The series Mad Men (now streaming on Netflix, FYI) has some great references to social science and psychological research. In S1 E6, Sterling Cooper's in-house researcher (who of course is a stereotypical "unaffected" German woman and studied under Carl Jung) is running a focus group on women's lipstick preferences. Despite the horribly unethical behavior of the girl-crazy male employees watching the session, the scene is priceless for this survey-relevant exchange.
Researcher (in her clinical Deutsch-Forscher tone): How many lipsticks do you own?
Participant: Gee, I don't know. I'd have to go home and count.
Researcher: Do you match your lip color to your clothing or to your accessories?
Joan (empathizing with visually distressed participant): I know this seems like a loaded question.
Researcher: It is UNloaded and I insist you curb your editorial comments.
Participant (assuming she can't answer "neither" or refuse): Sometimes I match it to my nail polish?
Watch the scene in full and tell me if you think Joan teaches us anything about the importance of rapport in gaining participant cooperation. The portrayal of German researchers certainly doesn't match what I know from my German friends and colleagues...well, not EXACTLY anyway. ;)
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