For Participants

The SafeNights study is interested in learning more about alcohol drinking patterns and safety. To help researchers, eligible participants who choose to take part in the study will fill out 3 surveys over a period of about 2 weeks.

This research is about drinking alcohol and safety. The surveys will ask you about your alcohol use and other behaviors related to drinking. To participate you must be 21 or older.

Eligible participants can receive up to $80 in e-gift vouchers for completing 3 online surveys. The vouchers are sent within 3 business days of completing a survey.

We will ask for your email address and cell phone number so we can send you the survey links and vouchers. We will not store this information after the study is completed and will not use this information for any other purposes.

Eligible participants who enroll in the study will get a text message and an email when it’s time to take the next study survey. Reminders will be sent once each day, for up to 2 days, while the survey is available to fill out.

Participants have 3 days to fill out their survey. Because of the study protocols, participants are not able to fill out surveys after those 3 days. The reminder messages will let participants how much time they have left to fill out a survey.

Surveys can be taken online at any time that works best for you during the 3 days that they are available. Use the link from the text message or email to access the surveys.

The first survey takes about 20 minutes to fill out. The second and third survey each take about 15 minutes to fill out.

Please reach out to the SafeNights Study team at safenights@cumc.columbia.edu.

To protect participants’ privacy, we send encrypted email messages from the safenights@cumc.columbia.edu email address. The first time you get one, you’ll need to register with your name, create a password, and enter the validation code sent to your email from Proofpoint Encryption Registration. You can then use that information to view any additional emails that we send you. Please go to this link for more information.

Yes, eligible participants who enroll in the study will get electronic gift vouchers after filling out each survey as a token of appreciation for their time. Compensation is as follows: the first survey is $5, the second is $35, and the third is $40 – for a possible total of $80.

Study compensation may take up to 3 business days to be delivered to the email you provided while signing up for the study. Also, please make sure the email hasn’t been filtered into your junk or spam folder. If it has been more than 3 business days since you filled out a survey and you haven’t received your compensation, please reach out the study team at safenights@cumc.columbia.edu.

Some eligible participants may be asked about their interest in an extra part of data collection. This will include downloading the SafeNights GPS app for GPS location tracking. These participants will receive an email asking about their interest in participating.

Yes, participants who complete this extra part of the study will receive an $80 electronic gift card after filling out the third survey to thank them for their time. Compensation for the study surveys and app participation is as follows: the first survey is $5, the second survey is $35, and the third survey and app participation is $80 – for a possible total of $120.

Yes. Once enrolled in the study, participants will be asked to fill out the 3 study surveys. Choosing to participate or to not participate in the extra part of data collection does not affect a participant’s enrollment in the main study.

The app download and login information will be in the email invitation to join the extra part of study data collection.