This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Dillman, D. A. Articles by Christian, L. M. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Survey Mode as a Source of Instability in Responses across Surveys

Leah Melani Christian

Washington State University

Changes in survey mode for conducting panel surveys may contribute significantly to survey error. This article explores the causes and consequences of such changes in survey mode. The authors describe how and why the choice of survey mode often causes changes to be made to the wording of questions, as well as the reasons that identically worded questions often produce different answers when administered through different modes. The authors provide evidence that answers may changeas a result of different visual layouts for otherwise identical questions and suggest ways to keep measurement the same despite changes in survey mode.

Key Words: survey mode • questionnaire • panel survey • measurement • survey error

Field Methods, Vol. 17, No. 1, 30-52 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/1525822X04269550


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				B. J. McMorris, R. S. Petrie, R. F. Catalano, C. B. Fleming, K. P. Haggerty, and R. D. Abbott Use of Web and In-Person Survey Modes to Gather Data From Young Adults on Sex and Drug Use: An Evaluation of Cost, Time, and Survey Error Based on a Randomized Mixed-Mode Design Eval Rev, April 1, 2009; 33(2): 138 - 158. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. Gerich Real or Virtual? Response Behavior in Video-Enhanced Self-Administered Computer Interviews Field Methods, November 1, 2008; 20(4): 356 - 376. [Abstract] [PDF]

				M. J. Stern The Use of Client-side Paradata in Analyzing the Effects of Visual Layout on Changing Responses in Web Surveys Field Methods, November 1, 2008; 20(4): 377 - 398. [Abstract] [PDF]

				L. Pauwels and R. Svensson How Serious Is the Problem of Item Nonresponse in Delinquency Scales and Aetiological Variables?: A Cross-National Inquiry into Two Classroom PAPI Self-Report Studies in Antwerp and Halmstad European Journal of Criminology, July 1, 2008; 5(3): 289 - 308. [Abstract] [PDF]

				E. G. Walsh and G. Khatutsky Mode of Administration Effects on Disability Measures in a Sample of Frail Beneficiaries Gerontologist, December 1, 2007; 47(6): 838 - 844. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				L. M. Christian, D. A. Dillman, and J. D. Smyth Helping Respondents Get It Right the First Time: The Influence of Words, Symbols, and Graphics in Web Surveys Public Opin Q, March 1, 2007; 71(1): 113 - 125. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. Gerich and R. Lehner Video Computer-Assisted Self-Administered Interviews for Deaf Respondents Field Methods, August 1, 2006; 18(3): 267 - 283. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. A. van den Brakel, R. Vis-Visschers, and J. J. G. Schmeets An Experiment with Data Collection Modes and Incentives in the Dutch Family and Fertility Survey for Young Moroccans and Turks Field Methods, August 1, 2006; 18(3): 321 - 334. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. H. Childs and A. Landreth Analyzing Interviewer/Respondent Interactions while Using a Mobile Computer-Assisted Personal Interview Device Field Methods, August 1, 2006; 18(3): 335 - 351. [Abstract] [PDF]