The project's principal aim was to learn about the life in the Soviet Union, which in turn would contribute to the disciplines of Sovietology, political science, economics and sociology.
[3] The Kissinger rule was revoked after a successful lobbying effort, and a design phase proposal was funded by the National Council for Soviet and East European Research in November 1979.
The coordinating agency within the U.S. federal government was the Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR) of the U.S. Department of State.
The team completed the draft of a general survey for the project in September 1981, developing an interdisciplinary questionnaire.
[4] The sampling frame for the SIP general survey was defined as all Soviet emigrants who arrived in the United States between January 1, 1979 and April 30, 1982, and who were between ages 21 and 70.