Examining Factors Impacting Online Survey Response Rates in Educational Research: Perceptions of Graduate Students

Background: In educational research, online survey has become one of the most popular methods of data collection. Academic researchers, including faculty and students, expect and require a good response rate to their research projects for reliable results. Purpose: In this paper, the authors examine a wide range of factors related to survey response rates in academic research. Examples include email checking habits, survey design, and attitudes toward research. Setting: An online survey environment Intervention: Not applicable. Research Design:  A cross-sectional quantitative research method was used to analyze the factors that influence participants’ email survey response rate. Data were collected at a single point in time. The authors did not directly measure changes that come over time in this study. Data Collection and Analysis: After receiving the Institutional Research Board’s approval, the researchers distributed the survey via the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Graduate Student Discussion List subscribers. A sample of 454 responses was used in the final analysis-- with a 78.9 % response rate. The authors used descriptive statistics (percentage, average mean) and inferential statistics (chi-square and correlations) to report the data analysis and findings. Findings: Results indicated that research survey response rate was highly influenced by interests of participants, survey structure, communication methods, and assurance of privacy and confidentiality. The findings also suggested that male participants were more likely to respond to surveys if they received a reminder, and older participants were more likely to respond if they were promised a reward. Keywords: academic research; education graduate students; online surveys; postal surveys; survey response rat

The Future of the Internet

Presents findings from a survey of technology leaders, scholars, industry officials, and analysts. Evaluates the network infrastructure's vulnerability to attack, and the Internet's impact on various institutions and activities in the coming decade

Measuring Customer Satisfaction on the Internet

Based on the Expectancy Disconfirmation Model as the underlying construct, methods to measure customer satisfaction with products and the steps to be undertaken in the research process are investigated. The measurement of Derived Satisfaction using (dis)confirmation was identified to be the appropriate approach to CS measurement. Prior research has also shown that during the research process, several points specific to CS measurements need to be accounted for. The Internet services currently used by marketing and social researchers include E-mail, mailinglists, newsgroups, Internet Chat, the World Wide Web (WWW) and Virtual Worlds. Virtual Worlds, being most advantageous for observational studies, are not useful for customer satisfaction research. Virtual Communities, in turn, have some promising characteristics for future use. Internet research methods based on these services include E-mail surveys and WWW-surveys. Common advantages of E-mail- and WWW-surveys include administrative and response speed, cost savings and global reach of respondents. Their greatest common disadvantage is the non-representativeness of the respondents for the larger population as well as their self-selection. Unless access is restricted to a known population, probability sampling is impossible when using the World Wide Web. Based on these insights, the Internet was found to be an advantageous medium for customer satisfaction studies only if specific conditions are met. Companies need to investigate on a case-by-case basis if the online measurement of customer satisfaction is possible in their specific situation. The recommendations were summarized in a decision-making framework. The results of a survey among market research agencies show that practitioners are to a large extent aware of the limitations within which the Internet can be used for customer satisfaction surveys. However, especially WWW-surveys sometimes are conducted in a way that does not lead to representative results.management information;

Effects of Personalization and Invitation Email Length on Web-Based Survey Response Rates

Individual strategies to increase response rate and survey completion have been extensively researched. Recently, efforts have been made to investigate a combination of interventions to yield better response rates for web-based surveys. This study examined the effects of four different survey invitation conditions on response rate. From a large metropolitan university in the West, a group of 1,598 selected students were randomly assigned to four groups, each of which received a different version of the invitation email to participate in a survey of campus technology needs. Findings show that neither the degree of personalization nor the length of the invitation email impacted survey response or completion. Additionally, the outcomes demonstrated the impact of research-based “best practices” and their impact on overall response rate

The effect of the eHealth intervention ‘MyPlan 1.0’ on physical activity in adults who visit general practice : a quasi-experimental trial

Physical inactivity is one of the major risk factors for poor health in the world. Therefore, effective interventions that promote physical activity are needed. Hence, we developed an eHealth intervention for adults, i.e., ‘MyPlan 1.0’, which includes self-regulation techniques for behaviour change. This study examined the effect of ‘MyPlan 1.0’ on physical activity (PA) levels in general practice. 615 adults (≥18 years) were recruited in 19 Flemish general practices, for the intervention group (n = 328) or for the wait-list control group (n = 183). Participants in the intervention group received the web-based intervention ‘MyPlan 1.0’ and were prompted to discuss their personal advice/action plan with their general practitioner. Participants in the wait-list control group only received general advice from the website. Self-reported physical activity was assessed with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) at baseline and after one month. A three-level (general practice, adults, time) regression analysis was conducted in MLwiN. Significant intervention effects were found for total PA and moderate to vigorous PA with an increase for the intervention group compared to a decrease in the control condition. However, there was a high dropout rate in the intervention group (76%) and the wait-list control group (57%). Our self-regulation intervention was effective in increasing physical activity levels in adults. Future studies should consider strategies to prevent the large dropout from participants

Public relations research priorities: a Delphi study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and rank the most important topics for research in the field of public relations. An associated outcome was to propose the research questions most closely linked to the prioritised topics. Design/methodology/approach – An international Delphi study on the priorities for public relations research, conducted in 2007 amongst academics, practitioners and senior executives of professional and industry bodies was used to investigate expert opinion on research priorities for public relations. This choice of qualitative methodology replicated earlier studies by McElreath, White and Blamphin, Synnott and McKie, and Van Ruler et al. Findings – The role of public relations in the strategic operation of organisations, and the creation of value by public relations through social capital and relationships were ranked most highly. Some outcomes were comparable with earlier studies; for instance, evaluation of public relations programmes ranked third in this study and was amongst the leaders in the Synnott and McKie study. Only the topic “management of relationships” was wholly new, whereas “impact of technology on public relations practice and theory” ranked much lower than a decade ago. Research limitations/implications – The Delphi study method is a small scale qualitative process which limits generalisability, unless the choice of “experts” and their active participation can demonstrate that there is validity in its outcomes. Practical implications – The research gives valuable insight into the main public relations research areas and will allow academics and practitioners to work closely together to improve understanding of public relations. Originality/value – This is the first completed Delphi study into public relations research priorities since Synnott and McKie

An experimental study on the impact of contact design on web survey participation

In higher education institutions, web surveys are frequently used for educational, research, and administrative purposes. One of the consequences of this is increasing oversurveying of higher education students, leading to low response rates. This naturally has important implications for the validity of web survey results. Consequently, we set up a methodological experiment at Tilburg University, the Netherlands, whereby the total student population was invited to participate in a web survey in order to investigate which features of contact design can positively influence web survey participation. We particularly focus on subject line content, the communication of deadlines and their timing, as well as the delays between contact moments. The results reveal that students were more likely to respond to a web survey invitation when the subject line is written in the national language in multilingual contexts. Furthermore, although the findings did not indicate an advantage of using a deadline, they also suggested that if a deadline is to be used, a longer deadline might be more beneficial

The Information Behavior of Public Health Educators Working in Appalachia

Public health educators serve as a vital interface between medical and public health authorities and community members for the dissemination of important information related to disease prevention and health promotion. Public health educators deliver packaged educational programs, develop their own original programs, field impromptu health questions, and conduct community health assessments. This dissertation research employed a survey in January 2011 to illuminate the information-related attitudes and activities of health educators working in public health departments in Appalachia. The research questions explored how these health educators find and use information, how they perceive their information needs and their abilities to find and evaluate information related to their work, their satisfaction with the information resources available to them, and the impact of the economic and health status of their county or region on their information behavior. Key findings include that respondents are frequent information seekers with high-speed Internet access, but they need better access to information and data related to their work. Respondents use the web heavily but have concerns about evaluating online information. Information literacy training must accommodate their workflows and budgets. Library resource use is currently low but has the greatest potential for meeting their complex needs. Suggestions include multi-dimensional collaborations between health educators and information professionals and a new, more information-centric role for health educators

Stigma and treatment of eating disorders in Ireland: healthcare professionals' knowledge and attitudes

Objectives: This study examines aspects of health professionals’ knowledge and attitudes about eating disorders (EDs) , which might impede the effective detection or treatment of EDs in Ireland. Methods: 1,916 health professionals were invited to participate in a web-based survey. Participants were randomly allocated to view one of five vignettes depicting a young person with symptoms consistent with Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder, Depression or Type 1 Diabetes. Study-specific questions examined participants’ responses to the vignettes and ED knowledge and experience