Survey Design and Methodology

With regard both to research and to the provision of services the department Survey Design and Methodology is concerned with social science survey methodology. All staff members are certified experts in different areas of survey methodology ensuring, in sum, that the entire spectrum of survey research is covered, from design development, to administering questionnaires and samples, to data coding and statistical analysis.

Alongside a broad range of further education training, numerous freely accessible publications, and the collection of items/scales for the purposes of social research, our service focuses on personal consultations for researchers. In the context of these consultations it is the aim of our project consultants to optimize a survey project as a total package targeted toward the respective research goal within existing constraints (budget, time, skills, and other resources). That is to say, a complete design is created which maximizes the relation of cost and benefit and includes elements such as the formulation of the research question, decisions on survey design and mode of administration, data collection, data analysis, and documentation. This procedure allows us a total view on the project and therefore enables us to devise a tailor-made survey for the undertaker of the project and his or her research questions.

Aside from the total package consultations the SDM also provides advice on individual issues and special services regarding any tasks or problems that may be encountered in the course of survey projects (e.g. revising or pre-testing questionnaires for use in survey research or drawing random samples for telephone surveys).

In the area of international comparative surveys, which are increasingly gaining importance, SDM has a special expertise. Among others, GESIS researchers are members of the Central Coordinating Team (CCT) of the European Social Survey (ESS). The work packages for which GESIS is responsible include “Translation“, “Sampling“, “Contract Monitoring“, “Quality Enhancement“ and the organization of training courses for young scientists. SDM also offers counseling on all aspects of comparability of international surveys (e.g. sampling, questionnaire construction, field work, translation).

Since February, 2009 the BMBF has commissioned GESIS - Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences to implement the PIAAC study in Germany. PIAAC is a new OECD study that aims to examine and compare the skill levels of adults across countries.