RAPID: SEAN COVID-19 Survey Archive

Project Outcomes Statement

The SEAN COVID-19 Survey Archive and Weekly Summary project was created to put survey research on the coronavirus pandemic into the hands of people who need it -- policymakers, their advisers, researchers, journalists and the public at large. We collect reliable, representative surveys from more than 150 leading research organizations across the United States and internationally and archive them in a fully searchable, public-access website, https://covid-19.parc.us.com. We also write weekly summaries of each week's newly released pandemic-related surveys, with links back to the source materials and distribution to early 6,000 recipients.

To date, the archive includes more than 1,500 individual studies and 20,000 survey questions, as well as related materials such as questionnaires, analytical reports, tabulated data and, for nearly 400 of these projects, raw datasets that the research community can use for additional analysis. The project, running continuously since April 2020, provides an essential window into public attitudes, policy preferences. experiences and behavior as the pandemic has unfolded.

Survey results across pandemic-related policy issues are included. Examples include vaccine uptake and hesitancy; preventive behaviors such as mask wearing and social distancing; trust in information and institutions seeking to address the pandemic; its impacts on education, commerce and the workforce; and its social, emotional, health, economic and political consequences.

The project supports investigation into pandemic-related policy issues in all their diversity. At last count, the archive included, for example, 1,866 individual questions asking about vaccines and vaccination; 1,110 on concern or worry about various aspects of the pandemic; 677 on testing; 561 on mask wearing or mask policies; 443 on mental health or emotional well-being; 317 on distancing; and so forth. Each question is linked to all source materials associated with that survey. Individuals seeking to inform their judgment on any pandemic-related topic can quickly search and locate the relevant information they need -- whether to gain insight from existing data, produce new secondary analysis, craft their own questionnaires or for other uses.

The weekly summary, for its part, offers a synthesis of each week's new pandemic survey results (and in some cases other relevant studies), grouped thematically. Sections in one recent typical report included pandemic concerns and outlooks; vaccine uptake and attitudes; safety, masks and misinformation; air travel; vaccine safety and efficacy among children; vaccination during pregnancy; employment; forgone medical care; vaccine lotteries; Omicron severity; and international results. Summaries average nine pages in length, including charts and, as noted, links to source materials.

While the archive offers a comprehensive historical record of pandemic surveys, with underlying data as available, the weekly summary provides an ongoing narrative of each week's latest results, putting interested parties in touch with the latest survey reports on the pandemic. This work, as of Feb. 28, 2022, consists of 100 consecutive weekly summaries reporting on the pandemic from its early days to the present time.