PSY 1300 Research Experience

Spring 2026 PSY1300 Research Experience Participant Guidelines

                                                             This information applies to the following sections of PSY1300                         

Spring 2026:                                            

M, W, F 9:00 -9:50 AM        Section 251 (CRN 32025) – Instructor: Mr. M. Stern

M, W, F 10:00 -10:50 AM     Section 252 (CRN 31455) – Instructor: Mr. J. Angulo

T, TH 2:00 - 3:20 PM            Section 253 (CRN 33677) – Instructor: Dr. J. Cascio

T, TH 5:00-6:20 PM             Section 254 (CRN 31456) – Instructor: Dr. L. Werner

M, W, F 8:00 -8:50 AM       Section 257 (CRN 39526) – Instructor: Mr. M. Stern

Online                                    Section 259 (CRN 40632) – Instructor: Mr. M. Umanzor

M, W 2:00-3:20 PM            Section R25 (CRN 39528) – Instructor: Dr. J. Harris

Students enrolled in these sections of PSY 1300 are required to engage in research experience. There are two options for gaining this research experience: one involves participation in research studies whereas the other does not. The two options are described more fully in this handout.

To obtain research experience credits by participating in a study, please use the handout above to log into http://txstate.sona-systems.com. You must complete a minimum of 6 credits.

Spring 2026 Open date: Friday, February, 6, 2026

Due date: Friday, May 1, 2026, by 11:59 pm

*Please note that your account will not be set up until the open date listed above, so you will not be able to log on until that date.

Once your account is set up, you will also be able to check your research experience credits on that web site. To obtain research experience credits by submitting journal article summaries, please refer to the handout.

If you are 18 years of age or older, you are eligible to participate in research studies (the age restriction is due to federal policy). Your participation in these studies will give you direct contact with research. Participation in psychology research studies at Texas State University that require 30 minutes or less are worth 1 credit; studies that take between 30-60 minutes are worth 2 credits; studies that take between 60-90 minutes are worth 3 credits; and so on. Laboratory studies (those that you have to participate in-person at a predefined location) are worth an additional bonus credit above what the time commitment dictates. Online studies are credited just based on the time commitments listed above. The number of credits will be noted in the study description that you see when you sign up. The number of credits listed on SONA for any given study is accurate, and already includes the bonus point if applicable.

Only studies listed at http://txstate.sona-systems.com qualify for credit. Other studies, including paid studies, cannot be used to satisfy the Research Requirement.

*NOTE: If you sign up for a study but cannot attend/complete the study, you must cancel your appointment through the SONA system or contact the study’s researcher to cancel. If you fail to complete or cancel a study, you will not be allowed to sign up for future studies until you contact the researcher to set up a new time to participate in the study you missed.

You may also demonstrate direct contact with research by submitting a written summary of a research article published during 2024-2025 in Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research. Credit will not be given for summaries of articles published in any other year or any other journal. Each written summary is worth 2 credits. To earn credits in this way, follow the steps below:

1. Visit the library homepage (https://www.library.txst.edu/), then click on “Periodicals”, then search for “Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research”. When the result comes up, click on “Academic Search Complete”. Expand the year list (2024 or 2025) on the right side of the page, and choose one of the articles listed. 
2. Read the article. Then type a single-spaced, 1-page paper (in 12-point font) that answers the following four questions:
   1. What question(s) did this research try to answer or what hypotheses did it test?
   2. What methods were used to answer the question(s) or test the hypotheses?
   3. What were the major findings of the research?
   4. What conclusions did the researchers draw based on the findings?
   5. Please respond in your own words and avoid direct quotes. If plagiarism is detected in your article summary, you will lose the opportunity to earn credit through article submission.
3. Submit your summary via an email with a file attachment (.docx or .pdf, NOT SharePoint) to: Psy-Research@txstate.edu

Monitoring your Credits
The Research Experience assignment is worth 5% of your course grade. Research credits for both options can be tracked by logging into http://txstate.sona-systems.com/ as described above. In addition, your credits earned will be updated in a column in your Canvas Gradebook, once a week. Additional details, including frequently asked questions, can be found at: https://www.psych.txst.edu/research/research-participation/psy-1300.html

Please direct any questions regarding the research experience requirement to the Research Experience Coordinator at:
Psy-Research@txstate.edu

Frequently Asked Questions about the Research Experience Requirement