Web Survey Bibliography
Title Promoting Uniform Question Understanding in Today's and Tomorrow's Surveys
Author Conrad, F. G., Schober, M. F.
Source Journal of Official Statistics, 21, 2, pp. 215-231
Year 2005
Access date 08.09.2005
Full text pdf (111k)
Abstract Survey respondents misunderstand questions more frequently than one might expect but, current methods for collecting data make it hard to detect and correct misunderstanding. The conventional practice has been to leave the interpretation of questions up to respondents; interviewers react to requests for clarification with nondirective probes like "Let me repeat the question." The current article reviews a research program that has explored alternatives to standardized wording, in which interviewers and web survey systems can define survey concepts as needed as a way to assure uniform comprehension across respondents. One problem is that many respondents fail to recognize that their understanding is not aligned with the survey sponsors' and so do not ask for clarification - a problem that, we argue, is more serious in the survey response task than other tasks in which information is exchanged. Using today's survey techniques (telephone and face-to-face interviews, web surveys) it is possible to increase respondents' sensitivity to their own misunderstanding, increasing their requests for clarification; and, based on respondents' verbal and visual cues of comprehension difficulty, it is possible to intervene to correct misunderstanding. This approach can be extended in surveys of the future by incorporating mature speech recognition capabilities, modeling respondent uncertainty about question meaning so that when clarification is needed it can be provided automatically, and developing interface agents when appropriate. By evaluating simulated versions of these technologies in the near term researchers will be better able exploit them as they become available.
Access/Direct link Journal (full text)
Year of publication2005
Bibliographic typeJournal article
Web Survey Bibliography - Journal of Official Statistics (75)
- Addressing Disclosure Concerns and Analysis Demands in a Real-Time Online Analytic System; 2013; Krenzke, T., Gentleman, J. F., Li, J., Moriarity, C.
- The General Survey System Initiative at RTI International: An Integrated System for the Collection and...; 2013; Thalji, L., Mitchell, S., Hill, C. A., Suresh, R., Speizer, H., Pratt, D.
- Consolidation and Standardization of Survey Operations at a Decentralized Federal Statistical Agency; 2013; Nealon, J., Gleaton, E.
- Disfluencies and Gaze Aversion in Unreliable Responses to Survey Questions; 2012; Schober, M. F., Conrad, F. G., Dijkstra, W., Ongena, Y. P.
- Evaluating Survey Questions: A Comparison of Methods; 2012; Yan, T., Kreuter, F., Tourangeau, R.
- Use of Paradata in a Responsive Design Framework to Manage a Field Data Collection; 2012; Wagner, J., West, B. T., Kirgis, N., Lepkowski, J. M., Axinn, W., Kruger-Ndiaye, S.
- Improving RDD Cell Phone Samples. Evaluation of Different Pre-call Validation Methods; 2012; Kunz, T., Fuchs, M.
- An Examination of Within-Person Variation in Response Propensity over the Data Collection Field Period...; 2012; Olson, K., Groves, R. M.
- Toward a Benefit-Cost Theory of Survey Participation: Evidence, Further Tests, and Implications; 2011; Singer, E.
- Indicators for Monitoring and Improving Representativeness of Response; 2011; Schouten, B., Shlomo, N., Skinner, C.
- Proxy Pattern-Mixture Analysis for Survey Nonresponse; 2011; Andridge, R. R. Little, R. J.
- Designing Input Fields for Non-Narrative Open-Ended Responses in Web Surveys; 2011; Couper, M. P., Kennedy, C., Conrad, F. G., Tourangeau, R.
- Breakoff and Unit Nonresponse Across Web Surveys; 2011; Peytchev, A.
- Sources of measurement errors in business surveys; 2010; Bavda¾, M.
- Combining Link-Tracing Sampling and Cluster Sampling to Estimate Totals and Means of Hidden Human Populations...; 2010; Félix-Medina, M. H., Monjardin, P. E.
- Increasing Respondents' Use of Definitions in Web Surveys; 2010; Peytchev, A., Conrad, F. G., Couper, M. P., Tourangeau, R.
- Contact Strategies to Improve Participation via the Web in a Mixed-Mode Mail and Web Survey; 2010; Holmberg, A., Lorenc, B., Werner, P.
- Questionnaire Design Guidelines for Establishment Surveys; 2010; Morrison, R. L., Dillman, D. A., Christian, L. M.
- Design of Web Questionnaires: The Effect of Layout in Rating Scales; 2009; Toepoel, V., Das, M., van Soest, A.
- The Presentation of a Web Survey, Nonresponse and Measurement Error among Members of Web Panel; 2009; Tourangeau, R., Groves, R. M., Kennedy, C., Yan, T.
- Dependent Interviewing: Effects on Respondent Burden and Efficiency of Data Collection; 2008; Jaeckle, A.
- Seam Effects in Longitudinal Surveys; 2008; Callegaro, M.
- Risk of Disclosure, Perceptions of Risk, and Concerns about Privacy and Confidentiality as Factors in...; 2008; Couper, M. P.; Singer, E.; Daver, J. A.; Conrad, F. G.; Groves, R. M.
- Dual Frame Web#Telephone Sampling for Rare Groups; 2006; Blair, E., Blair, J.
- Merely Incidental?: Effects of Response Format on Self-reported Behavior; 2006; Thomas, R. K., Klein, J. D.
- The Influence of Web-based Questionnaire Presentation Variations on Survey Cooperation and Perceptions...; 2006; Walston, J. T., Lissitz, R. W., Rudner, L. M.
- Can Web and Mail Survey Modes Improve Participation in an RDD-based National Health Surveillance?; 2006; Link, M. W., Mokdad, A.
- Dropouts on the Web: Effects of Interest and Burden Experienced During an Online Survey; 2006; Galesic, M.
- Propensity Score Adjustment as a Weighting Scheme for Volunteer Panel Web Surveys; 2006; Lee, Sunghee
- Use and Non-use of Clarification Features in Web Surveys; 2006; Conrad, F. G., Couper, M. P., Tourangeau, R., Peytchev, A.
- Putting a Questionnaire on the Web is not Enough # A Comparison of Online and Offline Surveys Conducted...; 2006; Faas, T., Schoen, H.; de Rouvray, C.
- An Experimental Study on the Effects of Personalization, Survey Length Statements, Progress Indicators...; 2006; Heerwegh, D., Loosveldt, G.
- How to Mix Modes; 2005; de Leeuw, E. D.
- Promoting Uniform Question Understanding in Today's and Tomorrow's Surveys; 2005; Conrad, F. G., Schober, M. F.
- To Mix or Not to Mix Data Collection Modes in Surveys; 2005; de Leeuw, E. D.
- Telephone, Internet, and Paper Data Collection Modes for the Census 2000 Short Form; 2005; Schneider, S. J., Cantor, D., Malakhoff, L., Arieira, C., Segel, P., Nguyen, K.-L., Guarino Tancreto...
- List-based Web Surveys: Quality, Timeliness, and Nonresponse in the Steps of the Participation Flow; 2004; Pratesi, M., Lozar Manfreda, K., Biffignandi, S., Vehovar, V.
- List-based Web Surveys: Quality, Timeliness, and Nonresponse in the Steps of the Participation Flow; 2004; Pratesi, M., Lozar Manfreda, K., Biffignandi, S., Vehovar, V.
- Does Voice Matter? An Interactive Voice Response (IVR) Experiment; 2004; Couper, M. P., Singer, E., Tourangeau, R.
- TADEQ: A Tool for the Documentation and Analysis of Electronic Questionnaires; 2004; Bethlehem, J., Hundepool, A.
- Identifying and Reducing Response Burdens in Internet Business Surveys; 2004; Haraldsen, G.
- Weighting methods; 2003; Kalton, G., Flores Cervantes, I.
- Prevention and Treatment of Item Nonresponse; 2003; de Leeuw, E. D., Hox, J., Huisman, M.
- Models in the Practice of Survey Sampling (Revisited); 2002; Kalton, G.
- A Comparison Between Mail and Web Surveys: Response Pattern, Respondent Profile, and Data Quality; 2002; Kwak, N., Radler, B.T.
- Developing Usability Guidelines for AudioCasi Respondents with Limited Literacy Skills; 2000; Schneider, S. J., Edwards, B.
- Technology Effects: Do CAPI or PAPI Interviews Take Longer?; 2000; Fuchs, M., Couper, M. P., Hansen, S. E.
- Calibration as a standard method for treatment of nonresponse; 1999; Lundstrom, S., Sarndal, C.-E.
- A Comparison of Mail and E-mail for a Survey of Employees in U.S. Statistical Agencies; 1999
- A Disk by Mail Survey of Pupils in Primary Schools: Data Quality and Logistics; 1999; van Hattum, M. J. C., de Leeuw, E. D.