The Study Type with Blocking Period functionality allows you to manage how frequently a panellist can participate in studies of the same (or related) study types. By defining blocking rules at the study type level, the system automatically controls eligibility based on past and upcoming appointments.

Once a panellist completes or books an appointment for a study of a given type, they must wait a specified number of days before and after that appointment before being eligible to participate in another study of the same type (or other excluded study types).

This helps:

• Control participation frequency

• Avoid overlapping participation across similar studies

• Prevent overuse of the same panellists

• Support consistent data quality across projects

When to use a Study Type with Blocking Period

A blocking period is useful in several situations, such as:

• Running repeated studies (e.g. monthly Home-Use Tests or recurring clinical sessions)

• Ensuring a “wash-out” or rest period between similar product tests

• Preventing panellists from booking overlapping or back-to-back appointments

• Avoiding simultaneous participation in related study categories (e.g. hair vs face vs body)

Using a study type ensures these rules are applied automatically and consistently, without manual checks.

How Study Types and Blocking Periods work

Study types are configured at Site Management level and act as templates for blocking rules.

Each study type can define:

• A blocking period (in days)

• Which other study types are excluded

• Whether the exclusion applies to the same study type, other study types, or both

Once configured, these rules can be reused across multiple projects.

Blocking period logic

The blocking period applies:

• Both in the past and in the future

• Around the appointment date

For example, with a 5-day blocking period:

• A panellist is blocked 5 days before and 5 days after their booked appointment

• This prevents overlapping or near-overlapping participation across studies

How to configure a Study Type with a Blocking Period

1. Open Study Type settings

• Go to Site Management

• Navigate to Study Types

• Select an existing study type or create a new one
  

2. Define blocking rules

Within the study type configuration:

• Set the blocking period (number of days)

• Choose which study types should be excluded:

  • The same study type

  • Other related study types

• Optionally define longer or shorter blocking periods depending on the category

This configuration acts as the default template for all projects using this study type.

Applying a Study Type to a project

1. Assign the Study Type

When creating or editing a project:

• Select the appropriate Study Type

This links the project to the predefined blocking rules.

2. Enable Study Type Exclusion

In Appointment setup, enable Allow study type exclusion.

When enabled:

• The project automatically loads the blocking rules defined at Site Management level

• These rules are visible and can be adjusted for this specific project if needed

• You can always reset the project rules back to the global defaults
  

Eligibility handling during recruitment

Panel loading

When panellists are loaded via a panel:

• The system checks existing and future appointments

• Panellists who fall within the blocking window are excluded automatically

Appointment booking

If a panellist enters a project but:

• Already has a conflicting appointment

• Falls within the blocking window

They will not be able to book an appointment.

Manual panellist handling

Panellists can still be added manually by a panel leader (e.g. last-minute recruitment).

• Manual addition does not bypass blocking at booking time

• If the panellist has a conflicting appointment, they will still be blocked from booking

Example: How the blocking period works

Suppose you have a study type Home-Use Test (HUT) with a blocking period of 90 days.

• A panellist completes or books a HUT appointment on 10 December 2025

• The system blocks them from participating in:

  • Any other HUT study

  • During the defined blocking window

• They remain ineligible until 10 March 2026

• After the blocking period ends, eligibility is restored automatically

This ensures fair distribution of participation and reduces bias from repeated respondents.

Things to keep in mind

• Blocking rules are defined per study type

• A panellist blocked for one study type may still participate in other study types

• Blocking applies around appointment dates, not just completions

• Manual panellist additions require awareness of blocking rules

• Communicating blocking logic to panellists helps avoid confusion