Abstract
In order to show that harmonisation should not be confused with translation, this chapter begins with a presentation of state-of-the art questionnaire translation guidelines. This is followed by an explanation of what socio-demographic variables are, and why they cannot be translated, but must be harmonised. The centrepiece of the chapter is a description of the route from the national and cultural concepts and structures behind background variables to a measurement instrument suitable for application in cross-national comparative research. Additional clarity is provided by using the education variable as an illustrative example. The chapter concludes with eight rules that should be observed during the harmonisation process.
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Hoffmeyer-Zlotnik, J.H.P., Warner, U. (2014). The Harmonisation Process: Harmonisation Is Not Translation. In: Harmonising Demographic and Socio-Economic Variables for Cross-National Comparative Survey Research. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7238-0_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7238-0_2
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