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Multilingual Demographic Dictionary, second unified edition, English volume

Call back

Multilingual Demographic Dictionary, second unified edition, English vol.
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Call back  (CALL back)


An enumeration 1 is any operation which is designed to yield a population total. It differs from a simple count 2 in that a list 3 is generally prepared. An inquiry 4 or survey 4 on the other hand, is generally an operation which is designed to furnish information on a special subject (e.g. the labor force) and which has limited aims. A field inquiry 5 or field survey 5 is an inquiry in which information is obtained by personal interview 6. In postal inquiries 7 or mailback surveys 7 questionnaires (206-3) are sent out by post with a request to return them completed. A retrospective survey 8 focuses on past demographic events; in a multiround survey 9 those events that occurred since the previous survey are noted from the second round on. This type of survey should not be confused with a call back 10, a term used to describe the instance where the interviewer is obliged to make several attempts to reach a respondent. In censuses, information may be obtained by either direct interview 11, or by self-enumeration 12. In the first method, also called canvasser method 11 the enumerator (204-2) notes the information provided by or about the respondents; in the second method, also called householder method 12, the questionnaire is completed by the respondents (204-1) themselves. Self-enumeration may take the form of a mail census 13.

  • 1. Enumeration, n. - enumerate, v.
  • 2. Count, n. - count, v.
  • 3. List, n. - list, v.
  • 4. Survey, n. - survey, v.

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