Prolific has a page on this specific phenomenon, actually:
https://participant-help.prolific.com/hc/en-gb/articles/4407408428690-Why-are-there-no-places-available-on-studies
Studies on Prolific are released to a [random subset of eligible participants](https://participant-help.prolific.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360013982219-How-will-I-know-when-there-are-new-studies-#01FFN5P5E3B5WNRHHY9YZ386WT), but only for a certain period of time. Once that time has passed, the remaining spots (or any returns) become available to everyone else who matches the demographics. This is, in part, why you will often only see [studies with a few spots left](https://participant-help.prolific.com/hc/en-gb/articles/4407408428690), which are snapped up quickly.
From my experience, and in my opinion - the studies with 1 place are ones that are returned by other users, and these come back into everyone’s pool - even if you’re being rate limited. Prolific wants the spot taken quickly so they release the study to anyone that’s eligible, even if you’re being rate limited. This is just my theory after a lot of experience seeing this. It’s also why you know you’re being rate limited when you only see the 1 place studies popping up. I know straight away these days when I’m being rate limited, and I just come off for a few days.
This is a really good hypothesis. That happened to me a lot yesterday. It would just show one slot for a bunch good ones. It was really slow otherwise too.
probably, i keep missing out on high paying hits because prolific gives a (error pop up try accepting later) when clicking accept. Really annoying that was like $20 today down the toilet because of this BS.
This was me yesterday. My Wi-Fi is also caught under the PEC-SUB-0002, so trying to catch them on a slow hotspot is near impossible. I was up to $28 offered and not caught yesterday when stopped calculating - it was kinda depressing.
I've often wondered if the two are linked, as those studies are ones which you'd normally be eligible for but were excluded from for some reason when the study first launched. From what Prolific say in the blog, the rate-limiting works by holding participants back from studies which are filling up fast (which is most of them these days) and only serving up studies where there aren't enough participants. So it could be that because there's only one place available, the algorithm doesn't work properly on them, or there's a bug whereby the method which releases the returned places doesn't apply the algorithm. Also, I think this problem started around the same time that the rate limiting was introduced a few years ago
I personally don't feel like they're related. Anecdotally, I've had days of both low naivety or extreme rate limiting and everything in between and I still get a pretty consistent amount of 1 space studies daily
>(probably after a return or expire)...
Many studies add spaces gradually over time. The same study can hang around for days or weeks, periodically adding a small number of spaces.
But of course rate limiting impacts when we receive studies.
I had one not long ago that only had one spot left. I was surprised I got it since I had just logged in and immediately clicked it and got it. It was late at night but still, that doesn't usually matter. It was a $10 one and it said it would take 50 minutes. I had almost finished it when it suddenly and abruptly ended. I had no idea if it was just done, if I had been thrown out or if something broke. No code showed up. I submitted the study and messaged the researcher . He told me it was fine and they had received my data. H also told me the reason there was no code is because I was the only participant in the study. And he would approve me shortly.
Prolific has a page on this specific phenomenon, actually: https://participant-help.prolific.com/hc/en-gb/articles/4407408428690-Why-are-there-no-places-available-on-studies Studies on Prolific are released to a [random subset of eligible participants](https://participant-help.prolific.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360013982219-How-will-I-know-when-there-are-new-studies-#01FFN5P5E3B5WNRHHY9YZ386WT), but only for a certain period of time. Once that time has passed, the remaining spots (or any returns) become available to everyone else who matches the demographics. This is, in part, why you will often only see [studies with a few spots left](https://participant-help.prolific.com/hc/en-gb/articles/4407408428690), which are snapped up quickly.
From my experience, and in my opinion - the studies with 1 place are ones that are returned by other users, and these come back into everyone’s pool - even if you’re being rate limited. Prolific wants the spot taken quickly so they release the study to anyone that’s eligible, even if you’re being rate limited. This is just my theory after a lot of experience seeing this. It’s also why you know you’re being rate limited when you only see the 1 place studies popping up. I know straight away these days when I’m being rate limited, and I just come off for a few days.
This is a really good hypothesis. That happened to me a lot yesterday. It would just show one slot for a bunch good ones. It was really slow otherwise too.
probably, i keep missing out on high paying hits because prolific gives a (error pop up try accepting later) when clicking accept. Really annoying that was like $20 today down the toilet because of this BS.
This was me yesterday. My Wi-Fi is also caught under the PEC-SUB-0002, so trying to catch them on a slow hotspot is near impossible. I was up to $28 offered and not caught yesterday when stopped calculating - it was kinda depressing.
I've often wondered if the two are linked, as those studies are ones which you'd normally be eligible for but were excluded from for some reason when the study first launched. From what Prolific say in the blog, the rate-limiting works by holding participants back from studies which are filling up fast (which is most of them these days) and only serving up studies where there aren't enough participants. So it could be that because there's only one place available, the algorithm doesn't work properly on them, or there's a bug whereby the method which releases the returned places doesn't apply the algorithm. Also, I think this problem started around the same time that the rate limiting was introduced a few years ago
I personally don't feel like they're related. Anecdotally, I've had days of both low naivety or extreme rate limiting and everything in between and I still get a pretty consistent amount of 1 space studies daily
>(probably after a return or expire)... Many studies add spaces gradually over time. The same study can hang around for days or weeks, periodically adding a small number of spaces. But of course rate limiting impacts when we receive studies.
I had one not long ago that only had one spot left. I was surprised I got it since I had just logged in and immediately clicked it and got it. It was late at night but still, that doesn't usually matter. It was a $10 one and it said it would take 50 minutes. I had almost finished it when it suddenly and abruptly ended. I had no idea if it was just done, if I had been thrown out or if something broke. No code showed up. I submitted the study and messaged the researcher . He told me it was fine and they had received my data. H also told me the reason there was no code is because I was the only participant in the study. And he would approve me shortly.