Social Survey Methods
Module description
The students are introduced to survey design and methodology in order to be enabled to conduct scientific surveys that yield accurate, unbiased, and generalizable results about opinions, attitudes and behaviour of the society or parts thereof.
Surveys are a systematic way of asking people to volunteer information about their attitudes, behaviours, opinions and beliefs. The success of survey research is based on how close the answers that people give to survey questions match reality. Surveys as a research method are widely used, including public opinion polls, market research studies and in academic social science studies. Planners and administrators use surveys to get baseline information for policy decisions. Social scientists use surveys to measure for example voter behaviour. Economists rely on regular consumer surveys for information on family financial conditions of families.
Students will explore the range of areas in which surveys are used. Furthermore they will design a survey, conduct it as well as analyse and present the results. Students will critically discuss the applied method, possible biases and other methodological and conceptual aspects of their project.
