Series and Systems
Survey families or dataset series are data collection efforts that occurred over a period of time or in several geographic locations, using the same or very similar data collection methodology and instruments. Series may be multinational -- collected in more than one country -- or in a single country. Usually all the datasets in the series are collected with the support of the same institution or institutions, but individual surveys or datasets may have the support or assistance of additional parties. The advantage of series from a research perspective is that often data from a series are more easily comparable than data from a variety of sources.
Currently housed by Princeton, these surveys were originally done under the auspices of the International Statistical Institute from the 70s to the early 80s.
The World Health Organization conducted the World Health Surveys from 2002-2004; the series collected demographic, wealth and health information for 70 countries to provide insight into the functioning of health systems.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides technical assistance to countries to design and implement national population-based surveys, as well as analyze and use the resulting data to improve reproductive and child health services.
