How to Conduct Effective Interviewer Training: A Meta-Analysis

Interviewer training can improve the performance of interviewers and thus also the quality of survey data. However, the question of how effective interviewer training is for improving data quality and more importantly, which determinates drive its success, remain unanswered. This research uses meta-analytical methods to evaluate both the improvements in data quality due to interviewer training and the effectivity of training modules with respect interviewer performance. We consider various aspects of data quality, namely unit nonresponse, item nonresponse, probing behavior, administration, reading, and recording. Based on more than sixty experimental studies, we find that comprehensive interviewer training improves unit- and item nonresponse, probing behavior, administration, reading, and recording of items by up to 40%. We also find that using a broad variety of training modules such as blended learning, exercises and feedback sessions, interviewer monitoring, and supplementary training materials reinforces this the positive effect of interviewer training on data quality

A Note on How Prior Survey Experience With Self-Administered Panel Surveys Affects Attrition in Different Modes

Attrition poses an important challenge for panel surveys. With respect to these surveys, respondents’ decisions about whether to participate in reinterviews are affected by their participation in prior waves of the panel. However, in self-administered mixed-mode panels, the way of experiencing a survey differs between the mail mode and the web mode. Consequently, this study investigated how respondents' prior experience with the characteristics of a survey - such as length, difficulty, interestingness, sensitivity, and the diversity of the questionnaire - affects their informed decision about whether to participate again or not. We found that the length of a questionnaire seems to be of such importance to respondents that they base their participation on this characteristic, regardless of the mode. Our findings also suggest that the difficulty and diversity of questionnaires are readily accessible information that respondents use in the mail mode when making a decision about whether to participate again, whereas these characteristics have no effect in the web mode. In addition, privacy concerns have an impact in the web mode but not in the mail mode

The application of evidence-based methods in survey methodology

This dissertation is dedicated to the application of evidence-based methods in survey research. Although survey research is a relatively young discipline, knowledge and contradictory findings abound in this field, as in other disciplines. So this dissertation will first provide an overview of evidence-based research and its necessity in the field of survey methodology. Afterwards the application of evidence-based methods in terms of experimental research and meta-analysis are demonstrated. Herewith the four research examples given are focusing on mobile response quality, web response mode comparison, cross-cultural online response behavior and interviewer training. This dissertation closes with an outlook on the application of evidence-based methods in survey methodology

Web Versus Other Survey Modes: An Updated and Extended Meta-Analysis Comparing Response Rates

Do web surveys still yield lower response rates compared with other survey modes? To answer this question, we replicated and extended a meta-analysis done in 2008 which found that, based on 45 experimental comparisons, web surveys had an 11 percentage points lower response rate compared with other survey modes. Fundamental changes in internet accessibility and use since the publication of the original meta-analysis would suggest that people’s propensity to participate in web surveys has changed considerably in the meantime. However, in our replication and extension study, which comprised 114 experimental comparisons between web and other survey modes, we found almost no change: web surveys still yielded lower response rates than other modes (a difference of 12 percentage points in response rates). Furthermore, we found that prenotifications, the sample recruitment strategy, the survey’s solicitation mode, the type of target population, the number of contact attempts, and the country in which the survey was conducted moderated the magnitude of the response rate differences. These findings have substantial implications for web survey methodology and operations

Mixed-Device and Mobile Web Surveys (Version 1.0)

For many years, web surveys have already been the most frequently used survey mode in Germany and elsewhere (ADM, 2018; ESOMAR, 2018). Moreover, respondents increasingly use mobile devices, especially smartphones (or less often tablets), to access the Internet and participate in surveys. Because of those new developments within the Internet usage landscape, this contribution expands an earlier Survey Guideline on web surveys (Bandilla, 2015) by addressing methodological advantages and disadvantages of mixed-device as well as mobile web surveys. Moreover, it provides best practice advice on the implementation of such surveys in the areas of sampling, questionnaire design, paradata collection, and software solutions.Seit vielen Jahren sind Online-Umfragen der populärste Umfragemodus im In- und Ausland (ADM, 2018; ESOMAR, 2018). Zunehmend benutzen Befragte mobile Endgeräte, insbesondere Smartphones (seltener Tablets), um auf das Internet zuzugreifen und an Befragungen teilzunehmen. Aufgrund dieser neuen Entwicklungen im Nutzungsverhalten erweitert dieser Beitrag eine frühere Guideline für Web-Umfragen (Bandilla, 2015), indem er sich mit den methodischen Vor- und Nachteilen von Mixed-Device-Befragungen und Umfragen auf mobilen Endgeräten befasst. Darüber hinaus behandelt er bewährte Verfahrensweisen zur Durchführung solcher Umfragen in den Bereichen Stichprobenziehung, Fragebogendesign, Paradatenerfassung und Softwarelösungen

Rheumatic conditions in human immunodeficiency virus infection

Many rheumatic diseases have been observed in HIV-infected persons. We, therefore, conducted a comprehensive literature search in order to review the prevalence, presentation and pathogenesis of rheumatic manifestations in HIV-infected subjects. Articular conditions (arthralgia, arthritis and SpAs) are either caused by the HIV infection itself, triggered by adaptive changes in the immune system, or secondary to microbial infections. Muscular symptoms may result from rhabdomyolysis, myositis or from side-effects of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART). Osseous complications include osteonecrosis, osteoporosis and osteomyelitis. Some conditions such as the diffuse infiltrative lymphocytosis syndrome and sarcoidosis affect multiple organ systems. SLE may be observed but may be difficult to differentiate from HIV infection. Some anti-retroviral agents can precipitate hyperuricaemia and are associated with arthralgia. When indicated, immunosuppressants and even anti-TNF-α agents can be used in the carefully monitored HIV patient. Thus, rheumatic diseases and asymptomatic immune phenomena remain prevalent in HIV-infected persons even after the widespread implementation of highly active anti-retroviral therap

Misreporting Among Reluctant Respondents

Many surveys aim to achieve high response rates to keep bias due to nonresponse low. However, research has shown that the relationship between the nonresponse rate and nonresponse bias is small. In fact, high response rates may lead to measurement error, if respondents with low response propensities provide survey responses of low quality. In this paper, we explore the relationship between response propensity and measurement error, specifically, motivated misreporting, the tendency to give inaccurate answers to speed through an interview. Using data from four surveys conducted in several countries and modes, we analyze whether motivated misreporting is worse among those respondents who were the least likely to respond to the survey. Contrary to the prediction of our theoretical model, we find only limited evidence that reluctant respondents are more likely to misreport

Untersuchungen zur Synthese von Peltalosa

Untersuchungen zur Synthese von Peltalos

Interviewer-Observed Paradata in Mixed-Mode and Innovative Data Collection

In this research note, we address the potentials of using interviewer-observed paradata, typically collected during face-to-face-only interviews, in mixed-mode and innovative data collection methods that involve an interviewer at some stage (e.g., during the initial contact or during the interview). To this end, we first provide a systematic overview of the types and purposes of the interviewer-observed paradata most commonly collected in face-to-face interviews—contact form data, interviewer observations, and interviewer evaluations—using the methodology of evidence mapping. Based on selected studies, we illustrate the main purposes of interviewer-observed paradata we identified—including fieldwork management, propensity modeling, nonresponse bias analysis, substantive analysis, and survey data quality assessment. Based on this, we discuss the possible use of interviewer-observed paradata in mixed-mode and innovative data collection methods. We conclude with thoughts on new types of interviewer-observed paradata and the potential of combining paradata from different survey modes