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NORC at the University Chicago

Erin Fordyce

Pronouns: She/Her

Senior Research Methodologist
Methodology & Quantitative Social Sciences
Erin’s work advances the field of questionnaire design, qualitative testing, and single and mixed-mode surveys.

Erin is a senior research methodologist in NORC’s Methodology & Quantitative Social Sciences department. She specializes in questionnaire design, qualitative testing, and study implementation for web, mail, telephone, and mixed-mode surveys with project work involving sensitive topics and targeting hard-to-reach populations. Erin’s project work has covered web survey design and administration, data science and analytics, as well as using qualitative data from cognitive interviews and usability testing to design more effective questionnaires for paper, web, and mobile surveys. Her experimental research in the use of emerging technologies and social media in data collection has included in-depth analysis of website analytics and paradata, diverse approaches to probability and nonprobability sampling for web-only surveys, and assessments of response patterns to examine measurement error in a variety of survey modes. Her research projects often involve sensitive topics and targeting hard to reach or vulnerable populations such as sexual and gender minorities, military veterans, and immigrant women.

Erin currently serves as a methodologist on Assessing Social and Community Environments with National Data (ASCEND) For Veteran Suicide Prevention, a national survey for the Department of Veterans Affairs that will support a national surveillance system to document prevalence and trends over time in self-directed violence. She is also contributing to several internal initiatives focused on sexual and gender minority research. Erin has also served as a methodologist for the CDC’s Survey of Today's Adolescent Relationships and Transitions (START) and Using Social Media for Recruitment in Cancer Prevention and Control Survey-Based Research (SMFR), the Wounded Warrior Project’s Annual Warrior Survey, and redesigns of the National Survey of Children's Health and General Social Survey. 

Erin has presented her research at national conferences and government institutions including at NIH and CDC. Her presentations and publications have focused on survey design, data quality, and innovative data collection methods. Erin currently serves as co-chair of the AAPOR Welcoming Committee.

Project Contributions

A Study of Women’s Health Needs in the U.S.

A major study of women in the U.S. from countries with high rates of female genital mutilation

Client:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Reproductive Health

ASCEND for Veteran Suicide Prevention

A recurring national surveillance study to inform efforts to combat Veteran suicides

Client:

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Rocky Mountain Mental Illness, Research, Education and Clinical Center for Veteran Suicide Prevention

Survey of Today’s Adolescent Relationships and Transitions

Understanding sexual behavior of Black and Latino young men to prevent HIV

Client:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Adolescent and School Health

The General Social Survey

The most rigorous, widely used data on the attitudes, opinions, and behaviors of the American public

Client:

The National Science Foundation

Annual Warrior Survey for the Wounded Warrior Project®

Assessing the well-being of injured veterans in the post-9/11 era

Client:

Wounded Warrior Project®

The Indiana University Abortion Attitudes Project

A multi-year study aimed at developing and testing measures to assess abortion attitudes

Client:

Indiana University

Testing Violence Prevention Messages and Materials

Supporting CDC’s efforts to improve resources for parents and anti-violence practitioners

Client:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention

Publications

Research Library & Findings