FAQ
Why a software needs to be approved by the University?
The University is trying to manage the number of software applications used for research so that applications are fit for purpose, secure and, importantly, enable us to comply with our obligations under the GDPR and other data protection laws.
What if the software I need is not approved/provided by HWU?
The software applications listed below are the ones approved by HWU for research for the reasons mentioned above. For psychological research, these applications cover a wide range of data collection methods and data analysis tools.
If an application is not listed below or at HWU IT Essesntials page then kindly email ishelp@hw.ac.uk and ask whether the software you need is already licenced by the University for the intended use. If not, and there is a wide interest for it i.e. needed by a whole dept or School, then email your local tech support listed below (for psychology staff and students only).
Please note:
Local psychology technicians:
The University is trying to manage the number of software applications used for research so that applications are fit for purpose, secure and, importantly, enable us to comply with our obligations under the GDPR and other data protection laws.
What if the software I need is not approved/provided by HWU?
The software applications listed below are the ones approved by HWU for research for the reasons mentioned above. For psychological research, these applications cover a wide range of data collection methods and data analysis tools.
If an application is not listed below or at HWU IT Essesntials page then kindly email ishelp@hw.ac.uk and ask whether the software you need is already licenced by the University for the intended use. If not, and there is a wide interest for it i.e. needed by a whole dept or School, then email your local tech support listed below (for psychology staff and students only).
Please note:
- individual requests will not be considered i.e. a staff member or student requests an application to be approved for their own individual project.
- the application process may take weeks or months to be considered and the local technicians do not have control over it – applications are processed by the Information Governance team.
Local psychology technicians:
- Edinburgh Campus – Yiannis (Ioannis) Argyropoulos
- Dubai Campus – Aman Key Yekani, Hajar
- Malaysia Campus – Zulkipli, Aisyah
Online surveys
The University offers a number of survey platforms you can use for online survey data collection such as MS Forms, JISC Online Surveys and Surveylab (the latter is limited to SoSS/EBS/Psychology/LINCS only). For a comparison between these platforms visit SurveyLab Surveys (sharepoint.com)
– MS Forms is part of our O365 subscription. Just visit https://www.office.com/launch/forms and login with your HWU details
– For JISC Online Surveys contact ishelp@hw.ac.uk to create an account
– For Surveylab (SoSS/EBS/Psychology/LINCS only) you can login using your HWU credentials by visiting SurveyLab Surveys (sharepoint.com) and clicking on “Link to Heriot-Watt University’s SurveyLab” at the bottom of the page (see image below). Alternatively, the direct link is Log In | SurveyLab. Please do not just visit the Surveylab’s website and create an account – this may not work. Use the links above. In SurveyLab Surveys (sharepoint.com) you can also find video tutorials on how to use Surveylab.
We have a pool of psychological scales in text format that you can use in Surveylab (see tutorials on how this can be done). To access this pool visit LINK (HWU login is required).
Note: If you plan to also use StReP to recruit participants please contact the local Psychology technician (see list below) to add you as a researcher. You can then watch the tutorial video on how to link your SurveyLab survey to StReP for automatic credit granting.
Local psychology technicians:
– MS Forms is part of our O365 subscription. Just visit https://www.office.com/launch/forms and login with your HWU details
– For JISC Online Surveys contact ishelp@hw.ac.uk to create an account
– For Surveylab (SoSS/EBS/Psychology/LINCS only) you can login using your HWU credentials by visiting SurveyLab Surveys (sharepoint.com) and clicking on “Link to Heriot-Watt University’s SurveyLab” at the bottom of the page (see image below). Alternatively, the direct link is Log In | SurveyLab. Please do not just visit the Surveylab’s website and create an account – this may not work. Use the links above. In SurveyLab Surveys (sharepoint.com) you can also find video tutorials on how to use Surveylab.
We have a pool of psychological scales in text format that you can use in Surveylab (see tutorials on how this can be done). To access this pool visit LINK (HWU login is required).
Note: If you plan to also use StReP to recruit participants please contact the local Psychology technician (see list below) to add you as a researcher. You can then watch the tutorial video on how to link your SurveyLab survey to StReP for automatic credit granting.
Local psychology technicians:
- Edinburgh Campus – Yiannis (Ioannis) ArgyropoulosDubai Campus – Aman Key Yekani, HajarMalaysia Campus – Zulkipli, Aisyah
Online interviews and transcriptions
Interviews
Currently only MS Teams is approved for online interviews. MS Teams is available to all staff and students at HWU. MS Teams can also be used by users who do not have an O365 subscription e.g. your participants – see HERE for instructions.
Transcriptions
You can use MS Teams to both record your interviews and obtain their transcriptions. See HERE for instructions.
If you conduct your interview in person (face-to-face) using a voice recorder then you can obtain a transcript either by using MS Word or by using a combination of MS PowerPoint and MS Stream (see guide HERE)
NOTE: It is strongly recommended that you first test and familiarise yourself with the services listed above before your start collecting data.
Currently only MS Teams is approved for online interviews. MS Teams is available to all staff and students at HWU. MS Teams can also be used by users who do not have an O365 subscription e.g. your participants – see HERE for instructions.
Transcriptions
You can use MS Teams to both record your interviews and obtain their transcriptions. See HERE for instructions.
If you conduct your interview in person (face-to-face) using a voice recorder then you can obtain a transcript either by using MS Word or by using a combination of MS PowerPoint and MS Stream (see guide HERE)
NOTE: It is strongly recommended that you first test and familiarise yourself with the services listed above before your start collecting data.
PsychoPy/Pavlovia
PsychoPy/Pavlovia is an experiment builder and data collection tool.
PsychoPy is a Desktop software that allows you to build experiments, run them in your computer and collect data.
For online data collection you need to create an account with Pavlovia. The Psychology dept pays an annual subscription so Psychology staff and students can recruit unlimited number of participants (the platform does not offer you participants).
Contact the local tech support for information on how to create an account based on our license.
You can use PsychoPy/Pavlovia i.e. it is an approved software, given that your local technician reviews your PsychoPy project.
Local Psychology technicians:
PsychoPy is a Desktop software that allows you to build experiments, run them in your computer and collect data.
For online data collection you need to create an account with Pavlovia. The Psychology dept pays an annual subscription so Psychology staff and students can recruit unlimited number of participants (the platform does not offer you participants).
Contact the local tech support for information on how to create an account based on our license.
You can use PsychoPy/Pavlovia i.e. it is an approved software, given that your local technician reviews your PsychoPy project.
Local Psychology technicians:
- Edinburgh Campus – Yiannis (Ioannis) Argyropoulos
- Dubai Campus – Aman Key Yekani, Hajar
- Malaysia Campus – Zulkipli, Aisyah
PsyToolkit
Psytoolkit is an online experiment builder, survey platform and data collection tool. It is free to use.
It has an extensive library of ready-made surveys and experiments but you may need to edit them to suit your requirements.
It may require that you learn the syntax to either create an experiment/survey from scratch or edit existing ones.
You can use PsyToolkit i.e. it is an approved software, given that your local technician reviews your PsyToolkit project.
Local psychology technicians:
It has an extensive library of ready-made surveys and experiments but you may need to edit them to suit your requirements.
It may require that you learn the syntax to either create an experiment/survey from scratch or edit existing ones.
You can use PsyToolkit i.e. it is an approved software, given that your local technician reviews your PsyToolkit project.
Local psychology technicians:
- Edinburgh Campus – Yiannis (Ioannis) Argyropoulos
- Dubai Campus – Aman Key Yekani, Hajar
- Malaysia Campus – Zulkipli, Aisyah
Testable
Testable is an online experiment builder, survey platform and data collection tool. It has been approved by the Information Governance Team and IS for online research data collection.
It is user friendly and allows for fast development of psychological experiments
It has an extensive library of ready-made surveys and experiments but you may need to edit them to suit your requirements.
The Psychology department has a limited number of licenses. Please contact your local psychology technician for more information
Local psychology technicians:
It is user friendly and allows for fast development of psychological experiments
It has an extensive library of ready-made surveys and experiments but you may need to edit them to suit your requirements.
The Psychology department has a limited number of licenses. Please contact your local psychology technician for more information
Local psychology technicians:
- Edinburgh Campus – Yiannis (Ioannis) Argyropoulos
- Dubai Campus – Aman Key Yekani, Hajar
- Malaysia Campus – Zulkipli, Aisyah
NVivo
NVivo is a qualitative data analysis tool. It is used for Thematic Analysis and also for organising your data, whether this is text, audio (e.g. interviews), video or other formats.
You can download NVivo for home use for free by visiting the HWU’s NVivo page and by following the instructions in the same page.
If you have any issues downloading, installing or authorising your software you must contact ishelp@hw.ac.uk
You can download NVivo for home use for free by visiting the HWU’s NVivo page and by following the instructions in the same page.
If you have any issues downloading, installing or authorising your software you must contact ishelp@hw.ac.uk
SPSS
For quantitative data analysis you can use SPSS. It is provided for free by HWU.
Visit HWU’s SPSS page for information on how to download, install and activate SPSS for home use.
Visit HWU’s SPSS page for information on how to download, install and activate SPSS for home use.
Matlab
Matlab is a high level programming language. In psychological research you can use Matlab to build your experiment, collect data locally and analyse your data.
If you are not familiar with Matlab or you are not an experienced programmer, it is not a recommended application as it has a rather steep learning curve.
It is provided by HWU for free.
For instructions on how to download, install and activate Matlab visit HWU IT Essentials page.
If you are not familiar with Matlab or you are not an experienced programmer, it is not a recommended application as it has a rather steep learning curve.
It is provided by HWU for free.
For instructions on how to download, install and activate Matlab visit HWU IT Essentials page.
Software provided by HWU
If the application you are interested in using for your project is not listed above, you may want to visit HWU’s software page where you can find a list of other applications.