Behind the Acronym: Survey Research Lab

The Survey Research Lab offers social research assistance to researchers at PSU and the community. Some mediums utilized are phone, web and snail mail surveys.

SRL started in 1995, with an initial grant obtained by William Feyerherm, said office manager Vicky Mazzone.

“There was a need for a calling lab. [Before the SRL], researchers did not have a way or capability to do that sort of general research on campus,” Mazzone said.

Examples of past projects the SRL has worked on include a web survey of PSU students regarding the PSU One ID and finance cards, and an in-person survey conducted on Portland park users.

Services have been used by PSU and community researchers, non-profit groups, private businesses, and government agencies. Clients include Portland Metropolitan Studies, PSU faculty and students, OHSU, and Multnomah County.

Project Manager Amber Johnson, Ph.D., said they will not help with marketing research, political poling or assist with selling any products.

“We are not for profit. We answer to the university,” Mazzone said.

SRL reports to and receives some funding from the Office of Graduate Studies and Research.

Money is also obtained by billing clients. Rates are determined based on the services required by each individual project, including scope, sample and type of research being conducted.

“Different research components have a particular rate or fee schedule,” Mazzone said.

While they attempt to remain competitive with other survey organizations, Mazzone said they have completed pro bono projects.

“The first step when someone contacts us is we do an initial consultation meeting free of charge, to create a quote. We work with clients to give them as much as we can, given our fee schedule,” Johnson said.

The initial consultation is a good time for the SRL to figure out the scope of work a project entails. During the consultancy, the potential client can also evaluate the SRL to determine if their needs will be met and understand what the services can provide and what they may cost.

“Our goal is to collect non-biased quality data,” Johnson said.

While the SRL understands that it does not own the data it is working on for new research, the lab does assist with implementation.

The SRL works in both qualitative and quantitative research. Qualitative research often involves gaining insight on human behavior, and focusing on smaller sample sizes with more in depth information. Quantitative research focuses more on mathematical models and theories, often with larger sample sizes to gain more data and thus validity.

Johnson said the SRL has a “diverse team.”

Along with Mazzone and Johnson, the staff includes Director Debi Elliott, research assistants, interview coordinators and interviewers.

“Interviewers come and go, as they have very flexible hours,” Mazzone said.

The need for interviewers is dependent upon projects requiring staffing. Many interviewers are PSU students who require flexible scheduling for class times and final exams. The need for interviewers is broken up into four-hour shifts for more convenient work scheduling.

All interviewers go through a comprehensive standardized training to learn interview processes, Mazzone said.

Johnson said the position as an interviewer may appeal particularly to those interested in research implementation and its theoretical side. Work at the SRL exposes workers to a wide variety of topics.

The interviewer position may appeal to someone interested in becoming a research assistant or graduate student in the future.

SRL is currently hiring for new interviewers. For interested applicants, visit the SRL website at www.srl.pdx.edu and click on the employment link in the left-hand sidebar.

The website states that the telephone interview position starts at $10 an hour and is a part-time and on-call position, requiring anywhere from 10–30 hours per week of work, depending on project needs. Job responsibilities include talking on the phone, using a computer and strong typing skills.