Web Survey Bibliography
Title Do Response Rates and Responses Differ between Mail and Internet Answers in a Mixed Mode Survey?
Author Etter, R.
Source 26th CIRET Conference in Taipei, Taiwan
Year 2002
Access date 29.01.2006
Full text pdf (240k)
Abstract For many years, Business Tendency Surveys on the basis of mailing suffer from an erosion of the response rate. To counter this problem, there are traditional methods as
limitation of the number of questions, improvement of the design of the questionnaire, intensified recalls by mail or telephone, more attractive outputs and a time-reduction of
the delivery of the results. Another way to stop the reduction of the response rate is to offer different modes of surveys. Therefore, the KOF introduced an online survey in
addition to the mail survey. Up to now, there are only few research projects which analysed the effects of the new technique of the online survey on the response rate and the quality of the responses.
First studies indicate that mail surveys produce higher response rates than internet surveys. Our results show a big difference in the unit non-response rate too.
Differentiating according to language regions, branches, size of firms and by the percentage of exports on sales does not change the picture. If there is a different behaviour of firms between the two modes this could be reflected not
only on the response rate but also on the selection of the response category. This would have a significant draw-back for the survey results and their interpretation. The results
show at least in the case of "Total manufacturing industry" that the differences between the two modes can be neglected. The results of business tendency surveys are rarely used on a micro level. The internationally common aggregation technique is the balance method. We therefore analysed the effect of the differences of the two survey modes on the balance indicators. The examination had to be restricted to the monthly survey in manufacturing industry. Thirteen out of fifteen questions have equal means in the two survey modes.
limitation of the number of questions, improvement of the design of the questionnaire, intensified recalls by mail or telephone, more attractive outputs and a time-reduction of
the delivery of the results. Another way to stop the reduction of the response rate is to offer different modes of surveys. Therefore, the KOF introduced an online survey in
addition to the mail survey. Up to now, there are only few research projects which analysed the effects of the new technique of the online survey on the response rate and the quality of the responses.
First studies indicate that mail surveys produce higher response rates than internet surveys. Our results show a big difference in the unit non-response rate too.
Differentiating according to language regions, branches, size of firms and by the percentage of exports on sales does not change the picture. If there is a different behaviour of firms between the two modes this could be reflected not
only on the response rate but also on the selection of the response category. This would have a significant draw-back for the survey results and their interpretation. The results
show at least in the case of "Total manufacturing industry" that the differences between the two modes can be neglected. The results of business tendency surveys are rarely used on a micro level. The internationally common aggregation technique is the balance method. We therefore analysed the effect of the differences of the two survey modes on the balance indicators. The examination had to be restricted to the monthly survey in manufacturing industry. Thirteen out of fifteen questions have equal means in the two survey modes.
Access/Direct link KOF
Year of publication2002
Bibliographic typeConferences, workshops, tutorials, presentations
Web survey bibliography - 2002 (87)
- On-line qualitative market research: Interviewing the world at a fingertip; 2002; Scholl, N., Mulders, S., Drent, R.
- A lesson model: Using the Web for research; 2002; Grant, S.
- Willingness to Pay for Organic Foods: A Comparison between Survey Data and Panel Data from Denmark ; 2002; Millock, K.; Hansen, L.G.; Wier, M.; Andersen, L.M
- The Differential Effects of Face-to-Face and Computer Interview Modes; 2002; Cooley, P. C.; Des Jarlais, D.C.; Gribble, J.; Newman, J.C.; F.; Paone, D.; Turner, C. F.
- Group decision making in a multiple criteria environment: A case using the AHP in software selection; 2002; Lai, V.S., Wong, B.K., Cheung, W.
- Cognitive Laboratory Experiences : On Pre-testing Computerised Questionnaires; 2002; Snijkers, G.
- Methodological Issues In Web-based Research; 2002; Duffy, M. E.
- Solicitation by e-Mail and solicitor's status: A field study of social research influence on the...; 2002; Gueguen, N., Jacob, C.
- Trends in marketing research and their impact on survey research sampling; 2002; Anich, B.
- Standards questionnaire format; 2002
- Psychological reactions to terrorist attacks. Findings from the national study of American's reactions...; 2002; Thalji, L., Schlenger, W. E., Caddell, J. M., Ebert, L., Jordan, B. K., Rourke, K. M., Willson, D.,...
- Predicting the future of consumer panels; 2002; Wansink, B., Sudman, S.
- New approaches to assessing opinion: The prospects for electronic mail surveys; 2002; Best, S. J., Krueger, B. S.
- More than a thousand words? Visual cues and visual knowledge; 2002; Prior, M.
- E-Research: Ethics, security, design, and control in psychological research on the Internet; 2002; Banaji, M., Greenwald, A., Nosek, B.
- Demand characteristics in the laboratory and the clinic: Conversations and collaborations with subjects...; 2002; Kihlstrom, J. F.
- Bracketing effects in categorized survey questions and the measurement of economic quantities; 2002; Winter, J.
- A D-minus for computer exams; 2002; Mayfield, K.
- The use of incentives to reduce nonresponse household surveys; 2002; Singer, E.
- Ethnical guidelines for internet research; 2002
- WEXTOR: A Web-based tool for generating and visualizing experimental designs and procedures; 2002; Reips, U.-D., Neuhaus, C.
- Studying hate crime with the Internet: What makes racist advocate racial violence?; 2002; Glaser, J., Dixit, J., Green, D. P.
- Cognitive processes when answering online questionnaires; 2002; Fuchs, M.
- Using client side paradata to evaluate respondent behavior in Web surveys; 2002; Heerwegh, D.
- Doec propensity score weighting work for Web Surveys; 2002; Forsman, G., Varedian, M.
- Visual design issues in Web surveys; 2002; Couper, M. P.
- Results from cognitive interviews of nsf earned doctorate Web survey; 2002; Altheimer, I., Dillman, D. A.
- Conducting Survey Research Through an Enhanced Online Web Survey Procedure ; 2002; Theuri, P. M., Turner, L. D.
- Community views on crime and policing: Survey mode effects on bias in community surveys; 2002; Hennigan, K. M., Maxson, C. L., Sloane, D., Ranney, M.
- From Paper-and-Pencil to Screen-and-Keyboard: An Empirical Assessment of Equivalence Issues in Internet...; 2002; Deutskens, E., de Ruyter, K., Wetzels, M.
- Survey of Doctors' Experience of Patients Using the Internet; 2002; Potts, H. W. W., Wyatt, J. C., Pagerey, P. D.
- Libraries and desktop storage options: results of a Web-based survey; 2002; Hendricks, A., Wang, Ji.
- The local/global decision in Internet research; 2002; Crawford, S. D., Jones, S., Rowen, C.
- Hard Choices, Easy Answers: Values, Information, and American Public Opinion; 2002; Alvarez, M. R., Brehm, J.
- Evaluation of Web Survey Data Collection Systems; 2002; Crawford, S. D.
- Online surveys with simple random samples for large populations; 2002; Kreuels, B.
- Sampling problems in research on personal Homepages; 2002; Marcus, B., Machilek, F., Schuetz, A., Kilian, C.
- Selecting a consumer panel service; 2002; Sudman, S., Wansink, B.
- Compare and contrast; 2002; Kindig, L.
- Software Review: CAVI from OpinionOne; 2002; Macer, T.
- Supplier Side: Survey programming integration; 2002; Mitrano, M.
- Humbug, science, survey research; 2002; Litman, J.
- Drawing a few from many; 2002; Fitzgerald, A.
- If given the choice; 2002; Allison, J., O'Konis, C.
- At my own pace in my own place; 2002; Downes-Le Guin, T.
- Privacy, please; 2002; Mack, B.
- My opinion counts; 2002; Solomon, M. B.
- Multi-mode research dos and don'ts; 2002; Hogg, A.
- Qualitatively Speaking: Online focus groups...here today, not gone tomorrow; 2002; Yoffie, A. J.
- Net research suffers due to failed promise; 2002; Tortorello, N. J.