Sona Researcher Study Description Guidelines - Questionnaire and In-Person Study Examples

Aug 31, 2026

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Guidelines for writing study descriptions for Sona (“Participants”) to support informed sign-up decisions. The document explains that the description does not replace the informed consent form, and focuses on clear, concise language and appropriate upfront disclosure for sensitive topics. It advises against including predicted outcomes or hypothesis statements to reduce demand characteristics, and provides example descriptions for a questionnaire study and an in-person non-questionnaire study, including what to include and what to omit.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatDOCX

Pages5

Reading Time2 min

AccessFree to download

Study description purpose and standards

Plain, concise language

Sensitive topics disclosure

Avoiding demand characteristics

Study 1: Questionnaire study

Original description

Edited description and improvements

Study 2: In-person (non-questionnaire) study

Original description

Writing and terminology tips

Sona Researcher Study Description Guidelines Aside from a descriptive title, your study on Sona will need a Description that lets the Sona user (“Participant”) make an informed choice as to whether to sign up for your study. The Description does not replace the informed consent document and it won’t contain all of the information that will be in the consent form. It merely helps the Participant decide whether they want to invest the time into signing up for your study. For an online-only study, this investment is minimal—they’ll be reading the consent form immediately after they sign up. But for in-person studies, we want to avoid participants showing up and then leaving right after reading the consent form because they didn’t know what they were getting into. In addition, your study Description represents a point of contact between our Department and the Sona Participants. We want to make a good impression on our students by using simple, concise writing. A few general tips: Keep your language simple. Remember, these are mostly PSYC 101 students; they won’t know about demographics, paternal attachment or cognitive dissonance. If you will be asking about sensitive topics (drug use, sexual behavior, infidelity, etc.), then let them know this up front. That way, they can decide whether or not to continue with informed consent. Don’t tell them how you expect the study to turn out (don’t include results from past studies or a statement of your hypothesis). This will help avoid things like demand characteristics and other subject effects. The bulleted lists following each of the sample study descriptions below give some additional pointers on what to include and exclude from your study description. The objective is to describe in general terms, without jargon, what the participant will be doing. When you submit your study for approval to the Sona Administrator (usually the Research Exposure Coordinator), if your study Description does not meet these standards, your study will be rejected and you will be referred to this document. Study 1: Questionnaire study Original Description The purpose of this research study is to explore in a sample of approximately 1200 people the relationship between an individual’s personality characteristics, choice of leisure activities, and perceptions of subjective well-being. You will complete two measures of personality type (92 total items), four measures of different aspects of well-being (45 total items), and several demographic items. Altogether your participation should take no longer than half an hour. Your participation in this study involves no reasonably foreseeable risks and no explicit benefits. The participants don’t need to know how many people you will be recruiting. Good use of “you” and “your” to address the potential participant directly. Don’t need to list the specific number of items used to measure each construct, especially if, from their perspective, the study is just one bit set of questions. Do give them an idea of the kinds of questions they will be asked, the overall number of questions, and the approximate length of time it should take to complete the study (including reading the consent form and debriefing document). Don’t say “You will complete two measures…”. At every point in the study, it’s the participant’s decision as to whether they want to answer questions. Instead, say “You will be asked to complete to measures…”. That is, you can ask them to answer questions, you just can’t force them to do it. Try to be as concise as possible (what’s the difference between “personality characteristics” and “personality”?, “perceptions” and “subjective” are redundant, and what’s the difference between your “subjective well-being” and your “well-being”?). Will PSYC 101 students really know what well-being is? Will they know what “demographic items” are? Try to find simple phrases to replace those. The first sentence mentions leisure activities, but that’s not listed in the measure

FAQs

What is the purpose of a Sona study description?

It helps potential participants make an informed choice about whether to sign up and invest their time. It does not replace the informed consent document and does not contain all consent information.

What writing style is recommended for the study description?

Use simple, concise language so typical PSYC 101 students can understand it. Avoid jargon and redundant phrasing, and keep the message clear and readable.

Should the study description include expected results or the study hypothesis?

No. Do not tell participants how you expect the study to turn out or include hypothesis-related statements, which can create demand characteristics or other subject effects.

Aug 31, 2026

Upload by Dozel