Respondent error

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In survey sampling, respondent error refers to any error introduced into the survey results due to respondents providing untrue or incorrect information.{{cite book |last1=Biemer |first1=Paul |last2=Stokes |first2=S. Lynne |date=2004-08-10 |chapter=Approaches to the Modeling of Measurement Errors |chapter-url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9781118150382.ch24 |title=Measurement Errors in Surveys |series=Wiley Series in Probability and Statistics |pages=485–516 |doi=10.1002/9781118150382.ch24 |isbn=978-0-471-53405-1 |issn=1940-6347}} It is a type of systemic bias.

Language and educational issues can lead to a misunderstanding of the question by the respondent, or similarly, a misunderstanding of the response by the surveyor. Recall bias can lead to misinformation based on a respondent misrecalling the facts in question. Social desirability bias can lead a respondent to respond in a fashion that he or she thinks is correct or better or less embarrassing, rather than providing true and honest responses.