SONA Resources + FAQ – Researchers

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Frequently Asked Questions By COM Sona Researchers

  • SONA Study Proposal Registration 

Download the SONA Study Proposal Template here.

Researchers intending to submit a study proposal should complete the form and email it to crccom@bu.edu for processing. 

  • Where do I put my informed consent information when creating an online survey within SONA? 

If you chose to set up an “Online Survey Study” in SONA, you will be able to put your informed consent information in the “Introductory Text”. Go to My Studies and select a study. Then go to Study Menu and click Update Online Survey. You will see the Introductory Text, a good place to insert any text for informed consent purposes. You may view how this text is displayed to participants by saving it, then going to Preview Introductory Text which is available from the Section List page. In lieu of the signature, the participants will click the “yes, start study” button. 

Click the links below to download Sample Consent Form: Sample Consent Form

  • The system doesn’t allow me put over 999 for the maximum number of participants in my online study. Will I be able to change this setting? 

Unfortunately, if you are running a web-based study, 999 is the maximum number of participants in one timeslot. If you plan to collect data for more than 999 participants, then once the first timeslot is close to being filled up, create a second timeslot at a different time and/or date for additional participants to sign up and take part in your study. 

  • Why do I have to acknowledge the Human Subjects Policy? 

Certain regulations and research guidelines either require or recommend it. You only need to do it once every 6 months, so it should not be intrusive. 

  • I want to set up a study so that participants can choose to receive credit or payment. How do I set this up? 

Set it up as a study for credit, and note in the study description that participants may opt to receive payment instead. They should notify the researcher of this when they come to their appointment. If the participant at that time chooses to receive monetary compensation, the researcher should grant credit, but mark the credit as 0 credits, and then note in the comments for the timeslot that payment was received. 

  • The monetary compensation a participant receives for a study depends on decisions they make during the study. How do I indicate this? 

You may type any value into the payment field when setting up the study, so you could type in a range of compensation values. 

  • I want a participant to participate in an upcoming session, but the system says it is too late for them to sign up. What do I do? 

You can perform a manual sign-up. See the Manual Sign-Up section of the COM SONA Researcher Manual. 

  • Where are email notifications to me sent? 

Email notifications (e.g. sign-up notices) are sent to either an address derived from your user ID or your alternate email address. See the Email Address Options section of the COM SONA Researcher Manual for more information. 

  • I have finished running my study. What should I do? 

So it does not clutter the list of studies for participants, you should make the study Inactive or delete it. See the Updating a Study section of the COM SONA Researcher Manual for more information. 

  • Who has access to my studies? 

All users can see the information about your studies and the available timeslots. Administrators, the principal investigator (if applicable) and the researchers for the study are the only people who can see who has signed up, and modify the study