Sona Participation

You have the option to reduce the weight of your final exam by completing research participation credits. In addition to providing your with extra credit, the research participation option allows you to take part in some of the exciting research at McMaster, and to observe how psychologists conduct their studies. 

The system the department used to track research participation is called Sona, which can be accessed by clicking here. To access Sona for the first time, select the "Request Account" option at the top right of your screen. You will then enter your name, student number, and your McMaster email address. You will also be asked to select a course. Select all courses that you are enrolled in. Please make sure all of this infomation is accurate or you will not receive your credit. After a short delay, you will receive an email from Sona with a username and temporary password. You can change your password once you login by selecting "My Profile". 

NOTE: You must activate you MacID before you can create a Sona account. To activate your MacID click here. 

If this is your first time on Sona this academic year, you will be asked to fill out a short survey. This information is used to filter out any experiments for which you are not eligible. To register for an experiment, select "Study Sign-Up" from the main Sona page. You will be presented with a list of currently available experiments, with a short description given about each. Clicker on the study will provide a longer description of the experiment. Before signing-up for a study, be sure to read the description carefully, making special note of any specific criteria for participation (for example, some experiments only allow females to participate, while others may require subjects who speak a second language). When you have found an experiment that you would like to participate in, select "View Times Slots for this Study" to view available timeslots, then select "Sign-Up" to register for a time that fits your schedule. You will receive a confirmation email with the details of your selection. Be sure to write down the study number, experimenter name, location, and telephone extension from this email.

After you have completed an experiment, you will be given a paper slip verifying your participation. This slip is for your records only. In the event that an experiment is not credited to your Sona account, this slip is your proof of participation. Shortly after completing an experiment, you should notice that the experimenter has credited your Sona account. You should verify that the credit is assigned to the correct class. In most cases this will be done automatically, but it's always smart to double-check

If you fail to show up for two experiments, you will lose the option to complete the research participation credit. If you know in advance that you will be unable to attend a scheduled experiment, please contact the experimenter.