Participation Period in Studies
When a participant joins your study, Avicenna automatically calculates their participation start and end times. This defines the timeframe in which you can present surveys, request experience sampling, ask participants to complete cognitive tasks, or collect sensor data.
Importance of Setting Participation Periods
Correctly setting this period is crucial, as Avicenna does not collect data outside this timeframe. You can costumize start and end times for each participant or group. Each participant may have a unique participation period. You can define the calculation for new participants by setting three key values:
-
Participation Start Time
This is when you expect participants to begin. Marking the Open checkbox means participation starts upon joining. If a specific date is set, participation begins either on that date or when they join, whichever is later. -
Participation End Time
This is when you expect participants to finish. Marking the Open checkbox allows participation to continue indefinitely. Setting a specific date ends participation for all participants on that day, with no new entries afterward. -
Participation Duration
Indicate the expected number of days for participation. This value must be at least 1 and cannot include decimals. It is interpreted based on the start and end times. Set a specific number of days or mark it as From start to end.
Customizing Participation Periods
Each parameter can be set or left unchecked, giving you eight different configurations. Here’s a breakdown of each:
Marking All Checkboxes
Marking all checkboxes means participation starts when participants join and continues indefinitely.
Examples:
| Participant Join Date | Participation Start | Participation End |
|---|---|---|
| Jun. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Jun. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Never |
| Aug. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Aug. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Never |
Setting Start, Marking End and Duration
If joining occurs before the specified start time, participation begins at the start time. Otherwise, it begins when they join. Participation is indefinite.
Examples:
Start Time: Nov. 15th, 2020, 10:00
| Participant Join Date | Participation Start | Participation End |
|---|---|---|
| Jun. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Nov. 15th, 2020, 10:00 | Never |
| Aug. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Nov. 15th, 2020, 10:00 | Never |
| Nov. 15th, 2020 09:00 | Nov. 15th, 2020, 10:00 | Never |
| Nov. 20th, 2020 11:45 | Nov. 20th, 2020 11:45 | Never |
Setting End, Marking Start and Duration
Participation starts upon joining and continues until the specified end. Joining isn’t possible after the end date.
Examples:
End Time: Nov. 15th, 2020, 23:00
| Participant Join Date | Participation Start | Participation End |
|---|---|---|
| Jun. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Jun. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Nov. 15th, 2020, 23:00 |
| Aug. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Aug. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Nov. 15th, 2020, 23:00 |
| Nov. 15th, 2020 09:00 | Nov. 15th, 2020 09:00 | Nov. 15th, 2020, 23:00 |
| Nov. 20th, 2020 11:45 | N/A (cannot join) | N/A (cannot join) |
Setting Duration, Marking Start and End
Participation starts when joining and lasts for the duration specified.
Examples:
Duration: 2 weeks (14 days)
| Participant Join Date | Participation Start | Participation End |
|---|---|---|
| Jun. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Jun. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Jun. 19th, 2020 10:15 |
| Aug. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Aug. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Aug. 26th, 2020 19:15 |
Setting Start and End, Marking Duration
The participation duration equals the time between start and end if joining occurs before the start time. Participation is shorter for later joiners.
Examples:
Start: Oct. 15th, 2020, 00:00; End: Nov. 16th, 2020, 00:00
| Participant Join Date | Participation Start | Participation End |
|---|---|---|
| Sep. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Oct. 15th, 2020 00:00 | Nov. 16th, 2020, 00:00 |
| Oct. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Oct. 15th, 2020 00:00 | Nov. 16th, 2020, 00:00 |
| Oct. 25th, 2020 09:00 | Oct. 25th, 2020 09:00 | Nov. 16th, 2020, 00:00 |
| Nov. 20th, 2020 11:45 | N/A (cannot join) | N/A (cannot join) |
Setting Start and Duration, Marking End
Joining before the start time causes participation to begin at the start time, ending after the duration passes, even if joined later.
Examples:
Start: Oct. 15th, 2020, 00:00; Duration: 14 days
| Participant Join Date | Participation Start | Participation End |
|---|---|---|
| Sep. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Oct. 15th, 2020 00:00 | Oct. 29th, 2020 00:00 |
| Oct. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Oct. 15th, 2020 00:00 | Oct. 29th, 2020 00:00 |
| Oct. 25th, 2020 09:00 | Oct. 25th, 2020 09:00 | Nov. 8th, 2020, 23:59 |
| Nov. 20th, 2020 11:45 | Nov. 20th, 2020 11:45 | Dec. 4th, 2020, 11:45 |
Setting Start, End, and Duration
Participation begins upon joining and continues for the specified duration or until the end time, whichever occurs first. Joining isn’t possible after the end time.
Examples:
End: Nov. 15th, 2020, 00:00; Duration: 14 days
| Participant Join Date | Participation Start | Participation End |
|---|---|---|
| Sep. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Sep. 5th, 2020 10:15 | Sep. 19th, 2020 10:15 |
| Oct. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Oct. 12th, 2020 19:15 | Oct. 26th, 2020 19:15 |
| Nov. 5th, 2020 09:00 | Nov. 5th, 2020 09:00 | Nov. 15th, 2020 00:00 |
| Nov. 20th, 2020 11:45 | N/A (cannot join) | N/A (cannot join) |
Modifying Study Participation Period
You can change participation start time, end time, and duration at any point, even while a study is active. These changes only apply to new participants, not those already enrolled, since their participation periods were calculated and stored at enrolment. To change existing participants’ periods, you must manually adjust them.
Modifying Participants’ Participation Period
Individually modify start and end times for any participant or group. Avicenna updates their activity schedule automatically. Details on these updates can be found in the Triggering Logics section. Follow these steps to adjust participation times:
- Navigate to the Researcher Dashboard and select
Participationfrom the left panel.
- In the
Participationtab, locate and select the participant(s) by ticking their checkboxes.
-
From the top menu, click
Modify Participation Period. -
Set new start and/or end times. You can mark the end time as Open if needed.
- Click
Saveto apply changes.
By saving, Avicenna updates the participation period and adjusts activities, reloading study settings on participants’ apps if necessary.
Time Zone
Avicenna accounts for time zones to avoid ambiguity in studies across regions or participant relocations. Internally, time values are stored in UTC for consistency. They convert automatically to users’ local times for display.
For instance, in the Eastern time zone (-04:00 GMT), a Participation Start Time of Oct. 15th, 2020 00:00 is saved as 2020-10-15 04:00:00-0000 in UTC. Researchers see this as Oct. 15th, 2020 00:00 ET on their dashboard.
When participants join, Avicenna calculates their periods in UTC, displaying in local time. For example, Eastern Time participants see Oct. 15th, 2020 00:00, while Pacific Time participants see Oct. 14th, 2020 21:00.
My Progress
The My Progress page, accessed under the Optional Activities section, shows activity sessions and status. Useful for participant compensation or gamification.
To enable:
- Go to the Basics Page and click Edit.
- Scroll down to enable Participants Progress Page.
Grouping
Define content categorization on the My Progress page as Monthly, Weekly, or Daily.
Months/Weeks/Days to be shown
This option lets you choose how many months, weeks, or days before and after the present are displayed. You can show or hide past and future events by adjusting the number of periods. Only sessions that already exist within this range will appear. More details here.
Specify the range and visibility:
- 0 hides past/future events.
- 1 shows current period’s events.
- 2 shows current and one adjacent period.
Sort By
Choose to sort progress should be presented.
Ascending Order
Shows earlier sessions first.
Descending Order
Shows later sessions first.
Page Title
The title on the My Progress page, defaulted to My Progress.
Page Description
Set a description that participants see on the My Progress page.
