Survey Participant Incentives
Guidance for Participant Incentive Payments
The information provided here is not comprehensive. It is intended to guide PIs and research staff, augmenting the existing policy information found in the Handbook of Business Procedures detailed under HBP 9.1.7 Advances for Research Subjects and Survey Participants.
UT allows payments to participants of surveys (also known as participant incentives.) There are a few different ways you can choose to do this, outlined below.
However, it is important to emphasize that regardless of the method chosen for incentives disbursement, there is extensive paperwork involved and a reconciliation is required.
Most Common Platforms and their Payment Methods
✏️ CloudResearch
Typically processed by Reimbursement method. Vendor accepts the Purchase Order method. ProCard method is recommended by UT Accounts Payable. Cash Advance method should be last resort.
✏️ Prolific
Typically processed by ProCard method (recommended.) Vendor accepts the Purchase Order method. Reimbursement method is accepted and Cash Advance method should be last resort.
MTurk
Typically processed by Reimbursement method. ProCard method is recommended by UT Accounts Payable. Cash Advance method also accepted.
Prime Panels
This vendor is a product of CloudResearch, but is not considered a vendor soley for participant payouts. They consider their work to include survey distribution and data collection as part of a survey project package. Therefore, UT treats them as a regular survey firm vendor and we can only contract with them using a Purchase Order (and only if they agree to accept payment upon completion of the survey project!) The Reconciliation Documentation is not part of this process due to the survey firm package. (Note: We can pay a deposit at the beginning of the project if the vendor requests.)
Methods for Paying Survey Participants using UT-administered funds
(i.e. research accounts, grants, internal awards, etc.)
NOTE 1: If your study participants intend to remain anonymous, you may assign them a unique identification number and submit it in lieu of a signature/printed name. Please note that by choosing this option, you are required to maintain your own documentation verifying the authenticity of those anonymous identifiers.
NOTE 2: If you have an email invitation or consent letter for your electronic participants:
Best practice is to add this statement to the email invitation or consent letter:
“Please note, by agreeing to take our questionnaire you confirm that you do not anticipate receiving $600 or more from UT Austin for participation in research studies this calendar year. If you do not meet this condition and wish to participate, please contact the project coordinator, enter name, phone number, email address.”
Summary Reconciliation Form
Multiple Participant Receipt Form
More often than not, this is the form you'll want to use when giving out gift cards or monetary compensation to study participants. Its instructions are pretty straight-forward and it allows you to document up to 9 participants on each page. Essentially, all that's required is each recipient's signature, printed name, and the value of compensation they've received.
If your study participants intend to remain anonymous, you may assign them a unique identification number and submit it in lieu of a signature/printed name. Please note that by choosing this option, you are required to maintain your own documentation verifying the authenticity of those anonymous identifiers.
If you have an email invitation or consent letter for your electronic participants:
Best practice is to add this statement to the email invitation or consent letter:
“Please note, by agreeing to take our questionnaire you confirm that you do not anticipate receiving $600 or more from UT Austin for participation in research studies this calendar year. If you do not meet this condition and wish to participate, please contact the project coordinator, enter name, phone number, email address.”
Individual Receipt Form
This form is rarely used in our department. Though you're certainly free to fill one out for each of your individual gift/reward recipients, it's only really necessary in instances where a participant is expecting to receive compensation from UT totaling more than $600 in any given calendar year. As with the multi-participant form, completion of this form is fairly self-explanatory, and the same policies apply with regard to anonymous study participation.
CITING SOURCES: Information collected from the following sources at UT:
https://cloud.wikis.utexas.edu/wiki/spaces/sohe/pages/426443705/Participant+Incentives
https://sites.utexas.edu/prcservice/participant-incentives/
https://research.utexas.edu/resources/grant-management-services/budgeting
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/llilas/business-office/accounting/participant-payments.html
Handbook of Business Procedures detailed under HBP 9.1.7 Advances for Research Subjects and Survey Participants.