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Psychology College of Social Sciences & Interdisciplinary Studies

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Participating in Research for Course Credit

Participation Requirements

PSYC 2, 4, and 8

Each of these courses include a research requirement designed to provide students with some understanding of the methods and procedures used to conduct psychological research. To satisfy this requirement, students must complete research work by either participating in actual psychology research studies conducted by Psychology faculty and students or completing an alternative writing assignment.

Students will create their own account using the research website, SONA, and navigate various studies to participate in for credit towards their course grade. Students will select the appropriate course name to allocate credit towards that course. Studies are being created at the beginning of each semster, so as the semester progresses more studies will become available and will conclude before Finals Week. Studies are typically made available for participant sign-up around the 7th or 8th week of the semester. If you do not meet the eligibility requirements of a study, it will not be viewable for you to sign-up for.

Failure to complete the research requirements before the end of the semester will result in a final course grade of "I" or Incomplete. Students will need to complete their remaining credits the following semester and assign these credits to the course name "Students Making Up Incompletes". Upon completion of these remaining credits, students need to email their course instructor and the Sona administrator to confirm they have completed their credits. After 1 year of not completing the research requirements, the course grade will change from an "I" to an "F".

Fall 2025: Each in-person hour will count as two hours toward your research participation requirement.

For Fall 2025, students may complete their required research hours by participating in online studies, in-person studies, or a combination of the two. To encourage in-person participation, in-person hours will be double-counted toward the total required hours, up to the maximum needed. For example:

  • 0.5 hour in person = 1 hour credited
  • 1 hour in person = 2 hours credited
  • 2 or more hours in person = maximum of 3 hours credited

  • The last day to participate in research for the Fall 2025 is Friday, December 5th.

  • PSYC 2 and 8 students are required to complete 3 hours of research participation for each class.

  • PSYC 4 students are required to complete 2 hours of research participation.


Research Assignment

Participation Procedures

To complete the required hours, participants must:

  1. Register on the Psychology Research website - SONA
  2. Sign up for study participation.
    Failure to appear for 2 study sign-ups will result in the loss of future sign-ups.
  3. Show up for appointments with the 5-digit participant ID number handy.
  4. Complete required number of research hours. (PSYC 2 & 8 = 3 hours each. PSYC 4 = 2 hours)
  5. Monitor credit earnings online and make sure requirements are met by finals week. Studies become very limited at the end of the semester.
  6. Ensure credit is granted and assigned to the correct course, if enrolled in more than one course.
  7. Students must select course name "Students Making Up Incompletes" to recieve credit from a previous semester. Email course instructor and administrator when remaining credits are complete for an "Incomplete" grade change to be initiated.
  8. Contact the researcher directly or the SONA administrator for support.

Alternative Writing Assignment

Students who have unexcused no-shows for study sign-ups and/or students not wishing to participate in research have the option of completing an alternative writing assignment. Students who complete this assignment will demonstrate their understanding of research methods by reviewing reports of research studies that have recently been published in Psychology research journals.

This alternative writing assignment contains three parts. All parts must be completed satisfactorily in order to receive credit. Carefully follow the detailed instructions below for the assignment.

  • Make sure you are signed into your CSUS Office365 account when submitting your Alternative Writing Assignment.

Contact Dr. Qin if you have any questions.

Due Date: Friday, November 28th (Fall 2025 semester)

Alternative Writing Assignment Instructions

Submit Alternative Writing Assignment

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