Report on the use of sampling frames in European studies

Obtaining good probability samples is a key challenge for European cross-national studies in order to represent the population. This report gives an overview of the sampling frames which are used in countries participating in the four cross-European surveys cooperating in SERISS: the European Social Survey (ESS), the European Values Study (EVS), the Gender and Generations Program (GGP), and the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). The overview will show where possibilities exist to jointly build and share sampling frames and where studies not using an existing population register can profit from the experience of other studies which do have access to such a register in the same country. It provides a valuable knowledge database of national sampling procedures and accessible population registers across Europe and in addition offers a way to improve harmonization of sampling frames and sample data across European surveys.