scope:

DIN SPEC 91368 describes and determines the quality-relevant criteria and associated documentation requirements for selecting and implementing samples which are to be noted and observed when conducting scientific surveys for market, opinion and social research. It includes the general quality criteria and documentation requirements which are independent of the selection method, data collection mode and target group, as well as the specific criteria and requirements for particular selection methods, collection modes and target groups.

DIN SPEC 91368 does not cover measures related to individual quality criteria as supposed benchmarks for achieving objectives. Neither does DIN SPEC 91368 include additional quality criteria and documentation requirements that are only relevant to specific areas of research (e.g. media, political and social or electoral research etc.). To the extent which is possible, these should refer to and be based on DIN SPEC 91368.

The scientific quality of empirical research requires that all steps in the research process are carried out in compliance with the appropriate methodological requirements. However, it may be useful, often due to practical and policy aspects of research, to analytically remove a certain step from the overall research process, and to codify its specific quality criteria and documentation requirements separately. These can then be differentiated and national peculiarities, often determined by the legal environment of the empirical research, can be taken into account.

For this reason, steps in the research process which take place before or after the selection and implementation of samples, from the conceptual planning of a scientific survey for market, opinion and social research to the presentation and archiving of the research results, are not the subject of DIN SPEC 91368. The quality criteria for these prior and subsequent research steps are defined in the International Standards ISO 20252 "Market, opinion and social research - Vocabulary and service requirements", ISO 26362 "Access panels in market, opinion and social research - Vocabulary and service requirements", ISO 19731 "Digital analytics and web analyses for purposes of market, opinion and social research - Vocabulary and service requirements" and in the European Standard DIN EN 15707 "Print media surveys - Vocabulary and service requirements".