Självrapporter

Självrapporter, or self-reports, refer to information provided directly by individuals about themselves, typically collected as part of research, evaluation, or administrative processes. Respondents disclose their own thoughts, feelings, behaviors, symptoms, or attitudes, rather than having observers record them. Self-report data can be collected through questionnaires, scales, structured or semi-structured interviews, diaries, and ecological momentary assessment.

Self-reports are widely used across disciplines such as health research, psychology, sociology, and market research. They enable the measurement of subjective states (for example, mood, quality of life, pain), personal experiences, and routine behaviors that may not be observable. Standardized instruments, including validated scales and questionnaires, are commonly employed to facilitate comparability and aggregation of results. Examples of well-known self-report tools include depression and anxiety scales, quality-of-life measures, and consumer preference surveys.

The strengths of self-report data include direct access to the respondent’s perspective, relatively low cost, and scalability to large samples. However, they also carry limitations. Biases such as social desirability, recall errors, and misinterpretation of questions can affect accuracy. Language and literacy requirements, cultural differences, and translation issues can impact validity. Instrument design, question phrasing, and the context of data collection influence reliability. To improve data quality, researchers often use validated instruments, pilot testing, careful translation, and complementary data sources when appropriate, while ensuring ethical standards and privacy protections.