Established in 1941, NORC was unique among survey research organizations. Instead of collecting, analyzing, and reporting commercially motivated opinion polling data—the typical national survey practice at that time—NORC’s mission was to pursue objective research that served a broadly conceived public interest. NORC’s early survey work provided the first rigorous empirical standard against which to calibrate the beliefs of policy makers claiming to represent and respond to "the people’s will" on vital issues of the day. NORC was also a pioneer in improving the speed and accuracy of surveys through electronic technologies. And NORC led in the development of survey methodology as a field of study and progress in its own right.

For over 50 years, NORC has pioneered studies in health, education, labor, mental health, housing, alcohol and drug abuse, and other areas of public policy interest. These studies have included program evaluation, social experiments, needs assessments, and epidemiological case control designs. NORC has monitored the attitudes and behavior of the U.S. population in social indicator studies, most notably through the General Social Survey, which has been fielded 20 times since 1972. Social scientists and statisticians at NORC have also been in the forefront of the study of survey research methodology.