Gatekeeper

A gatekeeper is a person who stands between the data collector and a potential respondent. Gatekeepers, by virtue of their personal or work relationship to a respondent, are able to control who has access, and when, to the respondent. Furthermore, they may be encountered on both field (in-person) and telephone data collection surveys. They may also be encountered in mail surveys in which a respondent's material must be sent to, or in care of, another individual for distribution to the respondent (e.g. sending materials to a parent for distribution to a respondent away at college or in the military, or sending materials to an employer for distribution to sampled employees).

Gatekeepers can take many forms, including guards or doormen at secured residential or business complexes; secretaries, administrative assistants, or office [Page 300]managers in businesses; family members, housekeepers, and so forth. For studies in which children are the intended respondents, parents may be considered gatekeepers in that their consent must be obtained for the child's participation in the study.

A single respondent may have multiple gatekeepers that must be contacted by the data collector. In a secured apartment complex, the security guard may prevent access to an individual apartment unless the data collector has obtained permission from the complex manager. The latter is now a second gatekeeper who must be convinced to grant access to the selected housing unit. If successful there, the data collector may then encounter a third gatekeeper at the housing unit in the form of a parent, other family member, or housekeeper.

It is important to consider that a single gatekeeper may control a data collector's access to not just one but many respondents. For example, in the case of an area probability sample, a security guard at a large apartment complex may prevent access to multiple sampled housing units. An establishment survey wishing to sample multiple employees at a large company may have an administrative assistant standing in the way of gaining access to the director of human resources for the company (who could also be considered a secondary gatekeeper).

Regardless of their relationship to a respondent, gatekeepers must be successfully yet carefully negotiated in order to further the research objectives. Data collectors must walk a fine line between giving gatekeepers enough information about the survey and its sponsorship to motivate them to grant access to the respondent while, at the same time, not revealing sensitive information that could violate the respondent's privacy or reflect negatively on the person. Further, data collectors must be cognizant and respectful of all local laws and regulations regarding trespassing, solicitation, and so on.

Data collectors must assess each controlled access situation and note as many relevant details as possible. For example, when refused entry by a security guard, data collectors can note the guard's name or demographics and then plan to return when another, possibly more cooperative guard is on duty. They can check locked building entrances at other times of the day when they might be open to the public. They can also walk around gated communities to determine if a pedestrian entrance may be open. Data collectors can honk a vehicle horn at a single family housing unit when an unleashed dog prevents access to the front door. If at home, the resident will likely come to the door in response.

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