Description: 

This course will examine major sources of survey error--such as reporting errors and nonresponse bias--from the perspective of social and cognitive psychology and related disciplines. It will cover such topics as the psychology of memory and its bearing on classical survey issues (e.g., underreporting and telescoping); models of language use and their implications for the interpretation and misinterpretation of survey questions; and studies of attitudes, attitude change, and their possible application to increasing response rates and improving the measurement of opinions. A range of theories and findings from the social and behavioral sciences will be explored in an effort to understand why survey errors occur and what can be done to reduce them.

Restricted to SURV majors only.