The social survey is primarily an American product, although it originated in England about the beginning of the 20th century. American society is now the most surveyed society in the world. The export of social survey research is a major American product. The articles examine these issues by means of discussion of comparative, cross-national survey research, and articles discussing survey research in five countries, South Africa, Russia, Mexico, Bangladesh, and Mali, provide contrasting perspectives on the issues of adaptation. These are discussed in terms of the national context, political problems facing survey researchers, technical and methodological issues, ethical problems in exporting surveys, and multimethod approaches.
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