On conducting diary-based social contact surveys to inform transmission models of close-contact infections: a systematic review and expert-informed questionnaire

Background: Diary-based social contact surveys are widely used to parameterise transmission models of close-contact infections. However, variation in study design, contact definitions, and questionnaire content limits comparability across studies. These challenges became particularly evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when rapid and repeated data collection was urgently needed, often without harmonised instruments. To address these challenges, we aimed to develop an expert-informed questionnaire and update the recommendations on conducting diary-based social contact studies previously propo

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