The
Center for Social Research Center
at Arkansas State University exists
to serve the research, teaching and
service needs of the University and
of the larger community. The Center
promotes socially significant research
with public policy implications as
well as research of theoretical or
academic interest. Since 2000, the
Center has collected information
about public opinions, beliefs and
values on a wide range of social,
economic and political issues. In
that time it has gained a reputation
for accuracy and integrity in public
opinion research. In January 2004
the ASU CSR, was awarded a grant
of $100,000 to study the perceptions,
management and regulatory enforcement
of agricultural genetic engineering.
Primarily the research focused on
citizen evaluations of several issues
related to food safety and biotechnology
in several states (AR, LA, MS, NM,
TX). The information will be used
to enhance efficient and safe practices
in farming and consumer choices.
Graduate
students are untilized in conducting
public opinion surveys in which they
earn graduate credit while gaining
practical experience with survey
research. Undergraduate students
participate in the ASU Center for
Social Research surveys through the
undergraduate research methods course
(POSC 3003). In this course students
experience the research process firsthand
from design through implementation
and analysis.
The
Center for Social Research offers
a full range of public opinion research
options to its clients. In addition
to its regular academic and public
interest surveys, the Center can
accommodate the research needs of
private clients. By consolidating
all of the elements necessary to
conduct survey research, the Center
can manage any polling endeavor from
conceptualization through the final
report. The CSR works with clients
to develop a survey that is most
suitable for their needs. The CSR
assures the highest quality of data
collection through extensive training
of interviewers and careful design
of questionnaires. The CSR assures
that the data collected will provide
answers to the client’s questions.
The CSR operates a twelve station
automated interview center (using
DataTel Software for computer assisted
telephone interviewing) system with
the ability to manage complex sampling
procedures. The CSR maintains a staff
of trained analysts. Analysis of
the data may be limited to reporting
of the results of each question,
or may be as complex as multivariate
regression. The CSR provides professional
grade reporting. Reports are tailored
to the needs of each client. If desired
by the client, the Center will maintain
complete confidentiality of the survey
results. Some clients prefer that
their surveys be kept confidential,
so they are not displayed on this
site. However, to see examples of
types of surveys please check the
link to the list of previous
studies.
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