Cross-sectional study
In medical research, epidemiology, social science, and biology, a cross-sectional study (also known as a cross-sectional analysis, transverse study, prevalence study) is a type of research design that analyzes data from a population, or a representative subset, at a specific point in time—that is, cross-sectional data. In economics, cross-sectional studies typically involve the use of cross-sectional regression, in order to sort out the existence and magnitude of causal effects of one independent variable upon a dependent variable of interest at a given point in time.