Comparing the Performance of Agree/Disagree and Item-Specific Questions Across PCs and Smartphones

The use of agree/disagree (A/D) questions is a common technique to measure attitudes. For instance, this question format is employed frequently in the Eurobarometer and International Social Survey Programme (ISSP). Theoretical considerations, however, suggest that A/D questions require a complex processing. Therefore, many survey researchers have recommended the use of item-specific (IS) questions, since they seem to be less burdensome. Parallel to this methodological discussion is the discussion around the use of mobile devices for responding to surveys. However, until now, evidence has been lacking as to whether the use of mobile devices for survey response affects the performance of established question formats. In this study, implemented in the Netquest panel in Spain (N = 1,476), we investigated the cognitive effort and response quality associated with A/D and IS questions across PCs and smartphones. For this purpose, we applied a split-ballot design defined by device type and question format. Our analyses revealed longer response times for IS questions than A/D questions, irrespective of the device type and scale length. Also, the IS questions produced better response quality than their A/D counterparts. All in all, the findings indicate a more conscientious response to IS questions compared to A/D questions

Differences in measurement quality depending on recall: results for a question about trust in the parliament

A large body of studies estimate the measurement quality of survey questions using multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) experiments. In these experiments, respondents are asked (nearly) identical questions at least twice. Most commonly, this is done within the same survey by, for instance, changing the response scale characteristics. However, it has frequently been argued that the estimates from these experiments might be biased when respondents recall their first answer and base their second answer on the initial one. So far, only little is known about the impact of memory effects on the estimates of measurement quality. In this study, we conducted a MTMM experiment in the probability-based German Internet Panel (N = 4,401) to investigate whether and to what extent measurement quality estimates differ across respondent groups varying in terms of recall. For this purpose, we use a survey question on trust in the German parliament that was asked with three different response scales. The results reveal that the recall of answers and memory effects vary significantly depending on the scales used for the trust in the parliament question. We also found significant differences in measurement quality across different recall groups. However, more refined research is necessary to better understand the association between answer recall and measurement quality estimates

Completion conditions and response behavior in smartphone surveys: A prediction approach using acceleration data

Includes supplementary materials for the online appendix.This study utilizes acceleration data from smartphone sensors to predict motion conditions of smartphone respondents. Specifically, we predict whether respondents are moving or nonmoving on a survey page level to learn about distractions and the situational conditions under which respondents complete smartphone surveys. The predicted motion conditions allow us to (1) estimate the proportion of smartphone respondents who are moving during survey completion and (2) compare the response behavior of moving and nonmoving respondents. Our analytical strategy consists of two steps. First, we use data from a lab experiment that systematically varied motion conditions of smartphone respondents and train a prediction model that is able to accurately infer respondents’ motion conditions based on acceleration data. Second, we use the trained model to predict motion conditions of respondents in two cross-sectional surveys in order to compare response behavior of respondents with different motion conditions in a field setting. Our results indicate that active movement during survey completion is a relatively rare phenomenon, as only about 3%–4% of respondents were predicted as moving in both cross-sectional surveys. When comparing respondents based on their predicted motion conditions, we observe longer completion times of moving respondents. However, we observe little differences when comparing moving and nonmoving respondents with respect to indicators of superficial responding, indicating that moving during survey completion does not pose a severe threat to data quality

Ribosome and transcript copy numbers, polysome occupancy and enzyme dynamics in Arabidopsis

Plants are exposed to continual changes in the environment. The daily alternation between light and darkness results in massive recurring changes in the carbon budget, and leads to widespread changes in transcript levels. These diurnal changes are superimposed on slower changes in the environment. Quantitative molecular information about the numbers of ribosomes, of transcripts for 35 enzymes in central metabolism and their loading into polysomes is used to estimate translation rates in Arabidopsis rosettes, and explore the consequences for important sub-processes in plant growth. Translation rates for individual enzyme are compared with their abundance in the rosette to predict which enzymes are subject to rapid turnover every day, and which are synthesized at rates that would allow only slow adjustments to sustained changes of the environment, or resemble those needed to support the observed rate of growth. Global translation rates are used to estimate the energy costs of protein synthesis and relate them to the plant carbon budget, in particular the rates of starch degradation and respiration at night

Carbon flux through photosynthesis and central carbon metabolism show distinct patterns between algae, C3 and C4 plants.

Photosynthesis-related pathways are regarded as a promising avenue for crop improvement. Whilst empirical studies have shown that photosynthetic efficiency is higher in microalgae than in C3 or C4 crops, the underlying reasons remain unclear. Using a tailor-made microfluidics labelling system to supply 13CO2 at steady state, we investigated in vivo labelling kinetics in intermediates of the Calvin Benson cycle and sugar, starch, organic acid and amino acid synthesis pathways, and in protein and lipids, in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, Chlorella sorokiniana and Chlorella ohadii, which is the fastest growing green alga on record. We estimated flux patterns in these algae and compared them with published and new data from C3 and C4 plants. Our analyses identify distinct flux patterns supporting faster growth in photosynthetic cells, with some of the algae exhibiting faster ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate regeneration and increased fluxes through the lower glycolysis and anaplerotic pathways towards the tricarboxylic acid cycle, amino acid synthesis and lipid synthesis than in higher plants

Noncompaction of the Ventricular Myocardium Is Associated with a De Novo Mutation in the β-Myosin Heavy Chain Gene

Noncompaction of the ventricular myocardium (NVM) is the morphological hallmark of a rare familial or sporadic unclassified heart disease of heterogeneous origin. NVM results presumably from a congenital developmental error and has been traced back to single point mutations in various genes. The objective of this study was to determine the underlying genetic defect in a large German family suffering from NVM. Twenty four family members were clinically assessed using advanced imaging techniques. For molecular characterization, a genome-wide linkage analysis was undertaken and the disease locus was mapped to chromosome 14ptel-14q12. Subsequently, two genes of the disease interval, MYH6 and MYH7 (encoding the α- and β-myosin heavy chain, respectively) were sequenced, leading to the identification of a previously unknown de novo missense mutation, c.842G>C, in the gene MYH7. The mutation affects a highly conserved amino acid in the myosin subfragment-1 (R281T). In silico simulations suggest that the mutation R281T prevents the formation of a salt bridge between residues R281 and D325, thereby destabilizing the myosin head. The mutation was exclusively present in morphologically affected family members. A few members of the family displayed NVM in combination with other heart defects, such as dislocation of the tricuspid valve (Ebstein's anomaly, EA) and atrial septal defect (ASD). A high degree of clinical variability was observed, ranging from the absence of symptoms in childhood to cardiac death in the third decade of life. The data presented in this report provide first evidence that a mutation in a sarcomeric protein can cause noncompaction of the ventricular myocardium

Comparing the participation of Millennials and older age cohorts in the CROss-National Online Survey panel and the German Internet Panel

Millennials (1982-2003) witnessed a set of events during their lives that differentiated them from older age cohorts (Generation X, Boomers, and Silents). Thus, one can also expect that Millennials’ web survey participation differs from that of older cohorts. The goal of this study is to compare Millennials to older cohorts on different aspects related to web survey participation: participation rates, break-off rates, smartphone participation, survey evaluation, and data quality. We use data from two online probability-based panels covering four countries: the CROss-National Online Survey (CRONOS) panel in Estonia, Slovenia, and the UK, and the German Internet Panel (GIP). We find significantly lower participation rate for Millennials than for older cohorts and higher break-off rate for Millennials than for older cohorts in three countries. Smartphone participation is significantly higher for Millennials than for Generation X and Boomers in three countries. Comparing Millennials and Silents, we find that Millennials smartphone participation is significantly higher in two countries. There are almost no differences in survey evaluation and data quality across age cohorts in the descriptive analyses, but some age cohort effects in regression analyses. These results suggest that it is necessary to develop new strategies to encourage Millennials’ participation in online surveys

How long do respondents think online surveys should be? New evidence from two online panels in Germany

In recent years, the number of surveys, especially online surveys, has increased dramatically. Due to the absence of interviewers in this survey mode (who can motivate the respondents to continue answering), some researchers and practitioners argue that online surveys should not be longer than 20 min. However, so far, there has been little research investigating how long respondents think that online surveys should or could be. In this study, we therefore asked respondents of two online panels in Germany (one probability-based panel and one nonprobability panel) about their opinions on the ideal and maximum lengths of surveys. We also investigated whether socio-demographic, personality-related, and survey-related variables were associated with the ideal and maximum lengths reported by respondents. Finally, we compared the stated and observed survey lengths to evaluate the extent to which respondents are able to accurately estimate survey length. Our results suggest that the ideal length of an online survey is between 10 and 15 min and the maximum length is between 20 and 28 min, depending on the measure of central tendency (mean or median) used and the panel. Moreover, we found significant effects of socio-demographics (gender, age, education, and number of persons in household), of personality traits, and survey-related questions (whether the respondents liked the survey, found it easy, and answered from a PC) on at least one of the dependent variables (ideal or maximum lengths). Finally, we found only small differences (less than two min) between stated and observed lengths

Motion instructions in surveys: Compliance, acceleration, and response quality

The increased use of smartphones in web survey responding did not only raise new research questions but also fostered new ways to research survey completion behavior. Smartphones have many built-in sensors, such as accelerometers that measure acceleration (i.e., the rate of change of velocity of an object over time). Sensor data establish new research opportunities by providing information about physical completion conditions that, for instance, can affect response quality. In this study, we explore three research questions: (1) To what extent do respondents accept to comply with motion instructions? (2) What variables affect the acceleration of smartphones? (3) Do different motion levels affect response quality? We conducted a smartphone web survey experiment using the Netquest opt-in panel in Spain and asked respondents to stand at a fix point or walk around while answering five single questions. The results reveal high compliance with motion instructions, with compliance being higher in the standing than in the walking condition. We also discovered that several variables, such as the presence of third parties, increase the acceleration of smartphones. However, the quality of responses to the five single questions did not differ significantly between the motion conditions, a finding that is in line with previous research. Our findings provide new insights into how compliance changes with motion tasks and suggest that the collection of acceleration data is a feasible and fruitful way to explore survey completion behavior. The findings also indicate that refined research on the connection between motion levels and response quality is necessary