[Article] Surveying a Crowd: A Field Experiment Comparing Data Collection Techniques at Protest Events
In a new peer-reviewed article published in Sociological Methodology, three CECE researchers study the effectiveness of digital techniques to collect survey data in crowds. While protest surveys have traditionally been gathered by interviewing protesters using a paper and clipboard or asking them to self-administer the surveys, these methods are often time-consuming and tedious for both the researcher and respondent. In their new article, Arman Azedi (CECE Postdoctoral Fellow), Dana R. Fisher (CECE Director), and Magnolia Mead (CECE Research Assistant) sought to assess systematically whether digital techniques provide valid and efficient alternatives, as well as how digital methods compare to one another. The authors study two forms of digital data collection: 1) QR codes, which respondents are asked to scan to complete a survey on their own devices, and 2) tablets, which are borrowed from the research team to complete the survey. The findings largely support the notion that digital techniques are efficient forms of survey collection in large crowds and illuminate the potential of these techniques for social movement researchers.
You can read the whole article here: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00811750261453370
