GESIS AppKit - Documentation & User Manual
0. citation
If you use the GESIS AppKit in your research and find this manual helpful, we would be very pleased to receive a citation. Citations help us to track the use of the AppKit in order to continuously finance the service and offer it free of charge.
APA 7
Wieland, M., Simon, L., Kohne, J., Rahnke-Otto, L. (2024). GESIS AppKit - Documentation & User Manual. Available at https://gesiscss.github.io/AppKit_Documentation/. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14056168
BibTeX
@manual{wieland2024appkit,
author = {Wieland, Mareike and Simon, Lara and Kohne, Julian and Rahnke-Otto, Lukas},
title = {GESIS AppKit - Documentation \& User Manual},
year = {2024},
note = {\url{https://appkit.gesis.org/manual/}},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14056168}
}1. Introduction to the AppKit
To make it as easy as possible for you to get started with the GESIS AppKit, we have compiled all the essential information for you.
1.1. What is the GESIS AppKit?
The Gesis AppKit provides you with a comprehensive data collection infrastructure for survey and (prospectively) sensor data on smartphones.It includes an interactive dashboard for study design and participant management as well as the GESIS SMART App for Android- and iOS devices, which your study participants can install via the Google Playstore or the Appstore.
The GESIS AppKit primarly enables the creation of mobile surveys with compley, time-based playout schedules, supporting the implementation of intensive longitudinal studies such as Ambulatory Assessment, Experience Sampling, or Momentary Assessments.
Further Information on the AppKit as a service can be found hier
1.2. About this manual
This manual is intendend to support you using the GESIS AppKit. It describes all the functionalities of the GESIS AppKit, organized according to the corresponding menu items in the web portal. Please pay particular attention to the following elements:
The GESIS AppKit is currently under development. With this category we emphasise settings that may not be self-explanatory and could potentially lead to error messages - although this is (currently) not always the case.
This category highlights settings that must be followed precisely when implementing your own study with the GESIS AppKit to avoid technical errors during data collection.
Here, we explain the benefits of certain settings and provide further recommendations for successful data collection.
This manual is a work-in-progress. We endeavour to keep the manual up to date. If anything is unclear or incorrectly described, please let us know at appkit@gesis.org.
1.3. Current Issues and Fixes
The GESIS AppKit offers the option to create new items directly within a container (instead of first creating the item individually and then bundling it into a container). If you use this feature, please be aware of the following known bug: There is no error message if a variable name is already in use. If you use the same variable name again, saving will overwrite the original version. This is particularly critical if you unintentionally modify items that are already bundled in another container.
2. Access to the GESIS AppKit
2.1. Register:
The GESIS AppKit is provided free of charge for research purposes to people working at a public research institutions. To verify your affiliation, please use your institutional email address when signing up.
If you do not belong to this group but are still interested in using the GESIS AppKit, please contact us to discuss possible options. Send an email to appkit@gesis.org, including your role and a brief description of how you intend to use the platform. If your registration is approved, you will receive an email with your personal login credentials.
2.2. Log in:
As soon as you have received your access data, you can access the GESIS AppKit Dashboard via your browser
Log in with your e-mail address and password
3. Project Overview:
On the homepage you have an overview of all your projects. You can create a new project here:
Use “create project” to set up a new project.
You must provide a project name at least one keyword for the project
Keywords refer to the research topic of your project. These keywords can be accessed by us and are used to monitor how the GESIS AppKit is being utilized. Additionally, you can use keywords as labels to better organize your projects.
Click “create” to finalize the project setup.
Once the project is created, you can open it by clicking on the project name.
You can edit project properties at any time using the pencil icon.
Click the trash can icon to delete the project. To confirm deletion, re-enter the project name.
Deleted projects are not archived and cannot be restored!
4. Project Settings
Under the menu item “Project Settings” you will find various options for customising the project to your needs. After your study participants have logged into your project in the app using Code, they can see the settings made here in the app!
These properties can be changed retrospectively, i.e. even after participants have logged into your study/project. Depending on the device and operating system, however, the correct display may require participants to log in again.
4.1. Layout
Under Layout, you can assign your project a meaningful name, select a color, and choose an icon.
Project name:
Set the color that will highlight action fields in the app. While you can choose any color, we recommend avoiding very bright colors (e.g neon yellow or neon green)
Choosing a suitable color can sometimes be difficult. Please ensure that the selected color is readable in both light and dark modes of the app. Color codes that we have found to work well include #…, #…, and #…
Icon: Upload a logo for your research project. The logo will be displayed at the top of the app’s home screen for participants after they sign in to your project. It is important to note that the choice of this image does not alter the app’s tile image in the app menu, as it remains the same for all research participants across all projects.
The icons must be .png files with exactly 1024 x 1024 pixels
4.2. In-App Texts
In the “In-App Texts” section, you must customize various texts that are displayed directly to participants in the app.
You cannot leave this field empty
Login-Text
This text is shown in the app alongside the personal participants code in two places: first, immediately after logging into your study, and second, in the “Your Participation Code” menu at the bottom left of the home screen. Use this text to explain the functions of the login code and provide study-specific information.
Example: This is your personal participation code for using the app. Please take a screenshot or keep the code safely outside your smartphone. You will need this code to log in to the study again.
Home Text
This text will be permanently displayed to the study participants on the home screen of the app. You can customise the text to suit your needs, for example, to provide information on how to use the app or the study process.
You can use emojis to personalise your message. For example, you can copy emojis from this page https://getemoji.com/ and paste them directly into the text fields of the GESIS AppKit.
Welcome to our study! 👋
You can access the questionnaires via the inbox 📋. If one or more questionnaires are unanswered, this is indicated by the small number in the inbox. We ask you to always answer these surveys promptly.
Thank you for supporting our research through your participation 👍!
Push Text
The GESIS SMART app sends active push notifications when a new questionnaire is ready to be completed. However, participants will need to allow push notifications depending on their device settings. Use this text to explain why these permissions are necessary for the success of the study.
Example: Please allow push notifications to be sent when a new questionnaire is available for you. This type of notification is very important for our research.
Inbox title and text
The Inbox is the place where the questionnaires are made available. You can customise the name of the inbox and use the inbox field to provide study-specific information.
Your questionnaires are waiting here! ✍️
If it says “Answers” to the right of the questionnaire, then you have not yet completed this questionnaire and are ready to start. If you have already completed the questionnaire, you will not be able to open it anymore.
4.3. Privacy
To finish, define the privacy policy for your project under the Privacy tab. This will be displayed to the study participants when they first open the app and can be accessed later in the app via the “Privacy” menu item.
It is important that you create an imprint so that your participants can identify the responsible institutions and individuals.
5. Manage Participants
The GESIS AppKit allows you to uniquely identify your study participants via the “Personal Participant Code”. The “Personal Participants Code” can be viewed by study participant after logging into the app for the first time in the menu item “Your Participant Code”. Study participants can also use their personal participant code to log back into the project if they intentionally or unintentionally log out during the study period. The personal participant code is also part of the data export.
The GESIS AppKit offers two options for the initial login of participants (onboarding) to your study, which allow participants to be easily linked to different recruitment arms/locations or other parts of the study.
5.1. Project-specific login codes
Study participants who have installed the GESIS SMART app need to be assigned to the project you created in the GESIS AppKit Dashboard. This is done using a project-specific login code that participants enter when they first open the app. The GESIS AppKit distinguishes between two types of codes: generic login codes and personalized login codes.
5.1.1. Generic Login Code
The generic login code is used to assign participants who are not known to you in advance to your research project.
When this code is entered in the app, a unique personal participant code (PPC) is automatically generated. This participant code can later be used to log back into the project.
Clicking the “Create Generic Login Code” button will take you to an input form.
Here, you can enter any code of your choice. This code can include letters and numbers. If the code is already in use by another project, you will receive an error message.
You must also specify the maximum number of participants who can log into your project using this code. This number can be adjusted later if needed.
Finally, you can set the code to active or inactive. An active generic code allows additional participants. An active generic code allows additional participants to log into your study using this code (as long as the maximum number has not been reached). If you set the code to “inactive”, no new participants can join the study using this code. However, participants who have already registered will not be affected. They will remain logged in, continue receiving questionnaires (if planned), and can log in using their personal participant code.
You can create as many generic codes for your study as needed.
A generic login code could be used to recruit customers of two organic stores directly into the app via on-site posters. In this case, you would create two generic codes (e.g., BIOLADEN1, BIOLADEN2) and display them on the respective posters. This allows you to later identify in the dataset which participants are customers of which organic store. You can also use these codes for grouping purposes, e.g. to distribute specific questionnaire variants only to this group.
5.1.2. Personalized Login Code (coming soon)
The personalized login code is used to assign pre-identified participants to your research project.
The personalized login code corresponds to the “Personal Participant Code”.
Using this option generates a specific number of personal participant codes that are reserved for your project. Unlike generic login codes, the assignment of personal participant codes to your specific project happens seamlessly in the background.
Click on the “Create Group of Personalized Login Codes” button to access an input form.
Here, give the group of codes to be generated a meaningful name. This name is only visible to you and can later be used for distributing questionnaires.
Select the number of codes to be generated.
Decide whether the group of personalized codes should be set to “active” or “inactive”. An active group of personalized login codes allows participants with a code from this group to log into your study. If the group is set to “inactive”, no additional participants can initially log into the study. However, already registered participants are not affected: They will not be logged out, will continue to receive questionnaires (if planned), and can log in using their “Personal Participant Code” (identical to the personalized login code).
Finally, export the group of personalized login codes by clicking XX (to be adjusted once the layout is finalized).
You can create as many groups of personalized codes as needed for your study.
A personalized login code could be used when inviting participants from an existing panel to take part in an app-based study and when you want to link previous participant data with the new data to be collected (subject to consent in accordance with data protection regulations). In this case, it is recommended to first generate and export the required number of personalized login codes using the GESIS AppKit. These codes can often be imported into your survey tool, allowing you to individually assign a personalized login code to your already known study participants. In this case, you should ensure that the assignment of the personalized code is saved in the data export from your survey tool.
5.2. Monitoring Participants
Under this tab, you will find a dashboard providing an overview of participants who have successfully logged into your study/project.
The first column displays the “Personal Participant Code”, which uniquely identifies participants across your entire study.
The second column shows the method by which the participants joined your study. For a generic login code, the name of the specific generic login code will be listed here. For a personalized login, you will see the name of the group of personalized login codes you assign when creating the codes (see Section 5.1.)
The third column shows the registration timestamp as a combination of date and time.
The table is sorted in reverse chronological order, with the most recently registered participant listed at the top. Repeated logins using the Personal Participant Code are not included in this table.
6. Creating Questionnaires
In this menu, you can create question/items, group them into questionnaires, and set the conditions for sending individual items (containers).
At this time, the AppKit does not have a codebook implemented. It is not possible to export all created items from the GESIS AppKit. To ensure that during later data analysis, you can accurately match the exact question texts, answer options, and no-response options to their numerical values, we recommend documenting all inputs outsde of the GESIS AppKit, for example, in a Word or Excel file.
6.1. Creating
The GESIS AppKit allows you to create questionnaire items of the following types: “Single Choice” and “Multiple Choice”, “Rating Scales/Likert Scales”, “Free Text Entry”, and “Numerical Input”. Additionally, you can enable participants to upload images (“File Upload”) and create simple branching logic (YES/NO).
The created items can be grouped using the “Container” item type, preparing them for distribution.
6.1.1. Creating Items
Here, you can create various question types. You can either create individuals questions or group questions within a Container.
Likert Scale:
Follow these steps:
Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
Formulate the Item Text. You can make formatting changes by using the options provided. Entered line breaks are adopted in the displays in the app.
Set the numerical scale range. Enter the lowest value under “Minimum” and the highest value under “Maximum”. For example, for a 5-point, enter “1” as the minimum and “5” as the maximum.
Optionally, label up to three scale points. Remember to keep these short so that they can be displayed well even on small screens.
Add as many no-response options as needed. These will be visually separated beneath the question. Important: Assign negative values to no-response options. The value “zero” is not allowed.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
If an error occurs while saving, it is more reliable to restart the item creation dialog by selecting “Create Questionnaire” to begin a new entry.
Single and Multiple Choice:
Follow these steps:
Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
Formulate the Item Text. You can make formatting changes by using the options provided. Entered line breaks are adopted in the displays in the app.
Create Answer Options. Assign a (positive) numerical value and a label for each answer option. You can reorder the options using drag-and drop and delete them using the trash icon. If necessary, adjust the numerical values manually.
Add as many no-response options as needed. These will be visually separated beneath the question. Important: Assign negative values to no-response options. The value “zero” is not allowed.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
If an error occurs while saving, it is more reliable to restart the item creation dialog by selecting “Create Questionnaire” to begin a new entry.
Open-Ended Question:
Follow these steps:
Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
Formulate the Item Text. You can make formatting changes by using the options provided. Entered line breaks are adopted in the displays in the app.
Add as many no-response options as needed. These will be visually separated beneath the question. Important: Assign negative values to no-response options. The value “zero” is not allowed.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
If an error occurs while saving, it is more reliable to restart the item creation dialog by selecting “Create Questionnaire” to begin a new entry.
Numeric Query:
Follow these steps:
Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
Formulate the Item Text. You can make formatting changes by using the options provided. Entered line breaks are adopted in the displays in the app.
Specify the Range of Numeric Values. Indicate the range the range of numeric values that can be entered.
Add as many no-response options as needed. These will be visually separated beneath the question. Important: Assign negative values to no-response options. The value “zero” is not allowed.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
If an error occurs while saving, it is more reliable to restart the item creation dialog by selecting “Create Questionnaire” to begin a new entry.
6.1.2. Uploading a Photo
Since the upload may fail, it is recommended to use no-response options. This question type allows participants to upload a photo within a questionnaire. They can directly access their camera, take a photo, and upload it immediately. Alternatively, they can upload a photo from their gallery. In both cases, users will be prompted to grant the app the necessary permissions.
Follow these steps:
Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
Formulate the Item Text. You can make formatting changes by using the options provided. Entered line breaks are adopted in the displays in the app.
Add as many no-response options as needed. These will be visually separated beneath the question. Important: Assign negative values to no-response options. The value “zero” is not allowed.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
If an error occurs while saving, it is more reliable to restart the item creation dialog by selecting “Create Questionnaire” to begin a new entry.
If you want to allow participants to upload multiple photos within a container, create a new item for each upload. If you use the same item multiple times within a container, it may prevent subsequent uploads from working correctly.
Since both technical and user-side issues can occur with file uploads, it is advisable to differentiate missing values with no-response options. For example, offer both the option “I do not wish to upload a photo” and the option “A technical issue occurred during upload”.
Branching with Continue-Stop
The Continue-Stop element allows you to create simple branching in your questionnaires. This question type automatically activates a Yes/No option. If “No” is selected, the questionnaire is terminated. If “Yes” is selected, it continues. Formulate the text as a Yes-No question accordingly.
Follow these steps:
Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
Write the question text in a Yes-No format. You can format it using the available options. Line breaks you enter will be preserved in the app’s display.
No no-response option can be selected for this question type.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
If an error occurs while saving, it is more reliable to restart the item creation dialog by selecting “Create Questionnaire” to begin a new entry.
6.1.3. Grouping Items (Container)
The Container item type is used to group individual items into questionnaires. You can use the container function to thematically group individual items (especially Likert-type items), as well as to assemble items, containerized items, or questions into questionnaires. This makes it easier to send them later.
Follow these steps:
- Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
The GESIS AppKit offers the option to create new items directly within a container (instead of first creating the item individually and then bundling it into a container). If you use this feature, please be aware of the following known bug: There is no error message if a variable name is already in use. If you use the same variable name again, saving will overwrite the original version. This is particularly critical if you unintentionally modify items that are already bundled in another container.
Select “Create New Item” to directly create a single item and add it to this container.
Select “Add Existing Item” to add a previously created item or container.
If multiple items are selected, you can change their order using drag and drop.
If you want to ask questions repeatedly within a container, you must create the element again. This is particularly important for uploading photos and free-text entries.
Note that items placed after the “Continue-Stop” item type will only be shown to participants who answer the question with “Yes”.
Click the trash bin icon to remove items.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
If an error occurs while saving, it is more reliable to restart the item creation dialog by selecting “Create Questionnaire” to begin a new entry.
7. Connecting to External Surveys
With the “External Survey” item type, you can redirect your participants to external surveys. To do this, you will need a link to the external survey. To do this, you will need a link to the external survey that includes a URL parameter to pass the individual participant code from the GESIS AppKit to the external survey tool. Your external survey must be configured in such as way that the participant code passed through the URL parameter is saved in the dataset of the external survey tool.
To use this item type in the AppKit, follow these steps:
Select a unique variable name to serve as the Item ID in the data export. If the name is already in use, the GESIS AppKit will display a corresponding warning message.
Formulate the Item Text. You can make formatting changes by using the options provided. Entered line breaks are adopted in the displays in the app.
Important: This item type must be placed at the end of your survey, as the survey will be terminated once your participants click the link.
Click “Save”. If needed, continue creating mire items or questions by selecting “Create Questionnaire” in the “Create” menu again.
Participants must accept to leave the GESIS SMART App and be redirected to the external survey tool when clicking the link.
The AppKit supports integration with external survey tools such as Unipark, LimeSurvey, Qualtrics, and SoSci Survey. In order for the surveys to be correctly linked and the data to be consistently exported, a URL parameter must be added to the link of the external survey tool, and the external survey must be configured to store the data passed through the parameter in the external survey tool’s dataset.
The formatting of the URL parameter is specific to each survey tool. This means the link formatting must be adjusted individually for each tool. You can find additional guidance in the documentation of your external survey tool.
The GESIS SMART app automatically appends the participant code to the link of the external survey tool. You only need to specify the link, including the URL parameter, in the item tyoe.
The general structure for creating URL parameter is as follows:
First parameter: Introduced with
?[name]=Additional parameters: Appended with
&[name]=
This structure is crucial for correct integration with all survey tools. For a survey link with the following structure:
www.externes-tool.de/survey-123456/you could, for example, add a URL parameter with the name ‘id’ as follows:
www.externes-tool.de/survey-123456/?id=To pass the value ‘abcdef’ you can then append it to the parameter:
www.externes-tool.de/survey-123456/?id=abcdefAdditional parameters can be added to pass another value via URL parameters, for example the parameter ‘group’ with value ‘condition1’:
www.externes-tool.de/survey-123456/?id=abcdef&group=condition1The GESIS SMART app automatically adds the participant code to the link of the external survey tool. You only need to enter the link including the URL parameter in the item type. For example:
www.externes-tool.de/survey-123456/?id=It is important that the ‘open’ URL parameter is at the end of the link so that the participant code is appended correctly. To pass the value ‘abcdef’ while the group parameter is also present, the link should therefore be formatted as follows:
www.externes-tool.de/survey-123456/?group=condition1&id=In order for the participant code to be saved correctly by the external survey tool in the respective data set, the survey must be configured accordingly. In the following we describe the configuration for the tools in Unipark, LimeSurvey, Qualtrics and SoSci Survey.
7.1. Integration with Unipark
- Project Properties: Navigate to Project Properties and select User-defined variables
Number of URL Parameters: Specify the required number of URL parameters
Create Parameter: Click on Labels and Data Type (also in the User-defined variables section) to adjust the properties of the URL parameter
- Each added parameter is assigned an alphabetic value in the link and is listed in the Unipark survey dataset under a specific name. In the example above, the parameter is stored in the dataset under the name ‘ppred’ and passed through the link via the parameter ‘a’
Insert Link into AppKit:
- Customize the survey link for the AppKit by appending the URL parameter you created.
An example:
Survey link:
https://www.unipark.de/uc/gesis_app_kit/f79f/Survey link with a created URL parameter:
https://www.unipark.de/uc/gesis_app_kit/f79f/?a=Here, “a” is the parameter that you create yourself. This is the link you insert as a link in the corresponding item type.
The GESIS SMART App adds the correct value for the individual participant code to the link after deployment for each participant. For example. a participant with the participant code Test1234 would receive the following link:
https://www.unipark.de/uc/gesis_app_kit/f79f/?a=Test1234In the Unipark dataset, the value Test1234 will then be stored under the name p_0001. The datasets collected via Unipark and the AppKit can therefore be linked with each other.
7.2. Integration with LimeSurvey
After you have created all the required questions for your questionnaire in LimeSurvey, add a parameter question.
To do this, insert an additional question with the same name as the parameter in the link.
Select “Short free text” as the question type.
Make sure that the question is hidden. You can set this under “Display” when creating the question.
Next, go to the “Panel Integration” tab in the Survey Menu.
There, set the hidden question as the parameter.
- You can now insert the link, including your parameter, into the AppKit.
Since you can define the name of your parameter yourself, an example link for the AppKit could look like this:
An example:
Survey link:
https://appkittesting.limesurvey.net/195835?lang=enSurvey link with a created URL parameter:
https://appkittesting.limesurvey.net/195835?lang=en&appkit_id=Here, appkit_id is the parameter you defined yourself. The hidden question that stores the parameter value in the dataset must therefore also be named appkit_id. This is the link you insert into the AppKit as a link in the corresponding item type.
A participant with the AppKit ID Test1234 would receive the following link:
https://appkittesting.limesurvey.net/195835?lang=en&appkit_id=Test12347.3. Integration with SoSci Survey
Create your questionnaire and then open the Survey Project.
The generated link does not contain any parameters by default.
When inserting it into the AppKit, manually add the first parameter to the link.
In this case, the parameter is
?r=, as SoSci Survey uses the parameterrfor forwarding by default.
Check the link: The complete link now includes the parameter, which is automatically supplemented by our app with the corresponding participant code for each study participant.
An example:
Survey link:
https://www.soscisurvey.de/appkit_test/ Survey link with the created URL parameter:
https://www.soscisurvey.de/appkit_test/?r= Here, r is the parameter that SoSci Survey has predefined for forwarding. This is the link you insert into the AppKit as a link in the corresponding item type. A participant with the AppKit ID Test1234would receive the following linK.
https://www.soscisurvey.de/appkit_test/?r=Test1234 7.4. Integration with Qualtrics
Go to Survey Flow
Add a new element and select Embedded Data
- Under add a new Field, type the name of your parameter and press Enter
- Move the element with the embedded data to the beginning of your survey to ensure that the parameter is written to the datasetset tight at the start of the survey. This is helpful for later analysis of dropout rates.
Since you can name the parameter yourself, manually add this parameter as the past part of your survey link.
An example:
Survey link:
https://qualtricsxmsqcvms5dr.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_82ht0lZpCka1zMO Survey link with the created URL parameter:
https://qualtricsxmsqcvms5dr.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_82ht0lZpCka1zMO?userid= Here, userid is the parameter you have defined yourself. This is the link you insert into the AppKit as a link in the corresponding item type. A participant with the AppKit ID Test1234would receive the following link:
https://qualtricsxmsqcvms5dr.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_82ht0lZpCka1zMO?userid=Test1234 8. Sending Questionnaires
In this menu, you can schedule the distribution of the previously created items and/ or containers (referred to as “questionnaire” hereafter). The following time options are available for sending:
- Now: Sends a questionnaire immediately after being published.
- Directly after the first login: Sends a questionnaire immediately after a study participant logs into the app for the first time.
- At specific time(s): Sends a questionnaire (once or multiple times) at fixed or random times, as combination of date and time
For all questionnaires, you can specify which groups of participants should receive them.
8.2.1. Sending Now
Follow these steps:
- Give the questionnaire a title. This title will be displayed to participants in the app.
You can use emojis in the title. This can make communication with participants more personal or increase the recognition value of a specific questionnaire in the inbox. You can find suitable emojis, for example, here: https://getemoji.com/
- Select the item to be sent. You can choose individual items or items bundled into containers.
- Choose the group of access codes that should receive this questionnaire. For more information see 5.1. Project-specific login codes
- Under “Timing” , select the “Send Now” option.
- Save the questionnaire. You can change the settings as long as the questionnaire is not published.
- Publish the questionnaire using the “Publish” button that appears after saving. The questionnaire will only be sent after publishing. Once published, changes to the settings are no longer possible.
8.2.5. Send Immediately After First Login.
Follow these steps:
- Give the questionnaire a title. This title will be displayed to participants in the app.
You can use emojis in the title. This can make communication with participants more personal or increase the recognition value of a specific questionnaire in the inbox. You can find suitable emojis, for example, here: https://getemoji.com/
- Select the item to be sent. You can choose individual items or items bundled into containers.
- Choose the group of access codes that should receive this questionnaire. For more information see 5.1. Project-specific login codes
- Under “Timing” , select the “Send Immediately After First Login” option.
- Save the questionnaire. You can change the settings as long as the questionnaire is not published.
- Publish the questionnaire using the “Publish” button that appears after saving. The questionnaire will only be sent after publishing. Once published, changes to the settings are no longer possible.
8.2.3. Send at Specific Time(s)
Follow these steps:
- Give the questionnaire a title. This title will be displayed to participants in the app.
You can use emojis in the title. This can make communication with participants more personal or increase the recognition value of a specific questionnaire in the inbox. You can find suitable emojis, for example, here: https://getemoji.com/
- Select the item to be sent. You can choose individual items or items bundled into containers.
- Choose the group of access codes that should receive this questionnaire. For more information see 5.1. Project-specific login codes
- Under “Timing”, select the “Send at Specific Time(s)” option.
- Start: Choose one of these options…
- Fixed Date: Choose the desired date using the calender function.
- X Days After Login: Set how many days after the first login the questionnaire should be sent. Choose “0” if the questionnaire should be sent on the day of the first login.
- Notifies: Choose one of the options…
- Fixed Time: Choose the desired time. Any time can be selected by typing it in the field
- At Random Times:
- Number of Times: Choose how many times the questionnaire should be sent on the chosen day.
- Minimum Distance: Set how many minutes at least should pass between two questionnaires being sent.
- Not Before: Set the earliest time the questionnaire should be sent.
- Not After: Set the latest time the questionnaire should be sent.
- Repeats: Choose whether and, if so, at which interval the questionnaire should be repeated.
- Repeat Interval (Y): Set the interval. For daily repetition, for example, enter “1”, for repetition every second day, enter “2”, or for weekly repetition , enter “7”.
- Ends: Set whether the repetitions should end on a specific date or after a certain number.
- Start: Choose one of these options…
- Save the questionnaire. You can change the settings as long as the questionnaire is not published.
- Publish the questionnaire using the “Publish” button that appears after saving. The questionnaire will only be sent after publishing. Once published, changes to the settings are no longer possible.
8.2.4. Dashboard of All Created and/or Sent Questionnaires
On the “Send” page, all scheduled questionnaires are displayed. On the right, you can see which group of participants the questionnaire is being/will be sent to. You will also see the status of the questionnaire: - Not Published: After saving the questionnaire under “Add Questionnaire”, it will appear in the list. By clicking on the entry, you can access the settings and make changes. - Published: After publishing the questionnaire, no further changes can be made. Questionnaires with this status will be sent to the selected participants. - Cancelled.
Next to the chosen title of the questionnaire, you will see a summary of the selected sendning plan. Click on an entry to determine the questionnaire ID. This is needed for exporting the corresponding questionnaire under “Export Data”.
8.2.5. Group-Based Sending
When sending the questionnaires, you can choose which participants the questionnaire should be sent to. You can select from:
- All participants
- Groups defined by generic codes
- Groups defined by personalized codes
- Individually defined groups (coming soon)
9. Exporting the Data
Once you have collected all the data, you can export it as a .csv file. You can also export questionnaires during data collection without affecting the further data gathering process:
- Open the “Export” menu.
- Start a new export by selecting the “New Export” button in the top right corner.
- Enter the unique questionnaire ID. You can find this ID in the list of planned and sent questionnaires under “Send,” by clicking on the corresponding entry in the list (see also section: 8. Sending Questionnaires).
- Click “Create.” The export will be generated (progress bar displayed in percentage). Once the export is generated, a green check mark will appear in the “Download” column. Click on the check mark to complete the export.
- A completed export will be indicated in the list by a paperclip icon. Click the paperclip to download the export.
- For a quick export, the .csv files are packaged in a TAR file. This needs to be extracted locally. For Windows 10, use WinZip or a WinZip alternative (e.g., 7-zip). From Windows 11, the format is automatically supported.
- If the downloaded questionnaire contained photo uploads, these photos will be exported directly and stored in the “files” folder. The filename is used for matching the photos to their corresponding entries in the questionnaire.
10. Incentives for Participants
The GESIS AppKit is currently under development, and the incentive function is still in a basic stage.
- The GESIS AppKit allows you to send voucher codes to individual participants.
- To determine which participants qualify for rewards, you need to check the data exports.
- Voucher codes must be purchased in advance, for example, from Amazon, Apple, or Google.
- Currently, there is no option to send multiple voucher codes to multiple participants at once.
Before sending incentives, activate the bonus module in the In-App Texts tab. Participants will only receive voucher codes if this module is activated.
11. Overview of Survey Items
In this chapter, you will find a guide on creating and displaying survey items in the AppKit. For each item type, we will first show you how to create and configurate the item in the AppKit. Then, you will see how the item is displayed for the participants. This overview is designed to help you become familiar with how the AppKit works. To explore the AppKit yourself, you can use the code “DEMOCODE” to log into the app and tray out all the features directly.
Download GESIS Smart:
Link PlayStore: https://play.google.com/store/search?q=gesis%20smart&c=apps&hl=gsw
Link AppStore: https://apps.apple.com/de/app/gesis-smart/id6479244351
12. Imprint and Data Protection
The AppKit is a research infrastructure of GESIS-Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences. More information about data protection and the institute’s imprint can be found at the following links: