I have now successfully completed 3 trials! One of my pairs of participants did cancel this week, but I was still able to run 2. In addition, one of the trials was a Spanish to English, instead of English to Spanish, which I was very nervous for. I was nervous because I had to explain the tasks in Spanish first, instead of getting to explain them in English. I think I may have forgotten a few instructions because I think one of my participants may have completed one task in the wrong language, but it was a learning experience, and now I won’t forget next time.
The trials this week were interesting because they were not like my first one last week. I can’t write too much about what the study is, but the participants have a conversation about some *useless* items they will bring to a deserted island. It is a strange task, and the first group of participants I had was very curious as to why we chose those useless items. I had the opportunity to explain the study to them, which was a lot of fun. This week, the participants weren’t too interested in talking after the trial and they logged off of Zoom quickly after finishing their tasks. I understand everyone has Zoom fatigue and especially in the summer, no one wants to be on their laptops, but I found it interesting they didn’t want to know what the thought process was behind the tasks.
While I have gotten into a good rhythm, I think it may come to a screeching halt. Like Sunny, I am having trouble finding a balance of participants. I no longer have Spanish- English bilinguals to pair with my English- Spanish bilinguals, but I am hoping to get a few more people this weekend.
Words of the week: Annunciate, articulate, 1 rainboot
It’s so great that you’ve gotten a few groups in! (Though I really hope things don’t come to a standstill for you!) I know that Felicity and I are having the same problem as you and Sunny – there’s just not a great balance of bilingual participants right now. Even so, hopefully you get enough people signing up to continue running trials. It’s so rewarding when you can actually schedule a group of people for a trial! Best of luck!!
Hi Lily! It’s so nice to hear that you have nailed 3 sessions already!! And hope your next ones go just as well as your first ones! I thought the thing you mentioned about people logging off Zoom as the experiment ends was interesting, because I also think people who take the tasks are usually interested in the purpose of the research. But we don’t know about their curiosity until they finish the task. Doing research is so much fun because we could prepare for it but the result and data always surprise us! Great work Lily and best of luck to your next sessions!!
Hi Lily! So nice to hear that you have nailed 3 trails already!! And hope your next ones go just as well as your first ones! I thought the thing you mentioned about people logging off Zoom as the experiment ends was interesting, because I also think people who take the tasks are usually interested in the purpose of the research. But we don’t know about their curiuosilty until they finish the task. Doing research is so much fun because we could prepare for it but the result and data always surprise us! Great work Lily and best of luck to your next sessions!!