Participate in our research

Staff, post-doctoral researchers and post-graduate students in Psychology are active in a wide variety of research projects. Since human psychology is the focus of most of these projects, human participants are vital to our research. We invite you to discover the range of research being conducted and to consider volunteering to participate in one or more of these projects.

The research not only advances our understanding of how minds work but also offers participants unique firsthand experience of research methods and techniques.

Below is a list of current research projects seeking human participants. Contact the researchers directly if you would like more information. Note that projects vary in their focus, in the time commitments involved, and in the characteristics of the participants being sought.

Our machines have travelled here from the past to help us time mental events. When people sit in front of them for 30-60 minutes they show words, pictures, lines or play sounds for those people to respond to. When those people respond the machines time how long it takes them to do so.

We then use differences in these times to infer things about mental processes including remembering, forgetting, object identification, and mental rotation.

If you would like to help uncover part of the mystery of how we accomplish simple tasks such as these please contact Bradley to help him complete his PhD:

Bradley Patten
Room HSB309
Phone: +64 9 373 7599 ext 87387
Email: bradley.patten@gmail.com

Approved by The University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee on 14/7/2010 for (3) years, Reference Number 2010 / 298

Couples in romantic relationships who have been together at least one year are invited to participate in a study exploring the ways couples communicate in daily life. The study will involve 3 parts. The first part involves completing a questionnaire about your thoughts, feelings and behaviour about relationships. The second part involves completing a daily diary for a 3-week period. At the end of each day, you will be asked to complete a 10-15 minute online questionnaire about your thoughts, feelings and behaviour for that day. Couples who complete this will receive $120 (petrol or grocery vouchers) as reimbursement for their time and effort. Nine months after completion of the diary, couples will be sent via e-mail a short online follow-up questionnaire for which they will receive $30. All of your responses will remain completely confidential at all times.

If you are interested, please contact

Project coordinator Matthew Hammond
Email: rel.research@gmail.com

The project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref 2010/527).

We are recruting Korean speakers living in New Zealand for a research project conducted in Speech Science, Department of Psychology. The Boston Naming Test is used worldwide to assess language impairment. In this research, we aim to adapt and standardize the Boston Naming Test and its Korean version for Korean speakers living in New Zealand.

We are looking for (1) adults who are 18 years of age or older (2) those who are able to carry out an everyday conversation in Both Korean and English (3) those who have no history of brain disease, cardiac event or psychiatric illnesses. Your participation will take approximately 40 minutes. You will be asked to name a total of 120 objects and fill out a short language background questionnaire.

If you have any questions or would like to participate, please contact

Jae Hyun Kim
Email: jkim240@aucklanduni.ac.nz
Phone: 021753720

This study was approved by the University of Auckland Human Participatants Ethics Committee on 19/11/2010 for 3 years (Reference number 2010/534).

Dr Donna Rose Addis (Dept of Psychology) is investigating how we remember the past and imagine the future. In this study, you will do tasks requiring you to think about past and future events.

The study takes two sessions in the Human Sciences Building, 1-2 weeks apart:
Session 1 = approx. 3 hours (may take between 2 & 4 hrs)
Session 2 = approx. 2.5 hours

You will be compensated with a $50 grocery or petrol gift certificate for your time.

To be eligible you must be fluent in English and aged between 18-35 yrs. We will also ask you a few other questions to ensure you are eligible to participate.

Interested? Contact us at:

Email: memorylab.auckland@gmail.com

APPROVED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND HUMAN PARTICIPANTS ETHICS COMMITTEE on 14 July 2011 until 01 September 2012. Reference number: 2008 / 353

A series of studies has identified an association between prolonged exposure to environmental noises and negative health. The aim of present research is to explore neural patterns of people as they listen to different real-world sounds.

Participation will involve two sessions: (1) listening to a series of sounds presented through earphones and making a simple response about which of the sounds you find most annoying; (2) listening to the same series of sounds during an EEG brain recording and to complete a noise sensitivity questionnaire assessing your sensitivity to noise in general. There is no discomfort involved.

For further details, contact

Jenny Lee
Email: slee317@aucklanduni.ac.nz

The project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref 2011/238).

The study investigates how completely blind individuals differ in discriminating colours compared to sighted controls. The study simple requires participants to give numerical estimates between pairs of colours, the duration of each session is between 30-60mins.

All participants - completely blind or sighted need to be 13 years and older, and have no learning disabilities. Each participant is given a $10 Westfield voucher. If you know any completely blind people that would like to participate please let them know.

For further details contact

Armin Saysani
Email: sarm023@aucklanduni.ac.nz

The project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref 2011/231).

Dr Donna Rose Addis (Dept of Psychology) is investigating how visual and verbal abilities influence how we remember the past and imagine the future. In this study, you will do tasks measuring visual and verbal abilities, as well as tasks requiring you to think about past and future events.

The study takes two sessions in the Human Sciences Building, 1-2 weeks apart:
Session 1 = approx. 2.5 hours
Session 2 = approx. 2 hours
You will be compensated $40 Westfield vouchers for your time.

To be eligible you must be fluent in English and aged between 18-35 yrs. We will also ask you a few other questions to ensure you are eligible to participate.

Interested?

Contact:memory_study@memorylab.org

APPROVED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND HUMAN PARTICIPANTS ETHICS COMMITTEE
on 21/04/2010 for a period of 3 years. Reference number: 2010 / 057.

This research aims to speak openly to men about pornography. We want to know about men’s perceptions and ideas about pornography and its consumption. Are there still Playboys under young men’s beds and what do guys like about the common types of porn being used? We want to hear about your ideas and your friends’ ideas about pornography.
The interview is not about your personal experiences, but you must know something about pornography and be comfortable talking about your views and ideas on the subject. We are seeking small groups of men to interview at the university in their first and second year of study. You must have good English language skills. Each participant will receive a small token of appreciation.
Approved By The University Of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee On 2 May 2011 For 3 Years Until 2 May 2014 Reference Number 2011/170”

If interested please contact:
waap.research@auckland.ac.nz
or text 0210477034

This study aims to investigate cognitive processes underlying various tasks involving decisions about rotated stimuli.

Right-handed participants are required to complete a pencil and paper test and also a series of reaction time trials involving three tasks:

1. mirror/normal discriminations of rotated letters
2. left/right facing discriminations of rotated objects
3. top/bottom discriminations of rotated objects

This study takes about 1.5 hours and is based at the City Campus.
For more information or to express an interest please email

Jordan: jsea025@aucklanduni.ac.nz

This research has been approved by the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref.2006/065)

This research project aims to assess whether newcomer socialisation practices employed by the organisation and new employees are related to subsequent engagement levels of new employees, and consequent outcomes such as job performance, organisational citizenship behaviour and turnover intentions.

Please refer to the Participant Information Sheet for further information:

If you want to view the ‘Participant Information Sheet – Employee’, please click here

If you want to view the ‘Participant Information Sheet – Colleague’, pleaseclick here

(The online questionnaire can be accessed via the SurveyMonkey website link in your e-mail).

For any queries regarding this research project, please contact
Supriya Siddiqui
Email: ssid011@aucklanduni.ac.nz
Phone: 021 207 7757

Approved By The University Of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee On 07/06/2011 For Three (3) Years Until 07/06/2014 Reference Number 2011 / 251

Do you have 15 to 20 minutes to complete an online survey on your beliefs about poverty? Would you like to be entered into a prize draw for $200.00 in vouchers to Westfield Shopping Centres?

If you answered “Yes” to both of these questions, we would like to invite you to participate in a short online study on students’ beliefs about poverty. This study examines how different beliefs about poverty are related to people’s feelings toward the poor. We will also ask you a few questions about yourself but will never ask you anything that could be used to identify your responses.
If you would like to participate in this study, please click on the following link:

Click here to take the survey

For questions about this study, or if you’d like more information about this project before you decide to participate, please contact:

Dr Danny Osborne
Phone: +64 09 373 7599 82287
Email: d.osborne@auckland.ac.nz

Approved by the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee on 19/08/2011 for (3) years. Reference Number: 2011 / 416

The study consists of an online survey examining public perceptions towards crime and punishment. The survey consists of a demographic questionnaire and specific questions examining attitudes towards different crimes and their appropriate punishments.

Participation in the survey will only take 10-15 minutes and the participant has the option of going into the draw to win a $50 Westfield voucher.

For further details please contact

Svetlana Feigin
Email: sfei001@aucklanduni.ac.nz

This research has been approved by the UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND HUMAN PARTICIPANTS ETHICS COMMITTEE ON 12/8/2011 for 3 years, Reference number 2011/410.

The aim of this study is to identify the neural pathways that are involved when a peripheral visual object triggers a shift of attention. During the experiment you will perform two very simple visual tasks which involve either simple reaction time to the appearance of a light, or indicating the location of a briefly flashed letter. While you are performing these tasks, you will wear an eeg cap, which records brain activity. This method of measuring brain activity is completely non-invasive and no discomfort is involved. The eeg cap records tiny changes in electrical activity on the surface of the head, and this information is used to gauge brain activity. The entire procedure will take about two hours to complete. Participants will receive a $20 supermarket voucher as compensation for their time.

For further details contact: Nathan Ryckman:
Email: N.Ryckman@Auckland.ac.nz

The project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref 206/065)

Our project is interested in comparing the abilities of younger and older adults to recognise facial experessions in photographs and from spoken sentences. Additionally, we are interested in whether a gene (COMT gene) might influence individuals' performance on such tasks.

We are looking for younger adults (ages 18-30), with no history of schizophrenia or Parkinson's disease, to take part in a single testing session (generally lasting about 40 - 60 minutes).

Participants would be asked to perform 2 computer tasks, fill out a mood questionnaire and provide a saliva sample for determining of the COMT gene. In return, participants will receive a chocolate bar and be entered in a draw to win a $100 Westfield voucher.

For further information please contact

Natalia
Email: nsam013@aucklanduni.ac.nz

This project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref 2011/212).

Stepchildren’s experiences and perspectives on their relationships with stepfamily members is an important area to investigate and your participation in this project will help expand our knowledge of what helps stepfamilies to function successfully. This study aims to explore young adult stepchildren’s experiences of stepfather authority and if these change over time. It also aims to investigate what factors can impact on these experiences.

If you are interested in participating then you are invited to complete the online questionnaire. The questionnaire is likely to take between 20 and 30 minutes to complete and can be completed on any computer with an internet connection.

For further details please

Email: jmit050@aucklanduni.ac.nz

or go straight to the questionnaire via the following link: www.surveymonkey.com/s/HZ7G2YZ.

This research has been approved by the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee on 14/07/2010 for 3 years, Reference Number 2010/237.

This study seeks to examine individuals’ abilities to intentionally forget information. In this experiment, you will complete a brief task involving learning a list of words and photographs. You will then engage in a brief memory task, completing your participation. Prior to participation you will be shown examples of some of the photographs you will see in the experiment, and you will be asked to fill out a brief demographic questionnaire. At the end of the experiment you will be given the option to be provided with the results of your memory test as compensation for your time, as well as a 10$ voucher.

For further details, contact Nathan Ryckman (N.Ryckman@Auckland.ac.nz)

The project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref 2011/7528). 

 

The broad aim of this project is to look at employees’ experiences of, and recovery from work, and how this affects their wellbeing.

Participation will involve filling out a series of online surveys (or if you request, paper-based surveys can be mailed to you) over 5 consecutive working days. Participation should take a total of 30 to 75 minutes for the entire work week.

There will be an opportunity at the end of participation to enter into a draw to win 1 of three $ 30 Foodtown vouchers.

If you or someone you know is over 16 years of age and works 30+ hours per week, we welcome you to participate in our research and allow us to broaden our knowledge on what work and home factors influence worker wellbeing and engagement.

Should you wish to learn more and prior to your participation, please read over the Participant Information Sheet, by going to the following URL: www.surveymonkey.com/s/OptimismandRecoveryParticipantInformationSheet

To participate in the study you will need to use the following three links to fill out the daily surveys:

1. General Survey (to be only filled out once) www.surveymonkey.com/s/OptimismandRecoveryGeneralSurvey
   
   Followed by three daily surveys to be filled out for 5 consecutive working days:
2. Morning Survey (to be filled out daily) www.surveymonkey.com/s/OptimismandRecoveryMorningSurvey
3. Afternoon Survey (to be filled out daily) www.surveymonkey.com/s/OptimismandRecoveryAfternoonSurvey  
4. Night Survey (to be filled out daily) www.surveymonkey.com/s/OptimismandRecoveryNightSurvey  

Should you have any questions please contact

Dr Helena Cooper-Thomas
Phone: +64 09 373 7599 ext 82833
Email: h.cooper-thomas@auckland.ac.nz

or

Eugenia McGrath
Email: esuk002@aucklanduni.ac.nz.

Thank you in advance, for your participation!

The project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (REFERENCE NUMBER 2011 / 383).

Participate in our study and find out about learning style AND receive feedback that will help you to think about your learning.
Our study is looking at individual differences in processing information and whether people with different learning styles solve problems and remember things differently.
For participation in our 2 hour study you will receive $20 worth of vouchers!
You will be asked to complete a number of tasks which may include; memory, problem solving, reasoning and vocabulary tasks and a short online style questionnaire. We may also ask for you permission to access your GPA.
English must be your first language and you need to be a current or ex University of Auckland student.

If you are interested please email learning.style.studies@gmail.com for more information or to take part. 

For any enquiries regarding ethical concerns please contact:

The Chair, University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee
The University of Auckland
Research Office – Office of the Vice Chancellor
Private Bag, 92019
Auckland.
Phone: 09 373 7599 ext 87830

APPROVED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND HUMAN PARTICIPANTS ETHICS COMMITTEE on 14/7/2011. For a period of (1) Year, from 14/7/2011. Reference 2008/386

We are investigating visual processing in the brain using fMRI and DTI techniques, and are seeking people who fit our specific criteria:

Are you...

1. a top-notch, right-handed, male video gamer (preferably competing at national level) between the ages of 20-30yo, who has played video games since before age 10, plays currently (and for at least the last 6 months) for at least 20 hours per week, has very little or no music training, and has English as a first language?

Or

2. a right-handed male or female between the ages of 18-50yo, who has very little or no music training or video gaming experience, and has English as a first language? We are particularly seeking females over 30yo.

The research will involve:

1. filling in a questionnaire about your handedness, age, music and gaming history, etc
2. completing a small array of cognitive tasks at City Campus, Symonds St (½ hour)
3. undergoing a MRI scan at Grafton Campus, Park Road (1 hour).

During the scan (which takes about ½ hour, and is conducted by trained radiologists) you will be asked to lie still with your head in the scanner, pay attention to a visual display, and to make some responses to simple tasks, which you will have practised already. We will be measuring the blood oxygen level in your brain while you do this, and pictures of your brain scan will be made available to you if you wish. We are also able to provide a small reimbursement for your time/parking/petrol.

[Because this is an MRI study, you should be able/willing to be scanned in an MRI machine and have no metal in your body – i.e., pacemaker, metal fragment in eye, implanted surgical metal, etc.]

If you would like to participate, or for any questions regarding this project, please contact:
Dr Lucy Patston
Department of Psychology
Email: l.patston@auckland.ac.nz 
 
APPROVED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND HUMAN PARTICIPANTS’ ETHICS COMMITTEE ON 21/12/11 FOR THREE YEARS FROM 21/12/11 TO 21/12/14. REFERENCE NUMBER 2011/7798

This study seeks to identify personality traits that are linked with individuals’ abilities to intentionally forget information. This will be done by your completing an online survey which measures a variety of personality traits. The survey may be completed online at any time that works for you. Please complete the survey only once. If you should happen to get disconnected from the survey while completing it, feel free to start again. At the end of the survey you will be given the option to receive an analysis of your personality survey results as compensation for your time.

For further details, contact

Nathan Ryckman
Email: N.Ryckman@Auckland.ac.nz

The project has been approved by University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (Ref 2011/7528).