John Helveston

John Helveston | Using formr to create R-powered surveys with individualized feedback | RStudio

This talk demonstrates how the formr study framework extends the power and flexibility of R to surveys. Using R and RMarkdown code, researchers and teachers can use the formr platform to generate both simple surveys and complex studies with individualized feedback. The platform is built on a web-based application programming interface for R via OpenCPU, enabling complex features such as automated email and text message reminders, adaptive testing, graphical and interactive feedback, and integration with external data sources. In this talk, I introduce some of the formr basics and showcase two examples of how I have used it, including making conjoint surveys with randomized images and timed, randomized quizzes for my students.

About John: John Paul Helveston is an Assistant Professor in the Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Department at the George Washington University. He studies technological change, with a particular interest in accelerating the transition to environmentally sustainable and energy-saving technologies. His research centers around how consumer preferences, market dynamics, and policy affect the emergence of critical technologies, such as electric vehicles and solar energy. He is an expert on China’s rapidly emerging electric vehicle industry as well as the critical relationship between the US and China in developing and mass producing low carbon energy technologies. He applies an interdisciplinary approach to research, with expertise in discrete choice modeling and conjoint analysis as well as interview-based case studies. He has conducted extensive fieldwork in China, collaborating with colleagues at Tsinghua university, Beijing Normal University, and China’s State Information Center on past projects. He is a fluent speaker of Mandarin Chinese and also an award-winning swing dancer. John holds a Ph.D. and M.S. in Engineering and Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University and a B.S. in Engineering Science and Mechanics from Virginia Tech