Web Survey Bibliography
(a) Relevance & Research Question
Online surveys are fast, efficient, and especially cheap. Self-administered surveys might even produce higher data quality compared to personal or phone interviews, e.g. for lower social desirability bias. However, web surveys also face specific problems such as the absence of a human interviewer. Among other things, this limits interview supervision, possibly causing higher item nonresponse and increasing satisficing behavior.
Generally, survey results largely differ depending on collection mode. For instance, recency effects are more likely in oral interviews, which also tend to produce more extreme answers and acquiescence bias, while primacy effects are associated with visual questionnaire presentation. Furthermore, mixed-mode surveys have received growing attention. Since mode effects are of particular relevance there, we will also cover this aspect.
Against this background, analyzing mode effects between traditional modes and web surveys, we show to what extent the latter can be a suitable alternative.
(b) Methods & Data
In the first step, data from three different GLES components are compared, including face-to-face, CATI, and online surveys.
In the second step, we use data from GLES long-term panel. As the second panel wave was collected in a mixed-mode design combining CATI with mail interviews, we compare changes for the sub-samples relative to the first (face-to-face) panel wave.
In terms of methods, we primarily rely on univariate statistics (frequencies, distributions, mean values, variance). We focus on well-established items measuring electoral choice, political attitudes, and psychological predispositions. Beyond, we estimate multivariate models, including interaction terms with survey mode.
(c) Results
Preliminary results uncover a number of clear mode effects between personal, phone, and web surveys. These differences are anything but uniform, though. Rather, we observe differences for specific variables and under specific conditions only.
(d) Added Value
Never before in German electoral science has a similarly coherent questionnaire been implemented in three different survey modes during the same field period. GLES data therefore allow for detailed and unprecedented analyses of mode effects, including mixed-mode surveys. Our results add to the understanding of differences between personal, phone, and web surveys, and suggest what can be done to prevent those differences.
Conference Homepage (abstract) / (full text)
Web survey bibliography - General Online Research Conference (GOR) 2012 (26)
- Is „chapterisation“ a viable alternative to traditional progress indicators ?; 2012; Spicer, R., Dowling, Z.
- Exploring New Pathways to Survey Recruitment; 2012; Bilgram, V., Stadler, D.Jawecki, G.
- Understanding selection bias in a worldwide, volunteer web-survey; 2012; Tijdens, K., Steinmetz, S.
- Does Mode Matter? Initial Evidence from the German Longitudinal Election Study (GLES); 2012; Blumenstiel, J. E., Rossmann, J.
- The Representativity of Web Surveys of the General Population compared to Traditional Modes and Mixed...; 2012; Klausch, L. T., Schouten, B., Hox, J.
- Surveytainment 2.0: Why investing 10 more minutes more in constructing your questionnaire is worth considering...; 2012; Muehle, A., Tress, F., Schmidt, S., Winkler, T.
- Market research online community (MROC) versus focus group; 2012; Zuber, M.
- Data quality in MAWI and CAWI; 2012; Mavletova, A. M., Blasius, J.
- Time use data collection using Smartphones: Results of a pilot study among experienced and inexperienced...; 2012; Scherpenzeel, A., Sonck, N., Fernee, H., Morren, Me.
- Scrutinizing Dynamics – Rolling panel waves in theory and practice; 2012; Faas, T., Blumenberg, J. N.
- Little experience with technology as a cause of nonresponse in online surveys; 2012; Struminskaya, B., Schaurer, I., Kaczmirek, L., Bandilla, W.
- Automatic Forwarding on Web Surveys – Some Outlines and Remarks; 2012; Selkaelae, A.
- Thinking, Planning & Operationalizing Empirical Mixed Methods Research Design; 2012; Ruhi, U.
- Continuous large-scale volunteer web-surveys: The experience of Lohnspiegel and WageIndicator; 2012; Oez, F.
- Is Pretesting Established Among Online Survey Tool Users?; 2012
- An Evaluation of Two Non-Reactive Web Questionnaire Pretesting Methods; 2012; Lenzner, T.
- Recommendations for implementing online surveys and simple experiments in social and behavioural research...; 2012; Hewson, C. M.
- High potential for mobile Web surveys: Findings from a survey representative for German Internet users...; 2012; Funke, F., Wachenfeld, A.
- A taxonomy of paradata for web surveys and computer assisted self interviewing (Casi); 2012; Callegaro, M.
- Can Social Media Research replace traditional research methods?; 2012; Faber, T., Einhorn, M., Hofmann, O., Loeffler, M.
- Bad Boy Matrix Question – Whatcha gonna do when they come for you?; 2012; Tress, F.
- Matrix vs. Single Question Formats in Web Surveys: Results from a large scale experiment; 2012; Klausch, L. T., de Leeuw, E. D., Hox, J., de Jongh, A., Roberts , A.
- Effects of Static versus Dynamic Formatting Instructions for Open-Ended Numerical Questions in Web Surveys...; 2012; Kunz, T., Fuchs, M.
- FamilyVote – Conducting online surveys with children and families; 2012; Geissler, H., Peeters, H.
- The influence of social desirability on data quality in face-to-face and web surveys; 2012; Keusch, F.
- Reducing the Threat of Sensitive Questions in Online Surveys; 2012; Couper, M. P.