Influence of an invittion to answer by telephone on response to census questionnaires

Previous research has shown that people prefer different survey modes as a means of responding to the request to be surveyed. It has also been shown that switching survey modes in follow-up reminders can improve survey response rates. An experimental test was made of whether completion rates for a c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Public opinion quarterly 1994-12, Vol.58 (4), p.557
Main Authors: Dillman, Don A, West, Kirsten K, Clark, Jon R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Censuses
Data collection
Methods
Polls & surveys
Questionnaires
Social research
Statistical analysis
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Previous research has shown that people prefer different survey modes as a means of responding to the request to be surveyed. It has also been shown that switching survey modes in follow-up reminders can improve survey response rates. An experimental test was made of whether completion rates for a census questionnaire could be improved by offering the option of calling a toll-free number and providing the requested information to an interviewer as an alternative to mailing it back. The context for examining this issue was a 1993 National Test Census conducted by the US Census Bureau. Conducted on a national probability sample of households, 5 treatment panels were created to examine the effect of delivering, in different ways, the invitation to respond by telephone or mail. Offering such invitations did not improve completion rates except when included with a follow-up letter that did not also include a replacement questionnaire.
ISSN:0033-362X
1537-5331