Technical

Servers and data storage

  • PsyToolkit is hosted on independent dataservers in France and the United States

  • User data is securily stored and backed up daily

Documentation

  • All PsyToolkit features are covered in freely accessible and extensive online documentation

  • There is a variety of video tutorials for step-by-step instructions on how to do anything, from setting up a study to data analysis

  • There are general lessons about phenomena that can be studied with PsyToolkit

  • There are lessons about some of the tools that can be used in conjuntions with PsyToolkit (e.g., Inkscape for creating stimuli)

  • There are libraries with experiments and questionnaires ready for use in projects.

Technical specification

  • PsyToolkit can run both reaction time experiments and questionnaires

  • Reaction time experiments can be embedded in questionnaires

  • PsyToolkit reaction time experiments can run online and offline

  • No limits in numbers of questionniare questions

  • Provides URLs which can be send to potential participants

  • Saves data online, and can be downloaded any time

  • Provides help with data analysis

  • Data can be downloaded as CSV, Excel (for easy import into SPSS), and raw text files

  • Software is based on Javascript and runs in any modern browser without need for plugins

  • Easy integration with SONA, Prolific, and MTurk

PsyToolkit can also play sounds or videos in both surveys and experiments

Experiment scripting language

  • Well developed Domain Specific Programming Language, designed for psychological experiments, with many different commands, including:

    • stimulus presentation

    • playing sounds and videos

    • response measurement (mouse, keyboard, and external devices)

    • timing

    • control statements (if..then, etc) for controlling conditions, tasks, and trials

    • options, such as full-screen vs windowed mode

    • ordering trials and conditions, randomization, etc

This list is not exhaustive. The PsyToolkit scripting language has a very large number of features

Questionnaire scripting language

  • Video tutorials explaining how to setup surveys

  • Has a variety of question types, including one-choice, multiple-choice, range, scale, text lines and text boxes, and more.

  • Conditional if-then control

  • Option for randomization of question and within-question item order

  • You can use pictures (i.e., bitmaps) in your questions

  • You can play sound clips (e.g., to play a sound and ask a question about it)

  • Can embed YouTube or other videos

  • Can embed reaction time experiments

  • Different color schemes available

  • Different languages for the buttons and interface, including: English, Spanish, Finnish, French, German, Dutch, Greek, Danish, Turkish, Chinese (中文), Hungarian, Bulgarian, Polish, and Portugese.

  • Extensive example library with background information of questionniares available

  • Easy download as spreadsheet (Excel or CSV) of data and pre-processing

  • Can score scales, which makes data analysis easy

  • Can give feedback to participant about scores

Security

  • The PsyToolkit servers are managed by Professor Stoet only. He is a Chartered Psychologist (CPsychol) registered with the British Psychological Society (BPS)

  • Online accounts can be deleted at any time

  • Email addresses of registered users are not disclosed to any third parties

  • All data transactions are automatically encrypted (via https) such that nobody between server and end user can see the data (this is, of course, pretty much standard online)

  • PsyToolkit will never ask you for a password via email (you only need a password when logging in)