Issue: The participant is not receiving survey notifications 

Click here for the correct procedure to follow when resolving any issue



  1. Verify that the surveys have been assigned correctly
    1. Check the assignment's start and end dates. 
    2. Be sure a survey has not been assigned more than once with the same schedule type.
    3. Be sure the survey in question has not been assigned more than once in the same time frame.
  2. Make sure the participant has the most recent version of the app More
  3. Allow the app to run in the background. Do not force close the app after completing the surveys. Phones will de-prioritize infrequently used apps and this restricts mEMA's ability to send notifications.
  4. Allow all permissions when downloading the app; location and sensor data must be allowed in order for the app to function properly. This information is not collected or used unless the researcher has enabled that option.
  5. Check the My Assessments page on the app for the correct list of surveys. 
    1. If they see the "mEMA Demo Survey" then they have not synced with their mobile code.
    2. Press UPLOAD (Android) or SYNCHRONIZE (iPhone) again, with a strong internet connection and wait for the yellow bar to completely cross the screen. 
  6. Check that the schedule has been fully downloaded to the app
    1. On the website, select "See all instances" in the participant's User Settings/Configure Momentary parameters window.
    2. Press download on the app to download the change.
    3. Press the title of the survey on the My Assessments screen on the app and you will see the schedule of upcoming alerts. Verify that it matches their schedule online.
  7. Verify Notifications are turned on
    1. On iPhone: In Settings > Notifications Set mEMA up to allow notifications 
      1. On Apple re-boot the device (i.e. power off and turn it back on again)
    2. On Android: Set notifications from mEMA to "Allowed"
  8. On Android: Turn off Battery Optimization for mEMA
    1. Go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > mEMA > Advanced > Battery > Battery optimization
    2. Tap on Battery optimization, it will bring up a list of apps that are not optimized. 
    3. Tap on the "Not optimized" drop-down and select "All apps" 
    4. Choose mEMA from the complete app list and turn off Battery optimization.
    5. Restart phone.
    6. Note: Some Android phone models, such as Samsung or Huawei, have additional Android User Interfaces, or "skins". These Android skins may have other battery optimization settings unique to their Android UI. In the Settings app, search for "Battery Optimization" to find the path for that setting. Here is an example path from a Huawei P30:
      • Privacy > Permission Manager > Special Access > Battery Optimization
      •  Look for Mema and set Battery Optimization to 'not allowed'. 
  9. iPhone only: Turn off "Low Battery Mode"
    1. Go to Settings > Battery
    2. Disable "Low Battery Mode"
  10. Android only: Clear cache and storage from the app -- a file may have been corrupted due to weak wifi or data signal and need to be cleared. 
    1. NOTE: Upload all survey instances before doing this, as data local to the phone could be lost.
    2. From the main screen of the mEMA app, tap on "My Codes"
    3. Change mobile code from participant's 8-digit code to 0000.
      1. You'll be asked to confirm this change.
      2. After confirming, close the mEMA app.
    4. Go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > See all apps
      1. Tap mEMA, and then tap on Storage
      2. Tap "Clear cache" to clear its cache and also tap on "Clear storage" to reset the app
      3. Open mEMA and input the participant's mobile code as seen in this article to re-sync and download the schedule and surveys.
  11. iPhone: Delete and re-install the app -- a file may have been corrupted due to weak wifi or data signal and need to be cleared.
    1. NOTE: Upload all survey instances before doing this, as data local to the phone will be lost.
    2. From the main screen of the mEMA-Sense app, tap on "My Codes"
    3. Change the mobile code from the participant's 8-digit code to 0000 by tapping on the padlock icon.
      1. You'll be asked to confirm this change. On iPhone, it will ask if you want to change it to code 1234. This is the same, allow the change.
      2. After confirming, close the mEMA app.
    4. Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage
      1. Tap mEMA, and then tap Delete App.
    5. Restart the phone
    6. Reinstall the mEMA-Sense app and sync to the participant's mobile code as seen in this article to download the schedule and surveys.


Things to note:

  • When a participant downloads their survey assignment schedule, the mEMA site prepares their schedule and does not send any survey assignments which have already passed. If the correct time zone isn't set up for the participant's mobile code, the participant may not download all survey assignments.
  • If the assessment is done 5 minutes before the start, the notification will not arrive
  • If the mEMA app is opened through the notification right when the survey is scheduled to start, the survey alert will appear even if the participant is already taking the survey
  • If the window start is set to a prior time, the notification will be triggered according to the prior time. For example, if the window opens 10 minutes prior to the scheduled time, the notification will arrive as soon as the survey window opens