Thank you for your interest in our research!
We are conducting a series of studies exploring how people understand and process words and sentences in Russian. If you’re a native speaker of Russian or someone learning it as a second language, you may be eligible to participate.
🗽 This page is for people who are able to travel to New York City (Manhattan or Flushing) to participate in person.
🌎 Not in New York but still want to participate? Click here to see how!
📋 Ready to get started? The first step is to complete a short Language Background Questionnaire.
📋 Click here to begin the Language Background Questionnaire
At the beginning of the questionnaire, you’ll be asked to provide your name and email address so we can contact you about participating.
⏱️ Time: The questionnaire takes about 3–5 minutes to complete.
📬 What happens next? After you submit the questionnaire, we’ll review your responses and contact you within 24 hours to let you know if you’re eligible. If you are, we’ll help you schedule Task 1 — an in-person session — and give you the option to choose between two locations.
After completing Task 1, if you decide to participate in Task 2, we’ll send you a separate link to the optional online reading study.
✅ Participation Steps at a Glance
- 📋 Fill out the Language Background Questionnaire
- 📬 Get a response within 24 hours to confirm eligibility
- 🏫 Schedule and attend the in-person Eye-Tracking session (Task 1) — receive $25
- 💻 Optionally complete the online Self-Paced Reading task (Task 2) — receive $10
- 💵 Earn up to $35 total for participating
What’s Involved
Time commitment:
Task 1 (in-person): approximately 45 minutes
Task 2 (online): approximately 45 minutes
Compensation:
$25 for completing Task 1 (required). If you complete Task 2 you’ll get an additional $10 for a total of $35.
Eligibility
To participate, you must:
- Be between 18 and 50 years old
- EITHER:
- Be a native speaker of Russian who was born and raised in a Russian-speaking country until at least age 18
- OR be a second language learner of Russian whose native language is English
- Be able to travel to one of the labs (for Task 1)
🎧 Eye-Tracking Study (Task 1)
What you’ll do: Listen to Russian sentences and match them to images on a screen — while we track your eye movements. Afterward, you’ll complete a short fill-in-the-blank activity to help us understand your level of Russian.
Location:
📍 The Graduate Center (Manhattan) or
📍 Queens College (Flushing)
Time: Approximately 45–60 minutes
Compensation: $25
💻 Self-Paced Reading Study (Task 2)
What you’ll do: Read Russian sentences one word at a time and rate how natural they sound.
Location: Online (Computer)
Time: Approximately 45 minutes
Compensation: $10
Questions?
If you’re unsure whether you qualify or want more information, feel free to reach out!
📍 The Graduate Center, CUNY & Queens College
📄 Want more details? You can read the full English Consent Form, which explains your rights and what to expect in the study.
📄 Printable version of the study info: Feel free to share it with anyone who might be interested in participating, or who knows someone who might be!
