LYING about your alcohol consumption when you visit the doctor or subconsciously giving the wrong answer while filling out a survey could soon be a thing of the past.

Ground-breaking research by two Bundaberg CQUniversity students, Raven Wolfram and Amida Dean, is examining the potential of using smartphone technology to give reliable and valid results from skin surface sensors, known as electrodermal monitors.

The technique is best-known when used in lie detectors to reveal spikes in emotional or physical stress.

"We're testing new electrodermal monitoring equipment against the traditional equipment,” Ms Wolfram said.

"So the new equipment, if it proves to be reliable enough, could be used for further research studies.

"The traditional equipment is a larger box and you use it in the lab and it costs about $4000-$7000.

"Where as the new equipment works with your smartphone and is about $200. The app you use is free.”

Ms Wolfram said if it was proven to work it could be used in the field by researchers for a wide range of situations.

"We're working with the CQUni research gambling research team and in their case instead of having people come into the lab and do a simulated gambling task they could go to people in the venues,” she said.

Ms Dean said sometimes survey respondents subconsciously gave socially acceptable answers or the answers researchers wanted to hear and this technology could help provide more accurate data.

The pair have been given the opportunity to be involved in the project under the mentorship of Professor Nerilee Hing and Dr Lisa Lole as part of the Rising Star program which provides undergraduates with access to research-active professors who provide them with mentoring in research design.