The aim of the workshop is to foster discussion and initiate methodological research specific to the collection of panel survey data. The format of the meeting will be informal, designed to encourage interaction and collaboration. Presentations will be limited to a 10 minute summary of key findings or ideas, in order to allow generous time for discussion. All participants will have had a chance to study materials in advance, as presenters will be asked to circulate a short handout (no more than 8 pages) before the workshop. The handout should provide background information upon which the presentation will be built. Participants will be expected to read the background papers in preparation for the workshop. One person from each panel study represented at the workshop will be invited to also provide a 2-page summary of the recent and planned key methodological developments and these will be circulated prior to the workshop. The meeting will end with a brainstorming session, to identify a research agenda of the key issues.

The focus is on surveys that involve collecting data from subjects on multiple occasions (panel surveys). Note that the workshop is concerned with the data collection methods used by such surveys, not with the substantive findings. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Measurement error, including panel conditioning, seam effects, recall error, and dependent interviewing;
• Mixed mode data collection, including effects on cost, measurement error, attrition, and logistics and methods for identifying selection versus measurement effects;
• Attrition and nonresponse, including effects of survey design features, assessment of bias, methods to minimize effects, and adjustment methods (weighting and imputation);
• Role of interviewers in longitudinal surveys;
• Methodological challenges of cross-national longitudinal data;
• Paradata, including collection and use in longitudinal surveys;
• Sampling issues, including refreshment sampling and following rules;
• Use of administrative data in longitudinal surveys; and
• Other innovations in longitudinal surveys, including biomarkers, online panels, use of new technologies, linking data sources, consent issues, and experimental designs.