News Research Lab

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Wage Aggregates

Reward Sentiment

Communication Scores

Approval Tracking

Wage Aggregate Tracking

This is fairly straightforward: we take the completion time & the reward amount (where available) and calculate the average hourly rate for the task. We then apply that number to a simple range based on US minimum wage standards to color-code the data for easy to digest numerical data.

Color	Pay Range (Hourly)	Explanation
RED	< $7.25 / hr	Hourly averages below US Federal minimum wage
ORANGE	$7.25 - $10.00 / hr	Hourly averages between Federal & highest statewide (CA) minimum wages.
GREEN	> $10.00 / hr	Hourly averages above all US minimum wage standards

Reward Sentiment

Not all HITs are created equal. Sometimes an hourly wage doesn't convey the full story of a HIT's true worth, so we encourage workers to give their opinion on the overall pay of the task. Was it $8/hr to rate pictures of puppies? A worker could justifiably bump up the rating a bit for something so adorable. 10 hours locked in Inquisit? Even for $10/hr many workers would appreciate the heads up on such a task. The Pay Sentiment rating helps connect workers beyond the hard data.

Icon	Rating	Suggested Guidelines
	Underpaid 1 / 5	Very low or no pay Frustrating work experience Inadequate instructions
	Low 2 / 5	Below US min-wage ($7.25/hr) No redeeming qualities to make up for pay
	Fair 3 / 5	Minimum wages for task (consider SE taxes!) Work experience offers nothing to tip the scales in a positive or negative direction
	Good 4 / 5	Pay is above minimum wage, or compensates better than average for the level of effort required. The overall work experience makes up for borderline wages
	Generous 5 / 5	Pay is exceptional. Interesting, engaging work or work environment Concise instructions, well designed HIT.

Communication Ratings

Communication is an underrated aspect of mTurk. Clear, concise directions. A fast response to a clarification question or a resolution to a workflow suggestion can all be valuable aspects of interaction between Requesters & Workers and its worth keeping track of. Plus everyone enjoys the peace of mind knowing that if something does go wrong there will be an actual human getting back to you to solve the issue.

Icon	Rating	Suggested Guidelines
	Unacceptable 1 / 5	No response at all Rude response without a resolution
	Poor 2 / 5	Responsive, but unhelpful Required IRB or extra intervention
	Acceptable 3 / 5	Responded in a reasonable timeframe Resolves issues to a minimum level of satisfaction.
	Good 4 / 5	Prompt Response Positive resolution
	Excellent 5 / 5	Prompt response time Friendly & Professional Helpful / Solved Issues Interacts within the community

Approval Time Tracking

This rating is strictly for approval times. Let's face it, no one wants to mix approval time ratings with how fast a Requester rejects a HIT, so we've saved rejection flags for another category. This provides a more straightforward way to know about how long your HIT might sit pending before paying out. The default auto-approval for most MTurk tasks is 3 days, the maximum is 30 days. We've tried to base our ratings around those data-points.

Icon	Rating	Approval Time
	Very Slow 1 / 5	Over 2 weeks
	Slow 2 / 5	~1 - 2 Weeks
	Average 3 / 5	~3 - 7 Days
	Fast 4 / 5	~1 - 3 Days
	Very Fast 5 / 5	~24 hours or less

News Research Lab Ratings

Workers feel this requester pays well

News Research Lab Wage History

Top Worker Reviews

orionhawk Fast Reader

Article Choices in Social Media - $2.00

$14.66 / hour

00:08:11 / completion time

TKNO Relaxed Pace

Article Choices in Social Media (approximately 20 mins) - $3.00

$16.19 / hour

00:11:07 / completion time

jessica93 Proficient Worker

Political Leanings and News Sources Follow-up Survey - $3.35

$12.97 / hour

00:15:30 / completion time

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