Using web survey paradata to analyze response quality, respondent characteristics, and survey estimates : a state-of-the-art review and typology

Vehovar, Vasja (author), Čehovin, Gregor (author)

In the context of web surveys, the term paradata primarily refers to digital traces of the response process. With the increasing prevalence of web surveys, paradata are often perceived as vital for analyzing the methodological and substantive aspects of web surveys. We evaluated these claims through a state-of-the-art literature review. An extensive search process yielded 3,436 screened abstracts and 173 empirical publications that addressed web survey paradata. The results showed that empirical research on such paradata remains relatively limited, characterized by stable publication levels and quite narrow scopes. Specifically, paradata were primarily employed to examine response quality (92 percent of publications), with respondent characteristics (25 percent) and substantive issues (6 percent) being addressed less frequently. In terms of indicators, response times dominated (83 percent), followed by device type (38 percent), while navigation (9 percent), answer changes (8 percent), multitasking (8 percent), and other advanced indicators were used less frequently. In this article, we discuss these results and provide an operational framework that addresses the complexities of integrating paradata into survey design, thereby facilitating the formulation of realistic expectations in survey research practice.

• Language: English
• Keywords: data quality, paradata, respondent characteristics, reponse quality, state-of-the-art review, survey estimates, web surveys
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FDV - Faculty of Social Sciences
• Publication status: In print
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: 31 str.
• Numbering: Vol. , no.
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-186648
• UDC: 303.622.4:004.738.5
• ISSN on article: 2325-0984
• DOI: 10.1093/jssam/smag003
• COBISS.SI-ID: 288385283
• Publication date in RUL: 03.09.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Journal of survey statistics and methodology
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• ISSN: 2325-0984
• COBISS.SI-ID: 33755485

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: kakovost podatkov, parapodatki, značilnosti anketirancev, kakovost odgovorov, najsodobnejši pregled, ocene anket, spletno anketiranje