In this week's PLoS Medicine , Carol Bennett of the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute in Ottawa, Canada and colleagues report that there is limited guidance and no consensus on the optimal reporting of survey research, and that many key criteria in survey studies are under-reported. As in other areas of research, poor reporting compromises both transparency and reproducibility, two fundamental principles of research.
The authors say: "Our findings highlight the need for a well developed reporting guideline for survey research — possibly an extension of the guideline for observational studies in epidemiology (STROBE) — that will provide the structure to ensure more complete reporting and allow clearer review and interpretation of the results from surveys."
Funding: Funding, in the form of salary support, was provided by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research [MGC – 42668]. The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Citation: Bennett C, Khangura S, Brehaut JC, Graham ID, Moher D, et al. (2011) Reporting Guidelines for Survey Research: An Analysis of Published Guidance and Reporting Practices. PLoS Med 8(8): e1001069. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001069
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Carol Bennett
Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Clinical Epidemiology Program
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PLOS Medicine