Web Survey Bibliography
Declining response rates force survey researchers to implement surveying strategies that would motivate target persons to cooperate. Incentives have often proved to be a viable approach to address this issue. They have been increasingly used also in web surveys, which are relatively cheaper, compared to other modes but at the same time suer from generally lower response rates. Since the problems like noncoverage and lack of sampling frames still make web surveys largely inappropriate for surveying general populations, the possibility of their integration into mixed-mode designs has become one of the central questions of survey methodology. This introduced a new area also for methodological research on incentives.
While incentives can substantially increase response rates, they can also signi cantly heighten the research costs. Furthermore, the impact on survey responses often remains uncontrolled and is largely unclear in mixed-mode designs. In this paper, we study the problem of using incentives in mixed-mode surveys of the general population by comparing response rates, errors and costs among dierent experimental mixed-mode designs.
The experiment was conducted on a sample of the general Slovene population. Participants were randomly assigned into one of experimental groups, manipulating two dierent combinations of modes (web/mail and web/telephone) and three dierent types of incentives (no incentive, wallet as a gift and 5 Euros in cash). We first present the impact of incentives on response rates in each of the groups and compare errors using the Mean Square Error approach. The results show that the response rates are not a good predictor of the data quality, since the monetary incentives signi cantly boosted cooperation but at the same time produced a high bias. This finding is then elaborated by a detailed analysis of the response patterns that might have contributed to the bias. Possible adjustments of survey design, that may provide a higher data quality, are discussed as well. Finally, the cost aspects are taken into account and evaluated by a simulation of dierent initial sample sizes and their effect on the costs-errors optimization. The ndings of the study suggest that the use of incentives in mixed-mode surveys should be methodologically well elaborated, not only from the aspect of response rates, but also with a careful consideration of survey errors and costs.
Conference homepage (abstract)
Web survey bibliography - Vehovar, V. (46)
- Overview: Online Surveys; 2017; Vehovar, V.; Lozar Manfreda, K.
- Introduction Breakoffs, Questionnaire Breakoffs and Web Questionnaire Length: A Metastudy ; 2016; Cehovin, G.; Vehovar, V.
- Investigating respondent multitasking in web surveys using paradata; 2016; Sendelbah, A.; Vehovar, V.; Slavec, A.; Petrovcic, A.
- Identifying and correcting question-wording problems: the case of Wageindicator; 2015; Slavec, A., Vehovar, V., Tijdens, K. G.
- e-Social Science Perspective on Survey Process: Towards an Integrated Web Questionnaire Development...; 2015; Vehovar, V., Petrovcic, A., Slavec, A.
- Questionnaire length and breakoffs in web surveys: a meta study; 2014; Vehovar, V., Cehovin, G.
- WebSM Study: Overview of Features and Pricing of Software Packages in 2014; 2014; Vehovar, V., Cehovin, G.
- WebSM Study: Survey Software in 2014; 2014; Vehovar, V., Cehovin, G., Mocnik, A.
- Data quality of questions sensitive to social-desirability bias in web surveys; 2012; Lozar Manfreda, K., Zajc, N., Berzelak, N., Vehovar, V.
- WebSM Study: Survey software features overview ; 2012; Vehovar, V., Cehovin, G., Kavcic, L., Lenar, J.
- Costs and Errors in Fixed and Mobile Phone Surveys; 2012; Vehovar, V., Slavec, A., Berzelak, N.
- Web Survey Software; 2012; Berzelak, N., Vehovar, V., Slavec, A.
- Surveying general population: What types of experiments are further needed?; 2012; Vehovar, V., Berzelak, N.
- Web panels in Slovenia; 2012; Lenar, J., Vehovar, V.
- Web survey software; 2011; Slavec, A., Berzelak, N., Vehovar, V.
- Web Survey Process within the Concept of eSocial Sciences; 2011; Vehovar, V.
- Optimization of dual frame telephone survey designs; 2011; Slavec, A., Vehovar, V.
- Comments on the paper - Geetha Garib: Perceived diversity among employees; 2011; Vehovar, V.
- Nonresponse in Web Surveys ; 2011; Lozar Manfreda, K., Berzelak, N., Vehovar, V.
- Cost-Error Optimization Model for Mixed-Mode Surveys; 2009; Vehovar, V., Berzelak, N., Lozar Manfreda, K.
- Preference for Mobile Interview Surveys? Interplay of costs, errors and biases; 2009; Vehovar, V., Slavec, A.
- National readership surveys: Moving from probability face-to-face surveys to Internet panels; 2009; Vehovar, V., Slavec, A., Petric, I., Sargac, M.
- Empirical Evaluation of Web Survey Software Tools: Powerful or Friendly?; 2009; Vehovar, V., Berzelak, N., Lozar Manfreda, K., Horvat, T., Debevc, M.
- Optimising survey costs in mixed mode environment; 2009; Vehovar, V., Berzelak, N., Lozar Manfreda, K., Belak, E.
- Nonresponse Bias in Surveys; 2009; Bethlehem, J., Vehovar, V., Stoop, I., Schouten, B., Shlomo, N., Skinner, C., Montaquila, J.
- "Mobile phone surveys in mixed mode environment: Balancing costs and errors"; 2009; Vehovar, V.
- Mobile phone surveys in mixed mode environment; 2009; Vehovar, V.
- Probabilistic methods in surveys and offical statistics; 2008; Vehovar, V., Zaletel, M., Seljak, R.
- Internet surveys; 2008; Lozar Manfreda, K., Vehovar, V.
- What Can We Achieve With 5 Euros? Optimization of Survey Data Quality Using Mixed-Mode Approaches; 2008; Berzelak, N., Vehovar, V., Lozar Manfreda, K.
- Measuring ties on online forums; 2008; Ziberna, A., Vehovar, V., Jakulin, A.
- Nonresponse in web surveys within the context of survey errors and survey costs; 2008; Berzelak, N., Lozar Manfreda, K., Vehovar, V.
- Integration of the web into survey data collection: Balancing costs and errors; 2008; Vehovar, V., Berzelak, N., Lozar Manfreda, K.
- Optimization of costs and errors in mixed-mode surveys; 2008; Vehovar, V., Berzelak, N., Lozar Manfreda, K.
- Overview: Online Surveys; 2008; Vehovar, V., Lozar Manfreda, K.
- Measuring ego-centered social networks on the web: Questionnaire design issues ; 2008; Vehovar, V., Lozar Manfreda, K., Koren, G., Hlebec, V.
- The Impact of Cognitive and Computer Skills on Data Quality in Computer Assisted Self Administered Questionnaires...; 2008; Brecko, B. N., Vehovar, V.
- Internet surveys; 2008; Vehovar, V., Lozar Manfreda, K., Koren, G.
- The influence of mobile telephones on telephone surveys; 2008; Kuusela, V., Callegaro, M., Vehovar, V.
- Collecting Data on Ego-Centered Social Networks on the Web: Methodological Issues; 2004; Lozar Manfreda, K., Vehovar, V., Hlebec, V.
- Mode Effect in Web Surveys; 2002; Vehovar, V., Lozar Manfreda, K.
- Nonresponse in Web Surveys; 2002; Vehovar, V., Lozar Manfreda, K., , Batagelj, Z.
- Virtual Selves and Web Surveys; 2001; Lozar Manfreda, K., Couper, M. P., Vohar, M., Rivas, S., Vehovar, V.
- Nonresponse in Web Surveys; 1999; Vehovar, V.
- Internet v Sloveniji - Projekt RIS 1996-1998.; 1998; Vehovar, V.
- Handling "Don't Know" Survey Responses: The Case of the Slovenian Plebiscite; 1995; Rubin, D. B.; Vehovar, V.; Hal, S. S.