Literature Reviews

Structured vs. Semi-Structured Surveys in Tobacco Research

Ryan Dycus & Jacob Meyer

[PDF] 

Surveys are an appropriate and effective method to study questions related to tobacco use and regulation. Much tobacco  research is completed using data from large established surveys, which are usually conducted by government agencies. When these large established surveys do not adequately address a question of interest, a researcher may want to conduct their own survey to fill in the gap. This review will discuss some design considerations for these surveys, especially focusing on the tradeoffs between a structured format featuring predetermined questions and the potential for online or paper administration, and a semi-structured format featuring open ended questions and an interview-style administration. We provide a brief review of key considerations and methodological tradeoffs between these survey methods before providing examples from tobacco research that highlight when each approach might be most beneficial.