Participant Management

Overview

Participant Management in the Open Lab platform enables researchers to monitor and control participant enrollment in their studies. It provides a table view of enrolled participants with details such as enrollment date, status, codes, and notes. Researchers can filter, sort, edit notes, remove participants, and export data. This section guides you through accessing and using these features effectively.

Access Participant Management from the study dashboard by clicking the "Participants" stats card or navigating to https://research.open-lab.online/dashboard/studies/[study-id]/participants. The interface includes a searchable, filterable table and action buttons for individual and bulk operations.

Participant limits are based on your subscription tier (e.g., Free tier allows 300 participants). Exceeding limits may restrict data access for additional participants.

Screenshot of the Participant Management interface, showing the table with filters and action buttons. — The Participant Management interface, displaying enrolled participants with filtering and action options.

Viewing and Filtering Participants

The main table lists all enrolled participants with columns for: Checkbox (for selection), Participant ID, Enrolled At, Status (e.g., ACTIVE), Group Code, Participant Code, Invitation Code, Notes, and Actions.

Search: Use the search bar to filter by participant ID, codes, or notes.
Status Filter: Select a status (e.g., ACTIVE) from the dropdown to view specific groups.
Group Code Filter: Filter by group code to segment participants.
Sorting: Click column headers (e.g., Enrolled At) to sort ascending/descending.

Example: To view only active participants in group "G1", select "ACTIVE" in status filter and enter "G1" in group code filter.

Troubleshooting Tip: If no participants appear, ensure invitations have been accepted. Check subscription limits if enrollment seems capped.

Screenshot of the participant table with sorting and filtering applied. — The participant table, showing filtered and sorted results.

Participant Actions

Each participant row includes action icons for quick management:

Edit Notes: Open a modal to add or edit notes about the participant (e.g., "Completed pre-screening").
Remove: Delete the participant from the study. Confirm for participants with data.

Bulk actions are available for selected participants (via checkboxes): Export to CSV or Delete Selected. A warning appears for actions on participants with data.

Example: Select multiple participants and click "Delete Selected" to remove them in bulk.

Editing Notes

Click the notes icon to open the Notes modal:

Enter or edit notes in the textarea.
Click "Save" to update; changes are saved to the backend.

Screenshot of the Participant Notes modal. — The Notes modal for adding participant-specific information.

Exporting Participant Data

Export selected participants' data to CSV by clicking "Export Selected to CSV". The file includes all table columns plus additional details if available.

Troubleshooting Tip: If export fails, ensure selections are made and browser allows downloads.

Group Codes in Your Data

The Group Code column on the Participants page, on the Data page and in every export is the group code stored on the participant's record. A lab.js task receives the same code as the parameter openlab_group_code, and lab.js saves that parameter on every row the task records.

Before a fix in October 2026, the two could differ. A participant who reloaded the page, returned to the study (for example through the recruitment link or their Open Lab account) or opened it in a second tab could be assigned a group code a second time. The record kept the first code, while the task received the second. With random assignment by rules, the second code was usually the other group, and a participant who restarted a task may have completed the first attempt with one code and the restart with the other. Since the fix, a participant keeps the code on their record, and the task, the pages and any redirect always receive that code.

To check a study, use Check group codes under the download buttons on the Data page. It compares the code each run's task received with the participant's Group Code and lists the participants concerned. The exports (CSV, wide-format CSV, Excel and SPSS) include two columns next to Group Code: Task Group Code, the code the task received in that run, and Group Code Match (Yes, No, or empty when the run recorded no group code).

If your task chooses its condition from openlab_group_code, Task Group Code is the condition the participant completed in that run. For each participant, the export then shows one of three cases:

All runs match Group Code. The participant is not affected.
All runs carry the same Task Group Code, but it differs from Group Code. The task ran with the Task Group Code.
The runs carry different Task Group Codes (see the Run and Of Runs columns). The participant most likely began a task with one code and restarted it with the other. In a between-subjects design you may want to exclude such participants.

Editing a participant's group code on the Participants page also makes the two differ: the edit changes Group Code for all of that participant's data, but not the rows the task has already recorded.

Handling Participant Limits

Your subscription determines the maximum participants per study (e.g., 300 for Free tier). Participants exceeding this limit are marked, and their data may be inaccessible. Upgrade your subscription to increase limits.

A warning banner appears if limits are approached or exceeded.

Box / Kiosk Mode

Box / kiosk mode lets you run a study on a single shared device (for example, a lab computer or tablet) where many people take part one after another. When it is on, every session is treated as a fresh, anonymous participant automatically — there is no need to clear browsing data or sign out between participants, and participant accounts are ignored.

Enable it from the Study Builder in the participant management panel ("Participation rules and completion code settings"). Switch on the Box / kiosk mode toggle. While it is active, a "Box mode on" badge appears on the panel.

Single-use participants: Each run is a new participant, so the Allow multiple participation setting is locked off. The builder notes that it is "Not applicable in box mode — every session is already a new participant."
Anonymous sessions: Sessions are always anonymous in box mode; participant accounts are not used.

At the end of each session, participants see a Start next participant button instead of the usual return-to-dashboard link, with the prompt "Hand the device to the next participant, then press to begin a fresh session." Pressing it clears the previous session and starts a new one.

Tip: Box / kiosk mode is ideal for in-person data collection at a single station. For remote studies where each participant uses their own device, leave it off and use the standard participation rules instead.

Next Steps

With participants managed, explore the following sections to configure study settings or analyze data on the Open Lab platform:

Study Setup
- Settings: Manage study settings.
Collaboration
- Projects: Create and manage project cards to describe your research needs.
- Collaborators: Find, invite, and collaborate with other researchers.
Data
- Data Analysis: Build visualizations to analyze study data.
- Data Reports: Generate comprehensive reports from study data.