Best practices for surveys

Inclusion of Survey Materials

Summarized by Fowler ch. 12. These materials may be in the appendix of a report.

  • Survey questions
  • Interviewer script
  • Summary of preparation including use of cognitive interview
  • Detailed analysis

Total Survey Design

  • Revisit sources of error and bias
  • Identify practices that are out of line with the survey goals and other practices in the survey design process
  • Consider costs and benefits

Issues for discussion

  • What materials will you include in your report? Does it go in the main body of the report? or in the appendix?
  • For your survey project, what practices were particularly costly? Were they worth it? Where would you have liked to put more effort?