Open Access

How it Works

Survey Method

The following is a brief description of the Survey methodology. A more detailed description of sampling and data collection procedures is shown on the methodology section of this site.

The Survey's estimates are based on interviews with people aged 15 and over, living in Great Britain. This sample is designed to be representative of the population as a whole. Fieldwork is continuous over the year, running at some 3,000 interviews per month, building up to some 36,000 interviews per annum, which makes the NRS one of the largest programmes of continuous readership research in the world. The data collected from this sample are extrapolated to the total population estimates, and weighted by sex, age, region and social grade, to ensure that the profile of the sample matches as closely as possible the profile of the actual population.

NRS interviews are conducted on a one-to-one basis in respondents' homes, and each interview lasts an average of just under 30 minutes. The interviewer uses a laptop computer to conduct the interview, inputting the respondent's replies as the interview progresses. This use of CAPI (Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing) technology helps to produce a consistent interview, and allows for rapid processing of the data. Since October 2003 this has been further enhanced by the introduction of DS-CAPI (Double Screen CAPI) across the full NRS sample, allowing prompt material to be shown on a separate screen to respondents.

In 1992, NRS became the first continuous readership survey in the world to introduce the broad-scale use of CAPI technology, and in 2003 became a pioneer in its full-scale adoption of DS-CAPI.