Data collection – common issues







Participants start working on the experiment before the instructions are read
Make sure you remind them not to work on the experiment before they enter the
lab; whilst you are waiting for late arrivals, walk around to make sure nobody is
working on the experiment
Participants studying/checking their phone during the experiment
Before you start reading instructions, ask everyone to check whether their mobiles
are switched off and give them some time to do so. It is very important to walk
around during the whole study (please note, some participants have electronic
dictionary which is allowed).
An odd number of participants arrives (but you need an even number)
Once everyone is in the lab, you need to have pieces of paper ready with a computer
number on each of them. You then explain to participants one of them needs to
leave and draw one piece of paper from a hat. This participant will then receive a
participation fee and has to fill in the receipt. Please note, you cannot participate to
fill in the empty space as you need to walk around and answer questions during the
experiment.
Transition between different parts of the experiment is not smooth
Even though you give precise instructions of how to transition between different
parts of the experiment, confusion might arise. Therefore be ready to advise
participants during the experiment, possibly remind them of what to do as they
transition.
Instead of entering participation ID, people enter their student ID
Make sure not to call the indentifying number “ID” (e.g. you can call it “code”). If
possible, program restrictions for the numbers people can enter (e.g. only numbers
from 1-100)
Odd behaviours
Some participants might deviate in a number of ways (e.g. they seem to progress
through the experiment extremely fast or slowly, they ask many questions which
seem to be clear to everyone else, they don’t understand basic words, etc.). Keep a
note of what their participation code is and control for these participants when you
analyse data.
Paying different amounts to participants
This can be very tricky, so make sure you practise this step with your friends before
the actual experiment. You need to have a good idea of where to find the payment
sheet and how to look up the right amounts as quickly as possible. You have to pay
participants privately, so you need to call each participant separately to your desk.
Use the dividers to make sure other participants cannot see how much money you
are paying out.