Testing mode — not for real participants

Research consent form

Title: Conversations with AI Systems on Everyday Topics

Principal Investigator: Dr. Cameron Jones, Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University

Key information

The information in this form is being used to seek your consent for a research study. Being in the study is voluntary; it is up to you.

This research is being done to find out how people interact with AI systems. You are eligible to participate because you are an adult (18 years or older), reside in the United States, and are proficient in English. Participation will last up to 30 minutes. Study procedures for this research include completing a pre-survey, engaging in one or more AI-based chat interactions on general topics, and completing a post-survey. You are free to skip over any particular question you do not wish to answer for any reason. You must be 18 years of age or older to participate in this study. At Stony Brook University, we plan to enroll 500 subjects in this study.

There is no direct benefit in participating in this research study. However, by participating you will have an engaging experience interacting with an AI system and contribute to research on human-AI interaction. The following risks/discomforts may occur as a result of your being in this study: you may experience mild discomfort if the AI presents viewpoints that differ from your own, or minor fatigue or frustration from answering questions or engaging in the chat. If you decide not to be in the research, your choices (if any) are to not participate.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to understand how people think about different topics and how they engage with AI-based conversational systems. The study focuses on how individuals interact with an AI model in a conversational setting and how they respond to different arguments. The findings will help improve understanding of human-AI interaction and inform the design of more effective AI systems.

Procedures

If you decide to be in this study, your participation will involve:

  • Informed consent: You will read and agree to this consent form before beginning the study.
  • Pre-survey: You will answer a brief set of questions about your opinions and, in some cases, general background information. This takes approximately 3–5 minutes.
  • Chat interactions: You may engage in one or two short conversations with an AI system about general topics. These interactions will take approximately 10–20 minutes in total.
  • Post-survey: You will answer follow-up questions about your opinions and your experience during the study. This takes approximately 3–5 minutes.
  • Debriefing: At the end of the study, you will receive a full explanation of the study’s purpose.

Total time commitment: Approximately 20–30 minutes, completed in a single online session.

Risks and discomforts

Participation in this study involves minimal risk, similar to everyday online activities such as completing surveys or engaging in conversations.

  • You may experience mild discomfort if the AI presents viewpoints that differ from your own.
  • You may experience minor fatigue or frustration from answering questions or participating in chat interactions.
  • There is a minimal risk of loss of confidentiality, which will be mitigated through de-identification and secure data storage.
  • You may skip any question or stop participation at any time without penalty.

Benefits

There is no direct benefit expected as a result of your being in this study. Your participation will contribute to scientific knowledge about human-AI interactions.

Payment to you

Participants will be compensated through the Prolific platform for completing the study. The payment will be $6. Compensation will be provided upon successful completion of the study and will be processed through Prolific within their standard timeframe. If you withdraw from the study before completing all sections, compensation may be prorated in accordance with Prolific’s policies.

Confidentiality

We will take steps to help ensure that all information collected from you is kept confidential. Your name, email, or other direct identifiers will not be collected by the research team. Instead, responses will be associated with a coded ID (e.g., Prolific ID). All study data will be stored in a secure, password-protected location on a local, encrypted device, and access will be limited to authorized members of the research team.

If any papers or presentations result from this research, only aggregate, de-identified data will be reported, and no information that could identify you will be shared.

To ensure that the study is conducted properly and that participants’ rights are protected, data may be reviewed by the research team, Stony Brook University’s Institutional Review Board, applicable institutional officials, and certain federal offices (e.g., the Office for Human Research Protections).

Although we do not expect participants to share sensitive personal information, if you indicate intent to harm yourself or others, or if there are concerns about the safety of a child, we may be required to report this information. In rare cases, a court may require access to research data.

To maintain data quality and integrity, responses may be screened for suspicious or non-genuine activity (e.g., duplicate entries or automated responses). Such responses may be excluded from the study, and compensation may be withheld in accordance with Prolific’s policies.

Costs to you

There are no foreseeable costs to you for participating in this research study. The study is conducted entirely online and requires no travel.

Alternatives

Your alternative to being in this study is to simply not participate.

In case of injury

This study involves no physical procedures, and the risk of physical injury is minimal. However, if you experience any distress as a result of being in this study, please contact Tina Behzad at tina.behzad@stonybrook.edu or Dr. Cameron Jones at Cameron.jones@stonybrook.edu. You and/or your insurance company will be responsible for payment of any resulting treatment and/or hospital stay.

Consequences of withdrawing

You may withdraw from the study at any time without penalty by exiting the survey. If you withdraw before completing all parts of the study, compensation may be prorated in accordance with Prolific’s policies. Partial data collected up to the point of withdrawal may be retained and used in the analysis unless you specifically request that your data be deleted at the time of withdrawal.

Removal from study

You may be removed from the study if you do not complete the required study procedures or if technical issues prevent your data from being recorded. Responses that show evidence of low-quality or non-genuine participation (e.g., failed attention checks or duplicate entries) may also be excluded. The research team may end the study at any time.

Information about data

Identifiers might be removed from your identifiable private information and, after such removal, the information may be used for future research studies or distributed to another investigator for future research studies without additional informed consent from you or your legally authorized representative.

The research team will not collect direct identifiers such as your name or email address as part of the study dataset. Participants are identified only through anonymized platform IDs (e.g., Prolific IDs), which will be separated from study data and replaced with random codes prior to analysis whenever feasible.

This study is conducted through a secure online research platform hosted by the research team. Study data, including survey responses and chat transcripts, will be stored on password-protected and encrypted systems accessible only to authorized members of the research team.

Some participants will interact with external AI systems through a secure server-side API integration using the OpenRouter platform, which routes requests to language models such as GPT-5.5 and Kimi 2.6. Participant conversations may be temporarily transmitted through OpenRouter and the external model providers solely for the purpose of generating responses during the study. Participants’ browsers do not communicate directly with these providers. Because requests are sent server-side, participant IP addresses are not intentionally transmitted by the participant-facing application to OpenRouter or the model providers, although standard server/network logs associated with the research server infrastructure may exist as part of normal internet operations.

The research team will configure these services to opt out of prompt logging, storage, and use of conversations for AI training wherever these options are available. Participants should not include sensitive, private, or personally identifying information in their chat responses. If the research team identifies personally identifying information in study responses or chat logs, it will be removed or redacted prior to analysis whenever feasible.

We want to make sure that this study is being done correctly and that your rights and welfare are being protected. For this reason, we may share study data with the study team, Stony Brook University’s Institutional Review Board, applicable institutional officials, and certain federal offices, including the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP). However, if you tell us you are going to hurt yourself, hurt someone else, or if we believe the safety of a child is at risk, we may have to report this.

If there is suspicious activity associated with your online participation, your responses may be excluded from the study. This is done to prevent bots or fraudulent responses from interfering with the research. Multiple entries are not permitted.

You have the right to change your mind and leave the study at any time without giving any reason and without penalty. You can print a copy of this consent form to keep. You do not lose any of your legal rights by agreeing to participate in this study.

Rights as a research subject

  • Your participation in this study is voluntary. You do not have to be in this study if you don’t want to be.
  • You have the right to change your mind and leave the study at any time without giving a reason, and without penalty.
  • Any new information that may make you change your mind about being in this study will be given to you.
  • You will get a copy of this consent form to keep.
  • You do not lose any of your legal rights by signing this consent form.

Questions about the study and your rights as a research subject

  • If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints about the study, you may contact Tina Behzad at tina.behzad@stonybrook.edu or Dr. Cameron Jones at Cameron.jones@stonybrook.edu.
  • If you have any questions about your rights as a research subject or if you would like to obtain information or offer input, you may contact the Stony Brook University Research Subject Advocate, Ms. Lu-Ann Kozlowski, BSN, RN, (631) 632-9036, or email at lu-ann.kozlowski@stonybrook.edu.
  • Visit Stony Brook University’s Community Outreach page, for more information about participating in research, frequently asked questions, and an opportunity to provide feedback, comments, or ask questions related to your experience as a research subject.

Version date: 8/1/2024