EXPLORING FACTORS TO BUILD RAPPORT BETWEEN INTERVIEWER AND RESPONDENT: INSIGHTS FROM THE NATIONAL RESEARCH ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN TURKEY

Abstract

Examining interviewing process in terms of interviewers and respondents are crucial due to their major roles on survey estimates, cooperation and non-response. The rapport between interviewers and respondents plays a critical role on disclosure of answers and response quality. Therefore, there is a need to unveil factors behind rapport from interviewers’ and respondents’ perspectives. We aim to explore factors to build rapport and investigate variation among subgroups whose interviews conducted with high rapport. This study utilizes the National Research on Domestic Violence against Women in Turkey (2014) data and Field Staff data to achieve objectives. Our findings suggest that timing and frequency of visits, interviewer characteristics and similarity, and dynamic interview factors are essential when building rapport. The study also points out that there are statistically significant variations among women by socio-demographic and socio-economic characteristics as well as sensitive variables such as exposure to violence and controlling behaviors by husbands.