Survey research

Survey research gathers standardized responses from a selected sample of people to describe populations, compare groups, or study relationships among variables.

Sampling (statistics): The process of selecting observations from a population to estimate its properties. Survey findings depend on how respondents are selected from the population of interest.
Target population: The complete group about which a study aims to draw conclusions. Survey claims are only as broad as the population the design defines.
Cross-sectional study: An observational study that measures variables in a population at a particular time or period. A single survey wave can provide a cross-sectional snapshot of attitudes or conditions.
Structured interview: An interview that uses a fixed set of questions and procedures for every participant. It standardizes questioning like a survey while allowing an interviewer to administer it.
George Gallup: An American statistician who founded the American Institute of Public Opinion and advanced scientific opinion polling. His polling methods helped establish representative sampling as an alternative to straw polls.
Questionnaire construction: The design and organization of questions used to collect data from respondents. Question wording and ordering shape which answers a survey produces.
Sampling frame: The list or operational source from which a study selects its sample. Coverage gaps arise when the frame omits members of the target population.
Longitudinal study: A study that repeatedly observes the same or comparable units over time. Repeated surveys can track change, with panel designs following the same respondents.
Qualitative research: Research that examines meanings, experiences, or processes using nonnumeric or interpretive evidence. Open-ended qualitative approaches can explore explanations that fixed response options constrain.
Alfred C. Kinsey: An American biologist whose interview-based studies documented sexual behavior in the United States. His studies made sampling and candid self-report central public questions in survey research.

Linked from 16 pages