Survey research and development is the science of creating and administering questionnaires to gather facts, opinions, and viewpoints of people on a topic or topics of interest. Survey questionnaires are developed by trained methodologists with attention to validity and reliability while keeping the questionnaire concise. Questionnaires can be given face to face, over the phone, or over the Internet.
Trained survey interviewers administer face to face and telephone surveys, while Internet surveys are self-administered. Multiple tactics are used to ensure an adequate number of participants complete the survey and that those participants well represent the population. Results from surveys serve as a systematic, reliable, and objective source of information that can be used for planning and other purposes.