Research Topics:

Data Quality | Recruiting-Qualitative | Recruiting-Quantitative

Content Type:

Glossary

Eligibility Criteria Definition

Specified characteristics that potential participants must possess in order to be involved in a given research project.

Eligibility criteria are the specific characteristics, attributes or qualifications that potential participants must possess to be considered as suitable participants for a given research study, trial or survey. These requirements are designed to make certain that participants in a trial are similar in terms of specific demographic and experiential factors. In other worlds, the criteria defines the target audience or sample from which researchers want to gather. Eligibility criteria help ensure that the collected data is relevant to the research objectives and that the research is credible and relevant. What’s more, it prevents participants who don't align with the intended audience from being included, thus reducing the risk of biased or misleading findings.

Who relies on eligibility criteria?

Marketing researchers, analysts and professionals use eligibility criteria when designing and conducting research projects. That’s because the requirements help them select the right participants for the study. Businesses, marketing agencies and organizations seeking marketplace insights establish eligibility criteria to collect accurate and applicable data.

Why should I care about eligibility criteria?

Eligibility criteria directly impacts the quality and validity of research insights because using appropriate study participants strengthens a study’s overall integrity. Understanding eligibility criteria allows marketing and business professionals to gain insights from research that are applicable to target audiences. What’s more, accurate eligibility criteria allows studies to be replicated, as other researchers can apply similar criteria in different settings.