Cognition and Survey Research
Wiley Series in Survey Methodology
1. Edition May 1999
416 Pages, Hardcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Survey methods research--an interdisciplinary approach.
Introducing the theory and tools of cognitive aspects of survey
methodology (CASM)--a movement that has greatly contributed to the
evolving field of survey methods research--this collection of
monographs explores advances in the use of cognitive psychology and
other sciences to improve the quality of data collected in surveys.
In 22 articles commissioned specifically for this volume, leading
survey researchers, social scientists, and statisticians from
around the globe evaluate the advantages of interdisciplinary
survey techniques, focusing on the many contributions of the CASM
movement and drawing on such disciplines as statistics, cognitive
psychology, sociology, behavioral sciences, anthropology,
linguistics, and computer sciences.
The authors explain basic concepts and methodologies and
demonstrate the application of cognitive theory to all phases of
survey research, including data processing, analysis, presentation,
and administration. They provide a critical review of the history
and findings of CASM-oriented research and describe useful
cognitive models used in survey testing and design. Also, the
authors discuss the expanding role of computer technologies and
statistical advances in the interdisciplinary aspects of survey
methods and draw a roadmap for interdisciplinary survey research
into the twenty-first century.
Clearly written and supplemented with extensive references and more
than 80 figures and charts, Cognition and Survey Research is an
indispensable guide for statisticians and professionals who would
like to be at the cutting edge of interdisciplinary survey methods
research involving the social, cognitive, computer, or statistical
sciences.
Schechter).
Looking Backwards and Forwards at the CASM Movement (J.
Tanur).
CASM Revisited (M. Aborn).
CASM: Successes, Failures, and Potential (C.
O'Muircheartaigh).
Cognitive Research into Survey Measurement: Its Influence on Survey
Methodology and Cognitive Theory (N. Schwarz).
Making Sense of Questions: An Interactional Approach (M.
Schober).
The Respondent's Confession: Autobiographical Memory in the Context
of Surveys (M. Shum & L. Rips).
Context Effects on Answers to Attitude Questions (R.
Tourangeau).
Is the Bandwagon Headed to the Methodological Promised Land?
Evaluating the Validity of Cognitive Interviewing Techniques (G.
Willis, et al.).
Income Reporting in Surveys: Cognitive Issues and Measurement Error
(J. Moore, et al.).
Casting a Wider Net: Contributions from New Disciplines (R.
Tourangeau).
A Linguistic Look at Survey Research (C. Fillmore).
The Use of Computational Cognitive Models to Improve Questions on
Surveys and Questionnaires (A. Graesser, et al.).
The View from Anthropology: Ethnography and the Cognitive Interview
(E. Gerber).
Survey Error Models and Cognitive Theories of Response Behavior (R.
Groves).
New Connectionist Models of Mental Representation: Implications for
Survey Research (E. Smith).
Potential Contributions of the CASM Movement Beyond Questionnaire
Design: Cognitive Technology and Survey Methodology (D.
Herrmann).
The Application of Cognitive Science to Computer Assisted
Interviewing (M. Couper).
Customizing Survey Procedures to Reduce Measurement Error (F.
Conrad).
Visualizing Categorical Data (M. Friendly).
Statistical Graphs and Maps: Higher Level Cognitive Processes (S.
Lewandowsky).
Toward a Research Agenda: Future Development and Applications of
Cognitive Sciences to Surveys (E. Martin & C. Tucker).
Index.
Persons involved with surveys would seem to benefit from an
understanding of this material."(Technometrics Vol. 42, No. 3,
August 2000)
If you are interested in cognitive methods for improving the
quality of data collected in surveys, then this book is for you.
This book describes the frontiers of research on the cognitive
aspects of survey methodology (CASM). It is an outcome of the
Second Advanced Research Seminar in the Cognitive Aspects of Survey
Methodology (CASM II). The book as a unique style. Four out of the
six coeditors of this book, who organized the plenary sessions of
the CASM II Seminar, edited four sections of the book (Chapters
2-22). The remaining editors contributed the first chapter. The
purpose of the CASM II seminar and this book is to reflect on and
evaluate past work, to demonstrate the exciting potential of
focussed interdisciplinary research, and to stimulate creativity,
thoughtfulness, and innovation for the future. Nationally and
internationally known researchers from the United States have
contributed to this book and they have to be congratulated for
making the book informative and readable. (JASA, March 2001)
...this book is essential reading for serious survey practitioners
and post-graduate students of survey methodology. Many of its
individual chapters are also likely to become classic references in
their own specialist fields. (The Statistician, Volume 49, No. 3,
2000)
"This book...is an excellent summary of what has been accomplished
and, perhaps equally important, what remains to be done." (Chance,
Volume 13, No. 2, Spring 2000)