Självrapporteringsstudier

Självrapporter, or self-reports, are data collected directly from individuals about their own characteristics, behaviors, or experiences. They are typically gathered through questionnaires, interviews, diaries, or digital apps and surveys. The term is widely used in health, psychology, education, criminology, and public administration, including in Sweden, where large national surveys often rely on self-reported information.

Self-reported data provide access to subjective states and routines that observers cannot easily verify, and they are scalable and relatively inexpensive to collect across large samples or over time. They can capture personal perceptions, symptoms, and behaviors that are not readily observable, making them essential for certain research questions and policy assessments.

Limitations include recall bias, social desirability bias, response bias, and variability in literacy and interpretation of questions. Validity and reliability depend on instrument design, wording, and cultural context. To mitigate problems, researchers use validated scales, careful translation, cognitive interviewing, multiple items per construct, and triangulation with objective or administrative data. Analyses may account for missing data and measurement error.

Ethical considerations emphasize informed consent, privacy, and secure handling of sensitive information. While imperfect, self-reports remain a core method in many disciplines because they provide insight into internal states, self-assessed health, and behaviors that are not accessible through external measurement alone.