American Statistical Association Section on Survey Research Methods (ASA-SRMS)

The Section on Survey Research Methods (SRMS) is a formal section of the American Statistical Association (ASA) that is devoted to encouraging research and the [Page 25]advancement of knowledge in all aspects of survey research. The goals of the SRMS are to promote the improvement of survey practice and the understanding of survey methods in both theoretical and applied research. In 2006, the SRMS was the third-largest section in the ASA, with approximately 1,300 members. All sections of the ASA require that their members first join the ASA.

The SRMS has a relatively short history. In 1974, a group of members of the ASA recognized a need to coordinate and facilitate the study of survey research distinct from other statistical activities. To accomplish this goal, they formed a subsection within the existing Social Statistics Section of the ASA specifically for this purpose. The subsection evolved quickly. It petitioned the ASA to become a full section in 1976, and the petition was approved in 1977 by a vote of the ASA membership. The SRMS began operation as a full section of the ASA in January 1978. In 1990, Irene Hess describes these events and the researchers who helped create the SRMS in an article in The American Statistician.

Since its inception as a subsection, the SRMS has identified and fostered research in some areas of special interest to its members. These areas include (a) foundations of sampling; (b) design and execution of sample surveys; (c) nonsampling errors; (d) data collection methods; (e) questionnaire design, evaluation, and testing; (f) analysis and presentation of survey data; (g) education of the public and students on the importance of scientific survey research; (h) publication and dissemination of survey research findings; (i) ethics related to the conduct of survey research; (j) appropriate methods of dealing with respondents and potential respondents; and (k) standards for survey practice.

Disseminating information on survey methods is one of the main functions of the SRMS. The SRMS has been active in a number of ways to disseminate information on survey research methods to a wide audience within the ASA, in the scientific community, and among the public. One approach has been to stimulate the preparation of articles and reports dealing with survey methodology under its auspices. Another approach has been to foster liaisons with persons and organizations publishing papers and monographs on topics of interest in survey methodology. A third approach has been to sponsor topic-oriented workshops, short courses, and conferences of interest to survey researchers.

One of the first such efforts was undertaken in 1976 when the SRMS was still a subsection. A brochure called What Is a Survey? was developed and quickly became a key piece of the dissemination effort. The brochure was published several times and was translated into several languages. The brochure was later developed into a series covering specific topics and is still widely used. It is currently available on the SRMS Web site.

The SRMS has also been very active in sponsoring international conferences on specific survey research methods. The first international conference that led directly to an edited monograph was the International Symposium on Survey Methods, cosponsored by ASA Ottawa Chapter, Statistics Canada, and Carleton University in 1980. In 1986, the international conferences sponsored by the SRMS became a continuing series. An international conference has been held every 2 years or so, and nearly all of these conferences resulted in edited monographs of the invited papers. The topics of the conferences have included Panel Samples, Telephone Sampling, Survey Measurement and Process Quality, Business Surveys, Computer Assisted Data Collection, Nonresponse, and Methods for Testing and Evaluating Survey Questionnaires. Nearly all of these conferences were cosponsored by the American Association of Public Opinion Research and the International Association of Survey Statisticians.

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