No lab, no problem: Designing lexical comprehension and production experiments using PsychoPy3

Gallant, Jordan; Libben, Gary

doi:10.1075/ml.00002.gal

Article published In: The Mental Lexicon
Vol. 14:1 (2019) ► pp.152–168

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Methodological and analytic considerations

No lab, no problem

Designing lexical comprehension and production experiments using PsychoPy3

Jordan Gallant | Brock University

Gary Libben | Brock University

Published online: 11 November 2019

https://doi.org/10.1075/ml.00002.gal

Abstract

We present new opportunities for psycholinguistic research that are made available by presenting experiments online over the web. We focus on PsychoPy3, which is a new version of a system for the development and delivery of behavioural experiments. Crucially, it allows for both these functions to be performed online. We note that experiments delivered over the web have significant efficiency advantages. They also open up new opportunities to increase the ecological validity of experiments and to facilitate the participation of members of populations that have thus far been less studied in the psycholinguistic literature. We discuss the crucial matter of millisecond timing in online experiments. The technical details of implementation of a behavioural psycholinguistic experiment are presented, along with listings of additional technical resources and support. Our overall evaluation is that although online experimentation still has technical challenges and improvements are ongoing, it may well represent the future of behavioural psycholinguistic research.

Keywords: PsychoPy, PsychoPy3, online experiments, lexical processing

Article outline

Online experiments can change the psycholinguistics research landscape
- Experimenter impact: Inclusivity, cost effectiveness, time efficiency, and collaboration
- Participant impact: Inclusivity, empowerment, partnership
- Potential impact on the course of the field: Ecological validity, new questions and issues
What is PyschoPy3 and what can it do?
- How much coding ability is required?
- An illustrative example: Lexical decision task
Matters of technical practicality
- Stimulus timing
- Response timing
- Driving the system to failure
What is new in PsychoPy3?
- Embedded links
- Functionality
- Pavlovia
Discussion and conclusions
- Best practice suggestion 1: Pilot on multiple machines on multiple browsers
- Best practice suggestion 2: Provide additional detailed instructions
- Best practice suggestion 3: Compensate with questionnaire items
- Conclusion: Is the future online?
Acknowledgements
References

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