| Applies to | Screeners |
Screeners helps you find the most qualified participants to take part in your research study. Whether you need participants for a Diary study or an interview, you’ll start by building a screener. Screeners combine targeting attributes and preliminary questions to determine a participant’s relevance to your research needs.
Screener types
Dscout offers two types of screeners:
- Public screeners: Available to Dscout’s existing pool of over 100,000 participants (called Scouts). These Scouts are existing users of the Dscout platform, and they make for great participants in a lot of research projects. (Don’t worry—your screener will still help you choose only those who fit your research needs.)
- Private screeners: Available only to participants of your choosing. With a private screener, you’ll receive a private share link you can send directly to people you want to invite to your research mission. Participants who apply using this private share link are not added to the Dscout pool.
When selecting a screener type, think about whether you already have a group of people you want to participate in your research study. If you do, a private screener might make the most sense. If you don’t, go with a public screener. And if you want to use a combination of your own participants and and Dscout’s existing Scouts, a public screener lets you draw from both.
Create a new screener
When creating a screener, you’ll start by establishing the basic details like how long the screener will remain open, how participant spots you have, and more. You’ll also give your screener a title and an image, which are great opportunities to make your screener fun and engaging.
To create a new screener:
- Navigate to the project where you want your screener to live.
- Click the Screeners tab at the top of your project.
- Click the Create screener button in the top-right corner of the page.
- Select Public screener or Private screener, depending on who you want to participate.Tip: If you have an existing screener you want to use as a starting point, click Duplicate an existing screener. You'll then have a copy of your previous screener you can modify to fit your current needs.
- Click Continue.
- Enter a screener title. This title will be visible to your participants. Or, click Skip for now.
- (Optional) Click Add an internal screener name, then enter a name only visible to you and your collaborators.
- Click Create screener.
Next, you’ll land on the Overview tab for your screener. Under Setup on this tab, you can customize your screener’s appearance, your screener’s details, and the details of the Diary or live interview mission they’re applying to participate in.
Appearance
Under Appearance, you have the chance to customize the look and feel of your screener. Here, you can configure the following settings:
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Hero image | Upload an image to display on your screener webpage. You can choose an image provided by Unsplash or upload your own. |
| Company branding |
Display or hide your company branding on your screener webpage. When toggled On, participants will see your company’s name and logo. When toggled Off, participants will not see your company’s name and logo. For more information, see Company branding. |
Screener details
Under Screener details, you can customize the logistics of your screener. Here, you can configure the following settings:
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Teaser description | A brief summary of your research to give participants an idea of what they can expect. Be as descriptive as you want, but don’t give too much away to avoid application bias. |
| Openings | The number of candidates you will invite to take part in your research mission. |
| Screener application limit | The total number of applicants allowed to complete your screener. By default, this is set to five times your selected openings. |
| Screener open for | The number of days your screener will remain open if your application limit is not met. If your application limit is met, your screener will automatically close regardless of this selection. |
Mission details
Under Mission details, you can tell your research candidates a little more about the mission they’re applying to be a part of. Here, you can configure the following settings:
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Start date | The date your research mission will begin. |
| Duration | The number of days your research mission will run. For interviews, we recommend using one day if you only plan to conduct one session per participant. |
| Incentive |
How the candidates selected to participate in your mission will be compensated. You can select:
Most Dscout projects pay between $20-$200, depending on how much time and effort is required, and how niche the recruit is. |
Targeting attributes
Once you’ve created your screener and configured the basic details, the next step is to define your target audience. You’ll do this using targeting attributes, which let you set identifying characteristics for your ideal participants. For example, you can set an age range your qualifying participants must fall into. Or, you could specify that qualifying participants must have access to a certain streaming account. You can mix and match these attributes however you see fit. Participants who do not meet your specified targeting attributes will be automatically disqualified and will not be able to participate in your mission.
To add a targeting attribute to a screener:
- On the Overview tab of your screener, click Targeting attributes in the left sidebar.
- Select from the list of Categories.
- Click an attribute to add it to your screener. The attribute and its associated options will be added to the center panel of the builder.
- Select your desired value(s).
- Click Done.
Once you’ve added attributes to your screener, Dscout displays the potential reach of your screener in the top-right corner. This gives you an indication of how much of our Scout pool meets your criteria. To further refine your study’s reach, you might also choose to exclude recent participants or balance the demographics of your participants. You can access these settings by clicking Settings in the Targeting attributes side panel:
For more information on balancing your participant demographics, see Participant balance.
Screener questions
When you’re ready to add questions to your screener, you’ll do so under the Screener tab. Screeners questions fall into two categories:
- Knockout questions: Questions with disqualifying logic. With knockout questions, you designate a correct answer. If a participant selects anything other than that answer, they do not proceed with your screener, nor are they invited to participate in your research mission. For more information, see Knockout questions.
- Standard questions: Questions that neither disqualify nor qualify candidates for your mission.
To add questions to your screener, use the Add buttons in the left side bar or the center of the builder:
You can combine knockout questions and standard questions, but we recommend you have at least one knockout question to help narrow down your candidates. In total, your screener can have 20 unique questions, including one photo and one video question. For a list of available question types, see Question types in screeners.
If you'd like to change the order of your questions, ensure you're not in editing mode for the question you'd like to move. Then drag and drop the question to your preferred position.
(Optional) Submit a screener for review
Once you have created your screener (and its associated Diary study or live interview mission), you can submit it for review by a Dscout Research Advisor. This helps ensure that your Scouts have the best experience and that you'll receive the most useful responses. For more information, see Optional pre-launch screener review.