If you've been thinking that high-paying surveys like the ones on Mturk aren't available elsewhere, you've got another think coming. Serious academic and science-related surveys post regularly on websites unfamiliar to the average Mturker. Some new sites also post other Mturk-like tasks. Some of these Mturk alternatives might confuse you if you aren't aware of some finer details.
Sona Systems
[Update: Many of the studies might require physical attendance at the relevant university, but staff here at SLiM are writing an article on schools with good online-study availability.] Universities create webpages that use Sona Systems to post surveys for important projects. Carnegie Mellon University authors have published a paper comparing and contrasting this to other sites like Mturk. Check out Carnegie Mellon University's Sona Systems webpage for yourself. Staff here at SitesLikeMturk have managed to sign up by providing personal information and a free email address. It takes a few days for them to get back to you, but you receive an email that gets you into the system's survey listings. You may have to provide some quick, basic information about your demographics at first. There are usually only a few surveys available at a school's webpage. Other universities use the system too, and a list of them is soon getting posted here on this website.
Prolific Academic
Provide some preliminary responses about yourself to get access to serious studies that pay well. Prolific Academic specializes in non-marketing studies that are absolutely required to pay at a good rate. There are usually at least a few surveys available each week. Site traffic is strongest in the United Kingdom and the United States. As the website becomes more popular, some system slowdown is possible.
Workstation
Crowdsource.com's old Mturk tasks are now posted on Workstation; log in with your Amazon, Paypal or Odesk account if you want. You may well have to pass a qualification test to begin working. There are small micro-tasks as well as writing tasks.
Crowdsource (2016)
Crowdsource has been developing its own platform for worker-requester interaction. It's not yet clear exactly how large the platform is likely to grow, but it may just give Mturk a real run for its money. This may end up being one of Mturk's biggest competitors due to Crowdsource's client list, worker list and extensive experience in the field.
Don't hold back in signing up for small or new Mturk alternatives: the future of mechanical tasks may be one that is decentralized onto many different sites. Even if tasks eventually centralize onto one or two sites some day, this is unlikely to happen for quite some time.
[Update: Many of the studies might require physical attendance at the relevant university, but staff here at SLiM are writing an article on schools with good online-study availability.] Universities create webpages that use Sona Systems to post surveys for important projects. Carnegie Mellon University authors have published a paper comparing and contrasting this to other sites like Mturk. Check out Carnegie Mellon University's Sona Systems webpage for yourself. Staff here at SitesLikeMturk have managed to sign up by providing personal information and a free email address. It takes a few days for them to get back to you, but you receive an email that gets you into the system's survey listings. You may have to provide some quick, basic information about your demographics at first. There are usually only a few surveys available at a school's webpage. Other universities use the system too, and a list of them is soon getting posted here on this website.
Prolific Academic
Provide some preliminary responses about yourself to get access to serious studies that pay well. Prolific Academic specializes in non-marketing studies that are absolutely required to pay at a good rate. There are usually at least a few surveys available each week. Site traffic is strongest in the United Kingdom and the United States. As the website becomes more popular, some system slowdown is possible.
Workstation
Crowdsource.com's old Mturk tasks are now posted on Workstation; log in with your Amazon, Paypal or Odesk account if you want. You may well have to pass a qualification test to begin working. There are small micro-tasks as well as writing tasks.
Crowdsource (2016)
Crowdsource has been developing its own platform for worker-requester interaction. It's not yet clear exactly how large the platform is likely to grow, but it may just give Mturk a real run for its money. This may end up being one of Mturk's biggest competitors due to Crowdsource's client list, worker list and extensive experience in the field.
Don't hold back in signing up for small or new Mturk alternatives: the future of mechanical tasks may be one that is decentralized onto many different sites. Even if tasks eventually centralize onto one or two sites some day, this is unlikely to happen for quite some time.