The Inaugural Ross-Royall Symposium:
From Individuals to Populations
Wood Basic Sciences Auditorium
Friday, February 26, 2016
8:30 am – 6:00 pm
Jon Krosnick, A.B., M.A., Ph.D.
Professor, Departments of Communication, Political Science, and
Psychology, Stanford University
Title:
The Future of Internet Surveys: Why Bother with Random Sampling?
Abstract:
Online surveys of the general public are currently being conducted with two sorts
of samples: (1) probability samples, recruited through RDD phone calls or face-toface visits to respondents' homes, or (2) groups of people who are not selected
from the population of interest by probability sampling and instead volunteer to do
occasional on-line surveys for money (in response to online ads or email
invitations). A series of studies have compared the quality of data obtained from
these two sorts of samples using the same questionnaire administered
simultaneously in RDD telephone interviews or face-to-face interviews of
probability samples, a probability-sample interviewed online, and many online
survey groups that employed non-probability samples. Assessments of data
accuracy yield conclusions about the optimal modes for survey data
collection. The results point toward the future of survey methodology.