Azdren Coma, PhD, is a survey methodologist and a survey researcher for the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. Coma develops and designs methodological experiments conducted through CHIS to test new approaches for improving data quality and survey performance. He also conducts survey pretesting, including questionnaire testing and cognitive interviews; reviews CHIS methodology reports; updates the survey’s “What's New” and sampling documentation; and writes reports and papers for publication. 

Before joining CHIS, Coma held several positions at Washington State University's Social and Economic Sciences Research Center (SESRC). As a survey design consultant, he advised on projects for academic, nonprofit, and government clients, guiding questionnaire design, sampling, mode selection, and reducing total survey error. As a research assistant and program evaluator in SESRC's Puget Sound office, he designed and programmed surveys, analyzed quantitative and qualitative data, and co-authored evaluation reports for more than 10 National Science Foundation-funded STEM education programs. He also led a data integration project combining 20 years of Washington boating accident data, with findings presented to the Washington State Legislature. His research has been published in The Sociological Quarterly and Survey Practice. 

Coma has a PhD and a master's degree in sociology from Washington State University, where he trained under Don A. Dillman, PhD. Coma’s dissertation examined public support for climate change mitigation and adaptation policy in the United States, with an emphasis on methodological rigor in survey research. He also has a bachelor's degree in sociology from Rutgers University.