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Running Subjects
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The running of subjects is a multi-stage process. Please follow the guide closely.
Signing up testing rooms:
Signing up testing rooms is a two-stage process. You must sign up to reserve the space within the lab in addition to posting the experiment times to the Psychology Subject Pool Web site.
The first step is to make sure the Hillcrest testing rooms are available. The schedule is online, using the Google Calendar software.
site: calendar.google.com
username: hillcrest.exp
pwd: abcclcl
There is a different color coding for each of the experimental room sets. The CLCL rooms, the eye tracker, and the ABC rooms can all be reserved separately.
When reserving a room, create a new event and use your name and experiment name as the title.
This is the same procedure that is used if you are reserving the room for simulation use.
The next step is to tell the subjects that there is a testing slot available. If this is a new experiment, you'll need to first create a record of the experiment on the Experimenter Management Page. If the experiment has already been approved and added to the list, you'll need to create a new public session. Enter the details of the study and make sure to put "Hillcrest" as the location.
Once the time slot is up, you can check and see who has signed up for your experiment. The "seats" column tells you how spaces are LEFT for your study. So to figure out how many people are currently signed up, you have to subtract the number of seats from the total number of spaces you allocated. Or you could just click on "manage" and see who has signed up.
Preparing the rooms:
On the day you have signed up to run your experiment, you'll want to get to the lab at least 10 minutes early so you can prepare the testing rooms. Each room will first have to be unlocked. There is one key for rooms 1-4 and a second key for rooms 5-8. Make sure the blinds are down in all testing rooms, as the glare on the monitors could affect your experiment.
Next you need to log in to the testing machines. We have a unique ADS account for running ABC West subjects. The log-in information is:
Username: abcwest
password: simple heuristics that make us smart
domain: ADS
Yes, you read that correctly. The password is a full sentence complete with spaces. It's a pain to type out, but wahoo for tight UITS security!
Next you need to configure the computer. Make sure the volume is turned on (using the dial at the bottom righthand corner of the monitor, on the speaker bar). Also make sure that number lock is on. (There will be a green light on the keyboard under "Num Lock" if it's on).
Next open up DirectRT (on the Desktop). You can load the experimental file if you want, or you can wait until the subject is ready to begin.
Consent Forms:
For each subject, you will need two copies of the consent form. Have them read through the form and then sign and date the second page. Once they have signed, you can sign the form as well. The second (blank) consent form is there because you are required (by federal law) to offer it to them to keep for their own records. They don't *have* to take it, however, so if they don't want it, you can reuse it for the next subject. The signed consent form has to be kept in the appropriate folder for the specific experiment. We have to keep these for 3+ years. Please, please, please don't lose the signed consent forms!
You should also have each subject fill out a screening questionnaire. This is just to make sure they meet the requirements for the experiment and didn't breeze over them online. Make sure they meet the requirements. If someone does not meet the requirements, they do not get any credit, because they signed up (and therefore didn't read the description) for a study that was not appropriate for them.
Put the questionnaire and the consent form in the appropriate folder and store them both away!
Running the experiment:
If you want, you can give a brief overview of the experiment to the subjects. This is dependent, of course, on the subject matter of the experiment.
Take each subject individually from the briefing room to the testing rooms. Record the required information on the experimental sheets.
Start up the experiment, type in the appropriate experimenter information, and get them situated. Make sure they understand that if they have any questions at any time, they should come get you and not go blindly onward through the experiment.
When the experiment is over, make sure the subjects get all of their stuff and walk them back downstairs. If there is a debriefing, make sure to carefully explain it to each subject.
Gathering the data:
Once the subjects are done, you can get your data! Wahoo! In DirectRT, each subject run generates two files: a data file and a log file. The log file is all we care about. Go into the "Experiments" folder and then choose the name of the experiment. In the "Data" folder, there will be another folder with the same name as the experiment. Within that folder is a folder called "Log." That "Log" folder contains the data you want. (Experiments -> [Experiment Name] -> Data -> [Experiment Name] -> Log.)Copy the data files over to the Video Exchange on the Desktop. Place the data in the appropriate folder, following the Experiment -> [Experiment Name] -> Data path.
Assigning Credit:
This can be done when the experiment is running and you're sitting around waiting, or after the experiment is over. It needs to be done within 24 hours of the completion of the experiment session.
Credit is assigned by going back to the Experimenter Management Page and clicking on "Assign". Give full credit (usually two credits) for anyone who completed the study, or who showed up, met the requirements, and chose not to participate. If anyone drops out in the middle of a study, they also get full credit. If anyone did not show up at all, or failed the screening questionnaire, they get zero credits.
Closing down shop:
Close down Direct RT and log out of the computer. Turn off the computer speakers and press the power button on the monitor. Make sure the lights are turned off and the door to each testing room is locked.
Lock up the consent forms, the experimental sheets, and the screening questionnaires. Turn off the hallway lights and go home!