QUESTIONNAIRE COMPLEXITY, REST PERIOD, AND RESPONSE LIKELIHOOD IN ESTABLISHMENT SURVEYS

Abstract

Response burden has been a concern in survey research for some time. One area of concern is the negative impact that response burden can have on response rates. In an effort to mitigate negative impacts on response rates, survey research organizations try to minimize the burden respondents are exposed to and maximize the likelihood of response. Many organizations also try to be mindful of the role burden may play in respondents’ likelihood to participate in future surveys by implementing rest periods or survey holidays. Recently, new evidence from a study of cross-sectional household surveys provided an interesting lens to examine burden. The evidence demonstrated that those sampled in two independent surveys are more likely to respond to the second survey if the first survey was more difficult to complete, and that this effect was not significantly influenced by the rest period in between the two surveys. These findings are compelling, and since the mechanisms influencing response in household and establishment surveys differ in important ways, a similar examination in an establishment survey context is warranted. To accomplish this, data are used from the National Agricultural Statistics Service. Overall, our research finds that prior survey features such as questionnaire complexity (or burden), prior response disposition and rest period are significantly associated with response to subsequent surveys. We also find that sample units first receiving a more complex questionnaire have significantly higher probabilities of response to a subsequent survey than do those receiving a simpler questionnaire first. The findings in this paper have implications for nonresponse adjustments and identification of subgroups for adaptive design data collection.