Active Study: This is the on/off button for your study. It lets you control if your study is currently visible to students.
Online studies: If you are running an online experiment and not using the automatic credit option, make sure to collect participants’ real names or McMaster email addresses. You will need some way to identify participants to assign credit on Sona.
Getting your study approved: Once you have your experiment set up, email (cadieum@mcmaster.ca) your consent/letter or information and debriefing forms. Your debriefing sheet needs to explicitly state what the independent and dependent variables are. Please do not request approval through Sona, just send an email with the forms.
-
Set up your study on SONA
- Please refer to the SONA guidelines to fill out the information. To get the correct link for your study, refer to this page to complete the setup: Sona System
-
Once your study is approved, you can add slots on SONA by clicking “Add A Timeslot”. For online study, you only need to provide the number of participants you need and the final participation time.
-
The credit will be granted automatically once participants complete the study. If it doesn’t grant the credit, you can check your data to see whether they finish the study or not, then you can manually update the status.
Introduction to the study
- Greeting:
- Hi XXX, how are you?. My name is XX, and I am the researcher who will be conducting your study today. First, I am going to share my screen with you (after sharing, check with participants to see if they can see the screen that you share with them).
- Explanation of the study:
-
XXX, let me tell you about the study you will be participating in today. This study takes about X minutes. We just want to know how you react!
-
We are gonna video record the session so that we can collect the data later. So by default, this video is private. That means, This video is only saved in our secure servers—we won’t show it to anyone else unless we have your explicit consent. Ask permission to begin recording and inform them that they will have to select “continue” to allow the recording.
-
- Verbal Consent:
- Earlier you should have received an email from us with the information about the consenting process. Before we continue, do you have any questions for us?
-
[If yes, answer their questions. Once they are comfortable moving forward, proceed. If they decide they are not comfortable proceeding at this point, thank them for their time and interest in participating.]
- The consent script for the parent to read will be displayed on the screen. Ask the parent to read the script beginning with the phrase “Today is…”
Check Device and Settings
-
Ask what device they are using for the study and ask them how large the screen is. If they are unsure, ask them to estimate. Ask if they are using more than one screen.
-
Next, verify that their device is charging during the study.
Post-Testing
-
Ask the participant how they would like us to use the recorded video from the session and outline the different levels of use:
- Level 1: The video stays in our secure servers, and only members of our research team can see it.
- Level 2 allows us to show this video for academic/educational use. We might show this video as an example at scientific conferences or classes, but we won’t distribute copies of this video to anyone.
- Level 3 allows us to share this video for public use. We might put copies of this video on our website for public outreach or share it alongside scientific publications.
-
Ask which level best describes how they’d like us to use their video.
-
Ask the participant the questions in the questionnaire.
-
After the study is over debrief with the participant regarding compensation monetarily or in the form of sona credits.
-
Thank the participant for their participation.
with infants & children
Introduction to the study
- Greeting:
- Hi XXX Hi XXX. My name is XX, and I am the researcher who will be playing a game with you. Are you having a good day so far? Okay. I have a really fun game to play with you today. I just need to get the game set up first. First, I am going to share my screen with you (after sharing, check with parents to see if they can see the screen that you share with them).
- Explanation of the study to the parent:
- XXX, let me tell you about the game that XXX is going to play.
-
This game takes about 5 minutes. And In this game, XXX is going to XXX. We just want to know how your child reacts!
- We are gonna video record the session so that we can remember how XXX plays the game. So by default, this video is private. That means, This video is only saved in our secure servers—we won’t show it to anyone else unless we have your explicit consent. Ask permission to begin recording and inform them that they will have to select “continue” to allow the recording.
- Verbal Consent:
- Earlier you should have received an email from us with the information about the consenting process. Before we continue, do you have any questions for us?
-
[If yes, answer their questions. Once they are comfortable moving forward, proceed. If they decide they are not comfortable proceeding at this point, thank them for their time and interest in participating.]
- The consent script for the parent to read will be displayed on the screen. Ask the parent to read the script beginning with the phrase “Today is…”
Check Device and Settings
-
Ask what device they are using for the study and ask them how large the screen is. If they are unsure, ask them to estimate. Ask if they are using more than one screen.
-
Next, verify that their device is charging during the study.
-
Ask them to create a distraction-free environment: Since we are studying baby’s visual attention to faces. We want to create a distraction-free environment. So please move all toys or attractive objects that might divert the Baby’s attention on your table, on the computer screen etc. Such as stickers, or toys. Please minimize pets and other people walking into and out of the room if possible.
Other Important Things to Mention
Screen Sharing
- Ensure that when the parent shares their screen you also request that they share sound.
- Guide the parent through hiding the video panel and hiding the floating meeting controls.
Positioning the Baby
- Tell the parent to try to centre the baby’s face on the screen
- The parent should be sitting behind the baby, when the parent sits beside it is often a distraction for the baby during the study.
- Inform the parent that if the baby moves or loses attention they can reposition the baby but ask them to please avoid pointing at the screen as it directs the baby’s attention to a specific side and interferes with what they would look at naturally.
- We just want to see how the baby reacts, parents are not required to do anything or guide the baby during the session.
Post-Testing
-
Ask the parent how they would like us to use the recorded video from the session and outline the different levels of use:
- Level 1: The video stays in our secure servers, and only members of our research team can see it.
- Level 2 allows us to show this video for academic/educational use. We might show this video as an example at scientific conferences or classes, but we won’t distribute copies of this video to anyone.
-
Level 3 allows us to share this video for public use. We might put copies of this video on our website for public outreach or share it alongside scientific publications.
-
Ask which level best describes how they’d like us to use their child’s video.
-
Ask the family the questions in the questionnaire. Check which gift card they would like to receive for their participation and verify their email address.
- Thank the family for their participation.
After ending the call
-
Update the tracking sheet and testing notes. Be sure to write down any interruptions and make note of the child’s mood.
-
Update the participant fee sheet to ensure compensation is received.