Eliciting Legal Status Through Social Media Surveys Among Immigrants—Evidence from a List Experiment, Direct Question and Stepwise Exclusion

IF 5.3 2区社会学 Q1 SOCIAL SCIENCES, MATHEMATICAL METHODS

Sociological Methods & Research Pub Date : 2026-05-13 DOI:10.1177/00491241261444957

Jasper Tjaden, Alejandra Rodríguez-Sánchez, Jennifer Van Hook, Hannah Persaud

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Abstract

Estimating the size of the undocumented migrant population remains a critical challenge for researchers and policymakers. This study assesses the viability of using social media platforms, specifically Facebook and Instagram, to recruit a survey sample of migrants and elicit their status. The research focuses on Mexican and Venezuelan immigrants in Texas, Florida, Illinois, and California. Three methods for eliciting legal status are tested: direct questions, indirect sequential questions (stepwise exclusion), and a list experiment. The study ( N = 2,027) finds that while social media recruitment is cost-effective and rapid, it faces challenges such as selection bias, misclassification, and platform-imposed restrictions. The list experiment suggests the presence of response bias in traditional surveys to sensitive legal status questions. Estimates of the share of undocumented migrants deviate considerably from available reference estimates. We argue that social media surveys are best applied in preparation for traditional surveys rather than in their place.

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通过社交媒体调查获取移民的法律地位——来自清单实验、直接提问和逐步排除的证据

估计无证移民人口的规模仍然是研究人员和政策制定者面临的一个重大挑战。本研究评估了使用社交媒体平台（特别是Facebook和Instagram）招募移民调查样本并了解其状况的可行性。这项研究的重点是德克萨斯州、佛罗里达州、伊利诺伊州和加利福尼亚州的墨西哥和委内瑞拉移民。测试了三种引出法律地位的方法：直接问题、间接顺序问题（逐步排除）和列表实验。该研究（N = 2027）发现，尽管社交媒体招聘具有成本效益和快速，但它面临着选择偏见、错误分类和平台限制等挑战。列表实验表明，传统调查在敏感的法律地位问题上存在反应偏差。对无证件移徙者所占比例的估计与现有的参考估计数相差很大。我们认为，社交媒体调查最好是为传统调查做准备，而不是代替传统调查。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Sociological Methods & Research Multiple-

CiteScore

16.30

自引率

3.20%

发文量

期刊介绍： Sociological Methods & Research is a quarterly journal devoted to sociology as a cumulative empirical science. The objectives of SMR are multiple, but emphasis is placed on articles that advance the understanding of the field through systematic presentations that clarify methodological problems and assist in ordering the known facts in an area. Review articles will be published, particularly those that emphasize a critical analysis of the status of the arts, but original presentations that are broadly based and provide new research will also be published. Intrinsically, SMR is viewed as substantive journal but one that is highly focused on the assessment of the scientific status of sociology. The scope is broad and flexible, and authors are invited to correspond with the editors about the appropriateness of their articles.