Prolific rejections
What is normal, what to do about an unfair one, and how to check a researcher first.
A rejection means the researcher decided your work did not meet their study's requirements. A rejected submission is unpaid, and it lowers your approval rate. Prolific uses that rate to decide which studies you can see. A few rejections are normal. A pattern from one researcher is worth checking. Prolific Tea shows each researcher's rejection count and approval rate, as reported by participants.
Most active participants keep an approval rate of 95% or higher. One rejection among hundreds of studies is normal. The pattern matters more, especially one researcher with an unusually high number of rejections compared with their reviews. Their profile here shows that.
Prolific does not publish a fixed number. Each rejection lowers your approval rate, and a low rate limits the studies you can access. Repeated or clustered rejections can trigger an account review. One rejection is not the end, but find out why it happened.
Yes. Politely message the researcher through Prolific. Mention the task and what you submitted, and ask them to reconsider. Researchers can reverse a rejection. If they do not reply, or the rejection breaks Prolific's rules, contact Prolific support.
An unfair rejection has no valid, study-related reason. Examples: you passed the attention checks, the researcher had a technical fault, the time limit was never stated, or there was no reason at all. Prolific requires researchers to justify rejections. If yours cannot be justified, appeal it and leave an honest review.
Search the researcher by name, institution, or study title on the homepage. Their profile shows a rejection count and approval rate from participant outcomes. You can filter the reviews to read only the rejections. The browser extension shows the same ratings in your Prolific study list.
Check a researcher before you start
See a researcher's rejection history and approval rate, as reported by participants.