We are always looking for people to participate in our experiments. As a participant, you can earn money or course credit. We normally pay $20 per session, but if you are a student in PSYC 100, 101, or 201, you can sign up for course credit through the Research Participation System (RPS). If you are interested in signing up, please contact us by email (erp@sfu.ca) or by phone (604-291-3046), or book a session through the RPS.

What to expect

A typical session takes 1.5 - 2 hours. The first 40-50 minutes are spent setting up our electrophysiological recording equipment to record your brain waves. The remaining time is spent participating in an experiment. Our experiments usually require you to make responses to various visual or auditory stimuli that are presented from the computer monitor or speakers.

During the experiment, we will monitor your brain electricity using electrodes that are mounted in an elastic cap (see photo). To make a good contact between the skin and electrodes, we will apply a small amount of conductive gel under each electrode. Normally, the application technique requires very slight abrasion of the scalp to clear a path through the hair from the electrode to the scalp surface. Some of the gel will remain in your hair after the cap is removed, but it comes off easily at any time with water. We have facilities available for you to wash your hair in the lab after the experiment (sink, shampoo, clean towels, hair dryer, etc.). Alternatively, you may want to bring a hat and rinse your hair elsewhere.

Preparation

There are a few things that you can do to make sure everything goes smoothly.

1. Get a good night's sleep - You need to be able to focus on the visual or auditory stimuli.
2. Bring your eyeglasses - Contacts lenses would dry out your eyes and cause you to blink too often during the experiment.
3. Use the bathroom before your session.

Finding the lab

The Human Electrophysiology Lab is located in room RCB 4216, on the bottom floor of the Robert C. Brown Classroom Complex. We are located directly below the Psychology General Office and across the street from the Diamond University Centre. View a floormap here for directions to the lab.

The University and those conducting this experiment subscribe to the ethical conduct and to the protection at all times of the interests, comfort, and safety of participants. Participation in this experiment is entirely voluntary. You may refuse to participate or withdraw at any time without penalty. All data records will be kept confidential.