Call record sheet
Interviewer log which lists the number and results of a contact.

Call-back
An attempt to reach a person who could not be reached on the first try or a
follow-up or after-use interview.


CAPI (computer-aided personal interviewing)
Interviewer-administered surveying using a computer-based questionnaire

Card
80 column punched card format, represented as a binary file; an obsolete format.
See: Keypunch


Cartoon tests
Tests in which the respondent fills in the dialogue for a character in a cartoon.


CASI (computer-aided self-administered interviewing)
Self-administered surveying using a computer-based questionnaire.


Cathode-ray tube (CRT)
A computer terminal with a keyboard and monitor. Used in research to display
questions and enter responses directly into the computer for tabulating.


CATI (computer-aided telephone interviewing)
Interviewer-administered telephone surveying using a computer-based
questionnaire


Causal research
Study examining whether one variable causes or determines the value of
another.


Causation
The inference that a change in one variable is responsible for an observed
change in another variable.


CCENSPAC
Computer program developed by the Census Bureau for the 1980 USA census.


Cell size
Smallest unit or segment quantity of an individual variant within a test
program.


Census
A sample consisting of the entire population.


Census areas
Areas defined by the U.S. Census Bureau including four census regions and
nine census divisions.


Census divisions
The nine census divisions (grouping of US states) are:
1. Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington
2. Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah,
Wyoming
3. West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North
Dakota, South Dakota
4. East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin
5. West South Central: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas
6. East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee
7. South Atlantic: West Virginia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, DC
8. Middle Atlantic: New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island
9. New England: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire,
Vermont.


Census regions
The four census regions (groupings of states) are:
1. West: Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming,
Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada
2. Midwest: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa,
Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan
3. South: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama,
Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Washington,
DC, Maryland, West Virginia, Kentucky, Delaware, and Tennessee
4. Northeast: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island,
Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and
Maine.


Census tract
Area within a ZIP code group denoting households with uniform social and
economic characteristics. Tracts generally have between 2,500 and 8,000
residents.


Census undercount
The percent of Americans who did not answer the census.


Central limit theorem
A distribution of a large number of sample means or sample proportions will
approximate a normal distribution regardless of the actual distribution of the
population from which they were drawn.


Central-location study
A survey conducted at a conveniently located site to which respondents come
to be interviewed.


Centroid
Geographic points marking the approximate centres of populations of the
260,000 block groups and enumeration districts in the U.S.


Chi-square
A test of statistical significance which tests one measure of how well your
model of expected distribution fits the observed distribution.


Choropleth maps
Computer generated maps that represent values with shading.


Clarifying
A follow-up technique for getting complete responses to open-ended questions
by asking respondents to explain general terms in their answers. Also see
probing.


Cleaning
Automatic process to eliminate erroneous responses such as out-of-range values from research
data.
See: editing


Clinical focus groups
Focus groups that explore subconscious motivation.


Closed-end question
Questions that ask the respondent to choose from a  limited number of
pre-listed answers.


Cluster
A category assigned to a neighbourhood based on the assumption that the
households share certain demographic, social, and economic characteristics.


Cluster analysis
A multivariate statistical classification technique for discovering whether the
individuals of a population fall into different groups by making quantitative
comparisons of multiple characteristics. The differences within any group
should be less than the differences between groups. Often used for consumer
segmentation and brand positioning.


Cluster sampling
Consists of selecting clusters of units in a population and then performing a
census on each cluster.  The selection of clusters could be based on some
desired feature of the population or could be a random sample of clusters in
the population.


CMSA (consolidated metropolitan statistical area - USA)
A cluster of primary metropolitan statistical areas (PMSA), such as
Minneapolis-St. Paul. CMSA markets are subdivided into MSAs.


Co-op payment
The payment provided to participants as an incentive to come to the focus
groups or answer surveys. The amount varies dramatically, based on the
difficulty of recruiting the participants. Also called the honorarium or
incentive.


Coding
The process of translating responses to questions into numerical form for data
processing.


Coefficient of determination
The percent of the variability in the dependent variable explained by the
independent variable.


Cognitive component of attitudes
An individual's knowledge and beliefs about an object.


Cognitive dissonance
Dissonance arises after a major purchase (e.g., a car) when alternatives are
recommended and/or dislikes emerge with the choice. To eliminate the
discomfort of dissonance, the consumer will seek to rationalize the original
choice, in other words, find positive advantages and ignore the negative.


Cohort
A group of individuals having a statistical factor (age, race etc.) in common
in a demographic study.


Cohort measures
Analysis of the activity of a cohort over an extended time period.


Collinearity
The correlation of independent variables with each other. Can bias estimates
of regression coefficients.


Comparative scales
A judgment comparing one object, concept or person against another on a
scale.


Complement of event "A"
The collection of all simple events not in Event A.


Completion rate
The percent of qualified respondents completing an interview or study.


Concentric circle
The shape of a geometric study area, sometimes referred to as a ring.


Concept description
A brief description of a new product or service.


Conceptual mapping
A moderation technique in which participants are asked to place the names of
products or services on a grid. How they group the items on the diagram is
used to stimulate discussion.


Conclusions
The outcome or result; the section of the final report that contains the
interpretation of the data in light of the research objectives. See also executive
summary.


Concomitant variation
The degree to which a cause and effect occur or vary together.


Concurrent validity
The degree to which a variable, measured at the same point in time as the
variable of interest, can be predicted by the measurement instrument.


Conditional probability
The probability of a given event when additional information about that event
is known.  For example, the probability of rolling a one on the toss of a die
when we are given the additional information that the roll landed on an odd
number.


Confidence intervals
The range around a survey result for which there is a high statistical
probability that it contains the true population parameter.


Confidence level
The probability that a particular confidence interval will include the true
population value.


Confounded
An independent variable and an extraneous variable are confounded when their
effects on the dependent variable cannot be distinguished from each other. 
Often a comparative study using a control group is used to avoid confounding
variables.


Conjoint analysis
A multivariate technique used to quantify the value that people associate with
different levels of product/service attributes. Respondents trade product
attributes against each other to establish product (brand) preference and the
relative importance of attributes. Based on utility theory and consumer
rationality. Better for functional than fashionable brands.


Conjoint association
A moderation technique in which participants are asked to choose between two
hypothetical products or services, each of which has different attributes. The
objective is to stimulate discussion about the various attributes in order to gain
insight into the relative value of each.


Constant sum scales
Scales that ask the respondent to divide a given number of points, typically
100, among two or more attributes based on their importance to the individual


Constitutive definition
Defines a concept with other concepts and constructs, establishing boundaries
for the construct under study and stating the central idea or concept under
study.


Construct
The working hypothesis or concept.


Construct validity
The degree to which a measurement instrument represents, via the underlying
theory, the observed phenomenon to the construct.


Consumer drawings
Respondents draw what they are feeling or how they perceive an object.


Consumer expenditure
The amount consumers spend on goods and services.


Consumer Expenditure Survey (CEX)
Data gathered in an ongoing US survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on the
expenditures of consumers.


Consumer orientation
Identification of and focus on the individuals or firms most likely to buy a
product or service.


Consumer Price Index (CPI)
Compares the current cost of purchasing a fixed set of goods and services with
the cost of the same set at a specific base year. The resulting measures can be
compared over time.


Consumer unit
All related members of a particular household; a person living alone or sharing
a household with others, who is financially independent; two or more persons
living together who pool their incomes to make joint purchases.


Contamination
The inclusion of an individual or group of respondents in a test group who do
not represent the population.


Content analysis
A technique used to study written material (usually advertising copy) by
breaking it into meaningful units, using carefully applied rules.


Continuous variable
A quantitative variable that can assume an infinite number of values associated
with the numbers on a line interval. Normally continuous variables are the
result of some measurement process.  Grade point average is a continuous
variable because it can assume any value between 0.0 and 4.0.


Controlled substitutions
Substituting a unit of sample or respondent with another (drawn in accordance
with the selection parameters of the individual being replaced).


Convenience sample
A sampling procedure that leaves the selection of respondents totally to the
interviewers, with no quotas or qualifications imposed.  It consists of those
units of the population that are easily accessible.


Convergent validity
The degree of association among different measurement instruments that
purport to measure the same concept.


Corporate marketing research department
Oversees and/or conducts research to support the firm's present or future
marketing efforts.


Correlation analysis
Analysis of the degree to which changes in one variable are associated with
changes in another.


Criterion variables
The variables being predicted or explained in a study. Also known as the
dependent variable.


Criterion-related validity
The degree to which a measurement instrument can predict a variable that is
designated a criterion.


Cross-elasticity
The extent to which products are substitutes for one another.  Marketers use
differentiation and quality to seek to minimize cross-elasticity and thus it could
be seen as part of brand equity or marketing effectiveness. See also elasticity.


Cross-tabulation
Examination of the responses to one question relative to responses to one or
more other questions.


Current Population Survey (CPS)
The survey conducted by the Census Bureau which monitors changes between
the decennial censuses. Conducted monthly to 60,000 households.


Custom marketing research
Customized marketing research to address specific projects for corporate
clients.


Customer satisfaction research
Research conducted to measure overall satisfaction with a product or service
and satisfaction with specific elements of the product or service.