The team of Open Society Institute-Sofia is specialized in developing and conducting complex, customized and innovative surveys. Combining a wide range of tools, the Institute’s sociologists and experts conduct surveys on a number of public life issues, including: survey of political and economic attitudes; civil society and civil rights; interethnic relations; social distances; public policies; early child development; school education; university education; public health; media environment; public order; judicial reform, etc. Some of the tools used are:
- Standardized face-to-face interview;
- Individual questionnaire;
- Development of online surveys;
- Desk research;
- Content analysis;
- Direct observation;
- Participant observation;
- Mental mapping;
- Focus group discussion;
- In-depth interviewing;
- Exit poll;
- Quick count, etc.;
- Specially developed tools for early child development observation (the team is trained to work with the IDELA tool);
- Specially developed tools for researching cognitive and non-cognitive skills.
OSI-Sofia initiates and participates actively in international consortia carrying out parallel, comparative and supplementary studies or studies analyzing data for two or more European countries.
The Institute has a well-developed and maintained network of interviewers and is able to perform large scale surveys covering over 25 000 respondents.
Highly specialized experts analyze the data from the surveys and prepare in-depth reports about the results.
Selected research contracts:
- Ready for School (2014) and Ready for School – Phase 2 (2015), ordered by the World Bank;
- SABER – Systems Approach for Better Education Results — Workforce Development“ (2012-2014) , ordered by the World Bank;
- BLISS-Bulgarian Longitudinal Inclusive Society Survey (2013-2015), ordered by the World Bank;
- Data Transfer and Exchange of Good Practices between Romania, Bulgaria, Spain and Italy regarding the inclusion of Roma population (2010-2012);
- WHO – Increasing Immunization Coverage – Study of Programmes for Vaccination/Encouraging Voluntary Immunization among Vulnerable Groups in Bulgaria (2012-2013);
- Equality – Equality as a Path to Progress – as per a grant agreement between the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy and EC, cofounded under PROGRESS programme (2010-2011);
- Conducting a long-term survey on the Impact of the Economic Crisis on Bulgarian Households (2010-2011), ordered by the World Bank;
- Facilitating Educational Integration and Quality in the Countries of Southeastern Europe (2009-2010), ordered by CEPS, Slovenia;
- Performing a long-term survey on The Impact of the Economic Crisis on Bulgarian Households (23/10/2009 – 31/12/2009), ordered by UNICEF Bulgaria.
