Blanka Szeitl

Survey Methodologist

About me

I’m a survey methodologist working in both academic and private sectors. My main interest is in how to collect survey data in the changing social and technological environment. I teach both undergraduate and graduate students, and I have a dog named Fanta, who never misses my online classes. I’m also passionate about the history of statistics and enjoy collecting books related to the field.

Sumary

Blanka Veronika Szeitl

  • Budapest, Hungary
  • szeitl.blanka[at]tatk.elte.hu

Education

PhD in Applied Mathematics

2017 - 2024

Bolyai Institute, Faculty of Science and Informatics, University of Szeged

At the Doctoral School of Mathematics I combined survey methodology with mathematical techniques. Courses I have completed: analysis, measure theory, applied statistics, probability theory, integral theory and mathematical data science.

Thesis: Surveying the human population - errors and their corrections.
Supervisor: Tamás Rudas

Click here to read my thesis (in English) and here to see my presentation from the public defense (in Hungarian).

MSc in Survey Statistics

2012 - 2015

Faculty of Social Sciences, ELTE

Thesis: Controlling spatial differences in the Hungarian household structure with the Kish grid
Supervisor: Tamás Rudas, PhD

In my master thesis, I have re-calculated the Kish grid household selection method based on the latest census data. The new method gives a distribution more similar to the population demographic distribution. The thesis was invited to the Young Statistician Meeting (Austria, 2015).

ELTE Angelusz Róbert Collage for Advanced Studies

2012 - 2015

Faculty of Social Sciences, ELTE

BA in Sociology

2008 - 2012

Faculty of Social Sciences, ELTE

Professional Experience

Assistant Lecturer

2020 - Present

Bolyai Institute, University of Szeged

Department of Statistics, Faculty of Social Sciences, ELTE

Research Fellow

2021 - Present

HUN-REN Center for Social Sciences

Researcher and data analyst

2013 - 2020

TÁRKI Social Research Institute

This is where I started my professional career, and I had the opportunity to gain relevant experience in various data collection methods, as well as practical knowledge in coordinating data collections and survey projects.
My main projects, tasks and roles were:
  • International survey coordinator: PrivMort, The Impact of Privatization on Mortality in Russia, Belorussia and Hungary. ERC Grant (Project No. 269036). Coordinating fieldwork, sampling and weighting processes in Russia (sample size: 24.000), Belorussia (sample size: 16.000) and Hungary (sample size: 24.000). Standardizing datasets, and ensuring high quality of the data. Data processing and reporting.
  • Sampling and weighting expert for Hungarian fieldworks: European Social Survey, International Social Survey Programme, SHARE- Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, ISCWeB-International Survey of Children's Well-Being
  • Project coordinator: General fieldwork management and data processes of regular party preference, and 'Omnibus' surveys, CAPI, CATI, CAWI, PAPI surveys and qualitative research methods in different topics in social research. General fieldwork management and data processes of market research: preparing market research reports and analysis on products, markets, companies and industries.

Research

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ELTE Survey Methods Room Budapest research group

I founded the research group in 2023 at the Faculty of Social Sciences, ELTE. Our research aims to provide methodological insights that can guide researchers in their work. Since then, we have been running several funded projects each year, offering undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to participate and gain hands-on experience in research.

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European Social Survey Sampling and Weighting Expert Panel (SWEP)

The aim of the ESS is to provide high quality data measuring change and stability over time within and between European countries in their living conditions, social structure, public opinion and attitudes, while practising and promoting the highest scientific standards in cross-national comparative research in the social sciences. At SWEP I'm responsible for the sampling strategy of seven European countries.

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European Social Survey Hungarian NC team

At HUN-REN Institute of Sociology, the European Social Survey Hungarian NC team works on methodological research regarding data collection methods. Here, we conduct methodological experiments and analyses. Every year, we launch an internship program, where I personally work with the students participating in the program.

Teaching

Survey Statistics and Data Analytics MSc

  • Data collection and sampling
    • This course is a lecture on the basics of survey data collection and sampling with a special focus on the Total Survey Error framework, and the effects of the different data collection methods.
  • Data analytics I.
    • This is a joint class that I am co-teaching with Renáta Németh. My part focuses on General Linear Models and Multilevel Modeling.
  • Data processing
    • This is a joint class that I am co-teaching with Annamária Tátrai. My part focuses on post-stratification, and controling for unit-nonresponse and measurement error.

Informatics BSc

  • Introduction to Stochastic Methods
    • Topics: Basic concepts of probability theory; operations with events; basic properties of probability, limit theorems, and conditional probability; discrete and continuous random variables; Markov and Csebisev inequalities; the laws of large numbers; Central limit theorem; basic problems in mathematical statistics; parameter estimation using the maximum likelihood method; the linear regression model; the method of least squares; confidence intervals; hypothesis testing.
  • Applied Statistics
    • Introduction to R Studio, descriptive statistics and hypothesis testing.

Sociology BA

  • Statistics II.
    • Topics: Basic concepts of probability theory; operations with events; basic properties of probability, limit theorems, and conditional probability; discrete and continuous random variables; descriptive statistics and hypothesis testing. In this course we work in Excel and SPSS.
  • Project course
    • In this course, students are divided into teams and carry out a mini research project, from the concept of the project and research questions to the data analysis.
  • Social Statistics
    • Topics: Basic concepts of data and official statistics. Discrete and continuous random variables; descriptive statistics and hypothesis testing. In this course we work in Excel and SPSS.

Publications

You can find a list of my publications below.

Google Scholar | Researchgate | MTMT



Manuscripts in progress

  • Szeitl, B., Messing, V., és Ságvári, B.: Respondings as expected? The effects of survey mode on estimates of sensitive attitudes in self-completion and face-to-face interviews of the European Social Survey.

  • Szeitl, B. és Rudas, T.: Assessing survey quality with a replication survey: nonresponse uncertainty and measurement uncertainty in the ESS

  • Buda, J., Hajdu, G., Szeitl, B., Janky, B.: A new method for the imputation of key indicators based on separate high-quality survey data

Selected publications

  • Szeitl B. - Fellner Z. (2023) From small gaps to errors: biasing estimates from online surveys based on the characteristics of the Hungarian population (in Hungarian) SOCIO.HU : TÁRSADALOMTUDOMÁNYI SZEMLE 13 : 3 pp. 1-19. , 19 p. (full text)

  • Szeitl B. - Rudas T. (2022) Reducing variance with sample allocation based on expected response rates in stratified sample designs JOURNAL OF SURVEY STATISTICS AND METHODOLOGY 10 : 4 pp. 1107-1120. , 14 p. (full text)

  • Nagy-Borsy E. - Vági Zs. - Skerlecz P. - Szeitl B. - Kiss I. - Rákosy Zs. (2021) Health status and health behaviour of the Hungarian homeless people ARCHIVES OF PUBLIC HEALTH 79 : 1 Paper: 15 , 12 p. (full text)

  • Simonovits G. - Kates S. - Szeitl B. (2019) Local Economic Shocks and National Election Outcomes: Evidence from Hungarian Administrative Data POLITICAL BEHAVIOR 41 : 2 pp. 337-348. , 12 p. (full text)

Conferences/Workshops

2025

  • 65th ISI World Statistics Congress (The Hague, The Netherlands):
    Blanka Szeitl - Tamás Rudas: Measurement uncertainty and the theory of entropy in survey statistics (accepted)

  • European Survey Research Association (ESRA, Utrecht, The Netherlands):
    Blanka Szeitl - Tamás Rudas: Assessing survey quality with replication surveys: theory and case study (accepted)

2024

  • Comparative Survey Design and Implementation (CSDI) Workshop (Berlin, Germany):
    Gergely Horzsa - Blanka Szeitl: Sampling innovations and data collection challenges in probability panels.

  • General Online Research Conference (GOR, Cologne, Germany):
    Blanka Szeitl: Probability theory in survey methods (holding a workshop)
    Description of the workshop: The workshop explored the role of probability theory in the development and evaluation of new data collection techniques in survey research, an area that advanced rapidly. As survey research progressed, understanding the fundamentals of probability theory became increasingly essential. We highlighted the core principles of probability theory and examined their connection to the evolution of survey research in both academic and business contexts. The topics were illustrated with examples, simulations, brief proofs, and calculations relevant to applying and assessing innovative methods. The course objectives were: 1) to explore the relationship between probability theory and the application of new methods in survey research, 2) to provide a systematic overview of mathematical tools used in mixed-method surveys, and 3) to demonstrate the relevance of probability theory in this field.

  • General Online Research Conference (GOR, Cologne, Germany):
    Gergely Horzsa - Blanka Szeitl: Probability-based online and mixed-method panels from a data quality perspective

  • General Online Research Conference (GOR, Cologne, Germany):
    Blanka Szeitl, Vera Messing, Ádám Stefkovics, Bence Ságvári: Recruiting online panel through face-to-face and push-to-web surveys.

  • Conference in Applied Mathematics (Szeged, Hungary):
    Blanka Szeitl - Tamás Rudas: Mérési hiba és az entrópia fogalma a survey statisztikában (Poster section, in Hungarian)

2023

  • European Survey Research Association (ESRA, Milan, Italy):
    Blanka Szeitl: The risk of nonresponse bias in online surveys.

  • Worshop on Methods for Survey Data Collection, Hungarian Central Statistical Office (Budapest, Hungary):
    Zita Fellner - Blanka Szeitl: Az online survey adatgyűjtésekből származó becslések torzítása a magyar lakosság jellemzői alapján (in Hungarian).

2022

  • Workshop on Survey Climate and Trust in Scientific Surveys, University of Kassel (online):
    Zita Fellner - Blanka Szeitl: The prevalence and potential bias of online surveys.

  • General Online Research Conference (GOR, Berlin, Gemany):
    Blanka Szeitl - Tamás Rudas: Quantifying nonresponse and measurement uncertainty in surveys based on a replication of the European Social Survey.

2019

  • European Young Statistician Meeting (EYSM, Belgrade, Serbia):
    Blanka Szeitl - Tamás Rudas: Controlling Unit-Nonresponse Bias During Within-Household Selection.

  • European Survey Research Association (ESRA, Zagreb, Croatia):
    Blanka Szeitl - Tamás Rudas: Controlling Unit-Nonresponse Bias During Within-Household Selection.

About My Company

I'm co-founder of Panelstory, the first probability-based online panel in Hungary.
I am very proud of how we have worked together over the past years.

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Panelstory Opinion Polls & Market Research

Our panel is recruited with an address-based random sample, which we make available for market research and general public opinion research purposes. Additionally, we provide various market research tools for data-driven decision-making on all types of business questions.

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