Completing Screeners
How to answer screening questions to qualify for research studies.
Screening questions help researchers find the right participants for their studies. Here's how they work and how to approach them.
What Are Screeners?
Screeners are qualification questions asked early in the application. They help researchers:
- Check you match the people the study is looking for
- Keep study quality high
- Find specific experiences or opinions
How Screening Works
Depending on the opportunity, screening is one or more of these:
- A form: questions shown one at a time. You cannot go back to change an answer, so read each one carefully.
- A short AI interview: a voice conversation of about 3 minutes with our AI interviewer. You will need your camera and microphone. See AI Interviews.
- A file upload: for example a document or a screenshot the study asks for.
Some opportunities also let Sophia ask you the screening questions by text message or in the chat. They are the same questions, graded the same way as the form.
Before screening, the Basic Info step asks for any details the opportunity needs that are missing from your profile. If they rule you out, you will be told straight away.
Types of Screener Questions
Demographic Questions
Basic information about you, such as your age range, location, occupation, or industry.
Experience Questions
Your background with specific topics:
- "Have you used [product] in the past 6 months?"
- "Do you manage a team of 5+ people?"
Opinion and Behavior Questions
Your views and habits on topics relevant to the study:
- "How satisfied are you with your current [solution]?"
- "How often do you [activity]?"
Tips for Answering Screeners
Be Honest
This is the most important rule. Researchers design screeners to find specific people. If you don't genuinely qualify, you may:
- Be caught during the main study
- Have your submission rejected
- Risk your account being banned, which can follow a single screening where your answers misrepresented you
Be Accurate and Consistent
Your answers should match your profile, your other answers in the same screener, and what you have told us before. Inconsistencies are red flags for researchers.
Read Carefully
Pay attention to:
- Time frames ("in the past 30 days" vs "ever")
- Specific quantities ("more than 5" vs "5 or more")
- Exclusionary phrases ("none of the above")
What Happens After Screening
If You Pass
You move on to the next step. Some opportunities review your answers first: automated review shows We're reviewing your responses and usually finishes in under a minute, and some reviews are done by our team or by the research team. We email you when you are through.
If You Don't Pass
You'll see Not a fit for this one. This means:
- You didn't match what this study needed, the group of people you fall into was already full, or, on some opportunities, your answers were declined in review
- It's not a judgment on you personally
- You can apply to other opportunities
Being screened out is normal. Researchers often have very specific requirements. Keep applying to studies that match your background.
FAQ
Why do I keep getting screened out?
Studies often need very specific people, and a study can fill its quota for a group before you apply. Apply to opportunities that closely match your background, and keep your profile complete.
Can I retake a screener?
No. Each opportunity takes one attempt. If something technical went wrong, such as an AI interview that could not start or dropped partway through, you can try that step again.
Do screener responses affect future opportunities?
Your answers, not whether you passed, are saved to your profile, and they can help us match you with future opportunities. That is another reason to answer honestly.
How long are screeners?
Most take a few minutes. The AI screening interview takes about 3 minutes.
What's Next?
After passing screening, you'll move to completing tasks.