Born in New York City in 1920, Dinerman received her education at Hunter College and Columbia University.^[1] Later, she worked as a researcher in the United States Office of War Information^[2] and trained at the Bureau for Applied Social Research,^[1] the first academic research centre dedicated to survey research,^[3] founded by Paul Lazarsfeld in 1944.^[4] She began working with the International Research Associates in 1948, and became chairman of the firm's executive committee in 1968.^[2]

Dinerman died in Emanuel Hospital^[5] in Portland, Oregon on August 14, 1974, while on holiday with her daughter.^[1]

In 1981, the World Association for Public Opinion Research established the Helen Dinerman Award – "in memory of Helen Dinerman's scientific achievements over three decades of public opinion research" – to recognize individuals who have made "significant contributions to survey research methodology".^[6]

• Lazarsfeld, Paul, and Helen Dinerman (1949). "Research for Action". In Paul F. Lazarsfeld and Frank M. Stanton (ed.). Communications Research, 1948–49. New York: Harper & Brothers. pp. 73–108.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Cooper, Eunice; Helen Dinerman (1951). "Analysis of the Film "Don't Be a Sucker": A Study in Communication". Public Opinion Quarterly. 15 (2): 243–64. doi:10.1086/266306. JSTOR 2746167.