Contributions are records, not comments

Every contribution to a research project on Scenius attaches to a user account. It becomes part of a durable, attributable record that can be referenced, built on, and cited later.

This is what makes findings usable: a report that says “participants surfaced X” can be traced to the specific contributions that produced it.

Three attribution modes

Each research project chooses one of three attribution policies for how contributions appear publicly:

• Public— the contributor’s account name and profile appear on the contribution.
• Pseudonymous— a stable handle appears in place of the contributor’s real identity.
• Anonymous— no identity surfaces to viewers. The system still holds the attribution privately for audit and for the contributor’s own record of their participation.

The project’s attribution mode is visible to contributors before they submit. Attribution is a project-level policy, not a per-contribution decision.

What Scenius recognizes

• The specific contributions you submitted.
• The research projects you participated in.
• Contributions that later became referenced in published findings or reports.
• Participation across multiple inquiries over time.

What Scenius does not do

• Point systems, leaderboards, or badges.
• Popularity rankings across contributors.
• Engagement metrics that reward volume over substance.
• Gamification that pulls attention toward the mechanic itself.

These mechanisms optimize behavior, not understanding — and they distort the signal that findings depend on.

Compensation

Sponsored research projects may compensate participants for their time, particularly when the participation is time-bound (a workshop, a co-design session, an evaluation round). Compensation terms are set on a project-by-project basis; contributors see them before they participate.

Compensation is aligned with participation, not with reaching a particular conclusion.

Continuity across pathways

When a research project moves into Co-Design or Implementation, the same participants can be invited to continue. Attribution carries through — a participant’s contribution to the research is not lost when the work advances into design or delivery.