Online Psychology Research Articles

The integrity of Web-delivered experiments: can you trust the data?

Data from Web-delivered experiments conducted in browsers by remote users of PsychExperiments, a public on-line psychology laboratory, reveal experiment effects that mirror lab-based findings, even for experiments that require nearly millisecond accuracy of displays and responses. Textbook results are obtained not just for within-subjects effects, but for between-subjects effects as well. These results suggest that existing technology is adequate to permit Web delivery of many cognitive and social psychological experiments and that the added noise created by having participants in different settings using different computers is easily compensated for by the sample sizes achievable with Web delivery.

Undergraduate labs and computers: the case for PsychExps.

PsychExps (http:/(/)www.olemiss.edu/PsychExps) is an interactive on-line psychology laboratory designed to facilitate teaching and conducting research over the Internet. With the increased use of the Web among students and the development of technology enabling the deployment of experiments via the Internet, a laboratory such as PsychExps appears to offer numerous advantages over the solely classroom-based laboratory. As part of the development of PsychExps, a survey was conducted, to assess the utility of this novel approach to the traditional computer-based psychology laboratory classes. Responses generally indicate interest in and a need for cost-effective resources such as an Internet-based laboratory. In addition, PsychExps offers several advantages over the mostly pedagogical and demonstration-based psychology sites on the Internet.

The psychology of online searching

The psychology of online searching

The psychology of online searching

AbstractOnline searching is a dynamic process requiring an interactive and iterative dialogue to fully utilize its potential. However, such an interaction results in communication barriers at the human‐computer interface due to demands and limits of human memory and human information processing. An algorithmic method of searching, using Boolean negation to eliminate redundancy and reduce the cognitive strain of this barrier is proposed. Experimental data testing the efficacy of the method are also presented. Furthermore, the correlation of differences in cognitive processes to the searcher's comprehension of the system and searching behavior are explored.

DEC performance in the psychology laboratory

A survey of the On-Line Psychology DEC Users’ Group was taken to evaluate DEC’s performance in the psychology research laboratory. Data were obtained for 20 rating scale items and 7 open-ended items in five categories. On a 10-point scale, DEC averaged about 6 on purchasing procedures and documentation, about 4 on delivery time and maintenance service, and about 7 on product satisfaction. The open-ended items provided users’ explanations for the ratings and new hardware and software that users would like to see from DEC in the near future.

An on-line psychology laboratory for teaching and research

LearningResearch and DevelopmentCenter, University ofPittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvanm15260 This paper describes a PDP-15 timesharing system in which on-line experimentation and an undergraduate laboratory course co-exist with many other users. Design features include precise stimulus and response timing, easy experiment programming, easy system access, and 15 or more simultaneous users. Students can be both experimenters and subjects in realistic, variable course modules. Current psychological experimentation frequently requires accurate response latency measurement, close control of stimulus presentation, and stimulus genera­ tion contingent on prior responses. As the need for precision has increased and computer costs have de­ clined, an increasing number of psychologists are using the computer to control experiments. A variety of experiment control systems have been developed at universities and research laboratories (see the March, 1975, issue of American Psychologist for an overview), and a number are commercially available from computer manufacturers. A significant number of experimental psychologists have become computer proficient, and a computer users subculture has developed in which bytes and analog-to-digital converters are discussed much as were relay racks a decade ago. In spite of these dramatic changes, the undergraduate's laboratory experience often consists of the psychology of flash cards and memory drums, even at universities where computer-controlled research on cognition is most advanced. There are many reasons for this. Some on-line systems are designed for the experienced user and are complex or specialized for particular experi­ ments. Others lack higher level software features and are