MRS Silver Medal 2026

The finalists for the best paper published by the International Journal of Market Research last year have been announced, recognising academic and practitioner authors with affiliations in America, Australia, England, Germany Spain and New Zealand. More information about the papers is below.

Photos requests in surveys: Comparing in-the-moment and conventional approaches by Carlos Ochoa and Melanie Revilla, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain.

Technological advancements have introduced innovative approaches to survey data collection, including replacing traditional questions with visual data and intercepting respondents in real time based on their geolocation. This study evaluates the effectiveness of combining these methods. Members from the Netquest geolocated panel in Spain were invited to take part in an “in-the-moment” survey one hour after their visit to beaches. 450 panellists completed the survey either while still on-site or shortly afterward. Participants were asked to upload photos of the beach and sunscreen used. A similar sized sample of beach visitors during the same period completed a conventional (retrospective) survey, providing equivalent information. Levels of participation, as well as the quantity and quality of information, were compared across on-site, post-visit, and conventional participants.

On-site participants exhibited the highest levels of participation, particularly for uploading beach photos. However, overall participation remained low, especially for sunscreen photos, where on-site participants notably experienced comprehension issues with the instructions. The quantity and quality of information were similar across groups, but metadata discrepancies (e.g., mismatched photo capture dates) were significantly lower among on-site and post-visit participants, highlighting the benefits of closer temporal proximity to the event. Notably, many participants across all groups shared identifiable personal information (e.g., faces of individuals), despite being instructed to avoid doing so, emphasising the need for researchers to ensure proper handling of such data.

Contextual factors, such as survey timing and design, had a greater impact on participation and data quality than demographic or behavioural traits. These findings underscore the potential of in-the-moment surveys for collecting accurate, event-specific visual data, while emphasising the need for user-friendly interfaces and robust privacy safeguards.

The role of market research in pack redesign performance by William Caruso, Jenni Romaniuk, Bill Page, Zachary William Anesbury, UniSA Business, Australia and John Williams Otago Business School, New Zealand.

The visual design of consumer-packaged products is crucial for brand success, as consumers learn to recognise pack styles and look for these in buying situations. Therefore, any pack redesign is risky, as the change could interfere with consumers’ ability to find and buy the brand. Market research is often undertaken to reduce the risk of poor pack redesign decisions. Many different approaches are available, meaning marketers must select an appropriate method to increase the chance of pack redesign success. As such, this paper investigates the role of market research in packaging redesign performance.

We examined data collected via an online survey with 227 marketers who were asked questions about the last pack redesign they were involved with within the previous two years. The findings challenge the assumption that conducting pack redesign research will boost its success. Notably, commonly used methods and metrics, such as focus groups or brand attitudes, are associated with less successful outcomes. In contrast, testing that identifies and suggests elements to retain in an existing pack design, that consumers link with the brand proves promising, as it is linked to more successful pack redesigns.

Using Live Video Interviews for Difficult Questionnaires on Social Networks by Henning Silber, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Theresia Ell, Lydia Repke and Bernd Weiβ, Department of Survey Design and Methodology, GESIS – Lebiniz Institute for the Social Sciences and Alexandru Cernat, Department of Social Statistics, University of Manchester.

Collecting survey data via live video interviewing is a relatively new methodology, which received increased attention during the COVID-19. While many surveys switched from face to-face interviews to online self-administration, this approach was unsuitable for complex questionnaires requiring interviewer assistance to guide respondents through the answering process.

This study focuses on the collection of egocentric social network data as an example of such a challenging questionnaire. This process involves respondents providing detailed information on their extensive social networks comprising twenty or more social contacts, including the elicitation of the network members, follow-up questions about those contacts, and questions about their relationships. Due to the high response burden, self-administration can lead to measurement errors such as underreporting network sizes or even respondent dropout. This study is the first to explore the use of live video interviewing for quantitative social network research by investigating three research questions related to nonresponse bias, participation motives, and interview experience.

Leveraging a sample drawn from an established German probability panel, we compared a series of relevant measures between participants and nonparticipants at different stages of the participation process. We found significant differences in demographics (i.e., education), personality (i.e., conscientiousness), and attitudes toward surveys between these groups. The main motives for participation were the study’s purpose and topic. Notably, while both respondents and interviewers reported favourable interview experiences, the multi-step participation process, which required potential respondents to schedule an appointment for the interview, resulted in a response rate of only 16.8%.

Together, the findings suggest that live video interviewing holds considerable promise as a survey administration mode for egocentric social network research and other applications. However, addressing the challenge of overcoming low response rates remains a priority in future methodological research.

Votes at 16 in the UK: Opportunities and Ethical Challenges for the Hard-to-Reach and Seldom-Heard Youth Segment by Christopher Pich, Nottingham University Business School, Kirstina Harrison, Kelley School of Business, Indiana University and Guja Armannsottir, Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Trent University.

In July 2025, the UK Government extended voting rights to 16 and 17-year-olds, enfranchising approximately 1.5 million young citizens. While widely seen as a milestone for democratic renewal, this reform raises pressing questions about how to engage newly enfranchised voters, often characterized as hard-to-reach or seldom-heard. Traditional methods such as surveys and adult-led focus groups frequently underperform with this group, risking misrepresentation and low participation.

This paper advances methodological innovations for researching young people in ways that are authentic, ethical, and transferable to broader market research contexts. A case study of Jersey, which lowered its voting age in 2008 yet continues to face low turnout among youth, illustrates both persistent barriers and emerging opportunities. Findings show that young people are interested in issues, crave impartial information, value genuine interaction with decision-makers, and appreciate opportunities to be heard. Creative methods including projective storytelling, gamified polling, participatory digital ethnography, and peer-led groups proved effective in eliciting richer insights and building trust. The paper positions young people as co-creators of engagement rather than passive subjects and outlines practical strategies for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners.

Beyond politics, these lessons highlight how methodological innovation can help market researchers reach elusive consumer groups across commercial and social contexts.

Fellows and Certified Members can read these papers online today via the IJMR website. Other Members can request copies by emailing membership@mrs.org.uk.

The winning paper will be announced at the MRS Excellence Awards lunch on 5 June.