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[edited from support email]
[LEFT]I would like to know more about embedding subjects’ responses in subsequent question wordings.
Please direct me to the place in the help file that talks about this.
We would like to simulate a dialogue between the subject and 'a negotiating partner,' where the subject thinks someone is answering their messages. [/LEFT]
See the section on 'Advanced Features' for doing some really fancy stuff like this. But for the basic insert function:
From Page 72 in the manual:
You can insert the value of a subject’s prior response to any fill-in-the blank or scale response item by typing the appropriate variable name surrounded by < > within any question wording text. For example, if you had previously asked subjects about their race using a fill-in-the-blank question or a scale response and you had called this variable race, then you could insert the subjects response in a subsequent question wording like this: What percentage of your friends are <race>? For scale responses, the text label of the selected response is used.
Is it possible then to insert a response that is [I]based[/I] upon the subject's response - for e.g., based on a contingency table that maps <race> to <creed>, is it possible to construct a statement such as: What percentage of your friends are <creed>?
More generally speaking, can the system trigger a pre-defined calculation (in Excel perhaps) and embed the result in its response to the participant? Thank you!
Yes, in fact that would be an example of the "fancy stuff" mentioned above! Take a look at the section on Advanced Features in the manual or online help--especially the section on calculated variables for a feature like what you're describing.
[I][edited][/I]
I would like to insert a prior response not into the question text but into the label for a scale response item (e.g., respondents choose between two options that they themselves have defined earlier). I have tried <xxx> in the text label column but that didn't work. Is there a way to get the labels I need?
Thanks!
I thought you could do that, but apparently not! OK, I've made the change--you can now insert variables into response options as well as question wording. You'll need v2006.1.30 or later. See:
[URL="http://www.empirisoft.com/support/showthread.php?t=41"]http://www.empirisoft.com/support/showthread.php?t=41[/URL]
ps., Henry, I moved your other question regarding the "none" response option to here:
[URL="http://empirisoft.com/support/showthread.php?p=292&posted=1"]http://empirisoft.com/support/showthread.php?p=292&posted=1#post292[/URL]
I can't find the samples? I am looking for sample 5 so I can learn how to do the calculations. I just reinstalled ML, but apparently, they are not in my HD.
See: [URL="http://empirisoft.com/support/showthread.php?t=271"]http://empirisoft.com/support/showthread.php?t=271[/URL].
Hi - If anyone could help my I would be SO SO greatful (I have spent several hours learning how to create htm files and purusing these search boards; they have helpful to an extent but now I am stuck!).
I have a multiple response question, and I want to "pipe in" the responses to this question in two, multiple choice, follow-up questions. I can get this to all work in Media Lab (i.e., it looks right), but the data collection is not correct. Basically it is capturing the multiple responses from the initial question and the first followup question correctly, but then it appears to be collecting the data from the second follow-up question and writing it into the first follow-up questions variable "slots" (if that makes any sense).
I have attached the questionnaire file and the three htm files (I have more than 12 response options so all three multiple choice questions have to be custom items), if anyone cares to take a look. The plan is to have this process repeated 10 times per subject (e.g., they read a vignette and answer three multiple choice questions about it using the format described above, then repeat with nine more vignettes).
If anyone has any thoughts or comments, that would be fantastic. Also, I am working with Media Lab 2006.2.40 if that makes a difference.
Katie
Katie, not seeing the attachment here. Can you zip the whole thing and re-try? Also, if you could attach a reduced/simplified version that would be helpful--that is, a shortened version that includes just enough content to illustrate the problem. Just makes problem solving go a lot faster on our end!
Yes, attaching the files would be helpful for you. I've tried to make the questionnaire as cut and dry as possible, as well. Thank you again for taking the time to look at this. No one in my department was able to help me out and, as I mentioned in the previous post, the search forums allowed me to get to this point at least (in terms of creating the custom items and learning htm on the fly)!
Katie
Hello:
I am trying to create the following questionnaire item/structure. I would like participants to write an essay (labeled the variable, 'Letter') and then show them this essay in the wording section of a later item. I have Media Lab 2008 and have read through the entire Advanced Features section. I've also worked on the sample files in your accompanying examples. But unfortunately, these activities haven't proved to be much help.
Following the instructions, I created a questionnaire item that follows their 'Letter' writing, with the following wording:
[B]Below is the text of the letter that you just wrote. There are also a pad of paper and envelopes. Feel free to copy down the letter, put it in the envelope, and seal it.[/B]
[B]<Letter>[/B]
I also created an accompanying excel spreadsheet with the following fields and entries:
[LEFT][B]variable [/B]
[B]value[/B]
[B]skipto[/B][/LEFT]
[LEFT][B]Letter[/B]
[B]LetterYN[/B][/LEFT]
But to no use. The letter is not presented back to participants as I would desire.
Is it possible to do this? If so, how?
I am happy to send along my files if it would be of help.
Many thanks in advance.
Jennifer
First off, try changing your variable name to lowercase "letter" in the que, the excel file and in the <letter> reference and see if that helps (it might depending on the version of MediaLab you are using. If that doesn't help, yes, please do attach the responses.xls file and the que file where the "letter" is written and re-presented.
Thanks for the suggestion, Jarvis! I tried changing it to "letter" but no use. I am attaching the files. The issue in question appears in the "forgiveness" questionnaire.
Any help you can offer would be appreciated! Thank you.
Hi,
I've been able to insert previous responses into questions within the questionnaire with no trouble, but I can't figure out if there is a way to use the responses as stimulus in a Direct RT file. Specifically, I want to use the words they type as primes. I tried typing the variable (<variable>, in this case <Name1>) into the stim column of direct RT, but that didn't seem to work at all. Is there a way I can get just the word written to a text file, and then use that text file as the stimulus? I know there's the data file, but it looks like all IDs write to the same file.
Thanks for any help, and let me know if there's any other information that would helpful.
jenjordan75,
I think I found the problem. Essay data are different than other data--you can't insert them using the variable name as you can a fill in the blank or scale item response. However, you CAN insert variables that are recorded to a responses.xls file (see [I]Advanced Features[/I]). Problem with this is that Essay data again, are not written to the responses.xls file. They are written to their own separate data file and so you'll get the same "ok" in the responses.xls file that you do in your other data files.
SO... the answer? Using a custom item. I've drafted one here based on your attached sample. It's basically an HTML file that provides a text box just like an essay (you can adjust the size by editing the essay.htm file in a text editor like notepad.
Then I simply added a responses.xls file to track the "letter" variable and then go on to insert it as you had done so previously. Try out this simplified revised sample and see if it accomplishes what you need. If not, please let me know!
pspicer,
Great idea, but no, as yet there is not a way for DirectRT to read values from a responses.xls file that is active in MediaLab.
I will test out your example and let you know if it accomplishes what I had in mind.
Any chance that future versions of media lab will allow users to "feed back" essay responses to participants?
jenjordan75,
Definitely should be added. Just a matter of priority right now. For most any other item type it would be a simple fix. However, essay data are written to their external files and then released immediately from memory (that's why you simply see "ok" written to the primary data files). Should mention that you could also do this with a fill in the blank quite easily as you can make it multi line just like an essay. Only limitation though is I think fitb's are limited to 255 characters.