Participate in a 15 minute study of Kindle users for a chance to win a Kindle

[swiftsam]

[Mods, please let me know if this is inappropriate solicitation, but I think it will be appealing to the community]

Hi MobileRead,

I am a PhD student at Carnegie Mellon University and I am running a study as part of my dissertation that needs current kindle users to participate.

Quick facts
Requirements:

• 18 years old or older
• Currently use some version of the kindle platform
• Fluent English speaker

Time:

• 15 minutes or less

Compensation:

• Entry into a lottery for a Kindle or Kindle touch (winner's choice) with special offers. Approximately 1/200 chance of winning.
• Some participants will also receive an e-book from Amazon depending on their decisions during the study.

Link:
Thanks very much to those who participated. The study has reached the desired number of participants, so I have removed the link. I'll post here with results and to answer questions when the analyses are complete. Please continue to refrain from discussing the details until then. Thank you!

Details
The study is an online survey and has been approved by the Carnegie Mellon University Institutional Review Board. I am not affiliated with Amazon.com in any way. The only identifiable information collected during the study are email addresses when optionally provided in order to enter the lottery or receive an e-book download. All responses will be anonymized and analyzed in aggregate.

Why am I a giving away a Kindle to people who already have one? I know you like them! If you win, you can either upgrade to the newest model or give it to a friend.

I am happy to discuss the purpose and results of the study by email and with the mobileread community once the study is complete. In the mean time, please don't discuss the details of the study here or with other people who may participate until the study is complete.

[DiapDealer]

Approximately 1/200 chance of winning.

Prescient mathmatics?

[swiftsam]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Prescient mathmatics?

I don't claim any special insight into probability, but I plan on allowing 200 people to participate. One of those people will be selected randomly to receive a new Kindle.

Let me know if I'm missing something deeper with respect to your comment.

[DiapDealer]

Let me know if I'm missing something deeper with respect to your comment.

I assure you I'm as shallow as they come. Just joshin' with you.

[nynaevelan]

never mind, I figured it out.

[swiftsam]

Originally Posted by nynaevelan

never mind, I figured it out.

Ah, nynaevelan figured it out, but others are probably wondering the same ... "which Kindle?"

The winner will receive their choice between:

Kindle with special offers ($79)
Kindle Touch with special offers ($99)

Sorry, Amazon's simple naming scheme makes it difficult to be clear about that.

[HarryT]

If this is a survey of Kindle owners, it seems a little odd to offer as a prize something that you know your participants already possess .

[swiftsam]

Originally Posted by HarryT

If this is a survey of Kindle owners, it seems a little odd to offer as a prize something that you know your participants already possess .

I tried to address this strangeness in the original post, but I do see the strangeness. I'm hoping a lot of people who have kindles would either be excited to upgrade to the newest generation, or have a friend or family member who keeps borrowing theirs too much and can now have their own!

[HarryT]

A fair point .

[Rob Lister]

having completed the study, i found the end of it suspicious enough that I decided to forgo both clicking the link and entering my email for the lottery (i wouldn't want another kindle anyway, honestly).

if it is legit, you have my honest answers though.

so as not to ruin your potentially honest survey, I'll reveal my suspicions to those that pm me.

[swiftsam]

I completely understand a healthy dose of suspiscion when dealing with strangers on the internet. Thank you for completing the study and respecting my request not to discuss details here that might threaten the scientific validity of the study.

I'm happy to provide any details I can to confirm my identity and the legitimacy of the study. As a start, I am listed here as a current PhD student on the Tepper School of Business website. The email listed there is the same one confirmed with my account here. I don't think I can make that public, but a mod could confirm it.

The domain referenced at the end of the study is cbdr-experiments.org which is registered under my name and hosted at a Carnegie Mellon University ip address. The "cbdr" refers to the Center for Behavioral Decision Research which also lists my name on their site.

Again, I understand and respect your skepticism, but I'm happy to share whatever information I can with interested potential participants who may be wary.

[RainingLemur]

I completed the survey. And, I must say, it's probably one of the more fun surveys I've taken in a while.

[Gazerwolf]

I was wondering when you will be picking the winner?...you don't say in this thread and I don't recall mention of it in the survey.

[swiftsam]

Originally Posted by Gazerwolf

I was wondering when you will be picking the winner?...you don't say in this thread and I don't recall mention of it in the survey.

That's a great question. I didn't specify a specific date because it depends on how quickly I can reach my target sample size. Once everyone has participated I'll do the drawing immediately. The study is roughly 1/3rd full after 24 hours. I anticipate it will be over within a week. I'll post here with updates if it goes longer than that.

Thanks for participating and for the helpful questions everyone!

[Shack70]

Did the survey