Dr. John F. Edwards directs the Survey Research Laboratory (SRL) at the Social Science Research Center. The SRL has been conducting scientifically-based survey research for nearly 40 years. Surveys administered by the SRL cover a broad range of topics such as healthcare, education, behavioral risk factors, children’s wellbeing, quality of life, and disaster response. Past and present funders include Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as well as numerous universities, NGOs, and foundations. The SRL regularly conducts telephone, web, and paper-based surveys. For telephone surveys, the laboratory maintains a state‐of‐the‐art call center with 30 interviewer call stations that utilizes a robust CATI (computer‐assisted‐telephone‐interviewing) system. The data collection projects are based on rigorous sampling methodology. The SRL regularly employs both address‐based frames and dual‐frame, random-digit-dialing samples that account for cellphone‐only households. In addition to his work at the Social Science Research Center, Dr. Edwards has taught courses in Research Methods, Measurement and Evaluation, Behavioral Science Writing, and Personality Theory. Dr. Edwards received a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Loyola University in New Orleans, a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of New Orleans, a Master’s degree in Experimental Psychology from Mississippi State University, and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Psychology from Mississippi State University.

Dr. Edwards's work is supported in part by MAFES.