The Impact of Refusal Conversion on Survey Response and Error

• Activity Number: 115
• Type: Contributed
• Date/Time: Monday, July 30, 2007 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
• Sponsor: Section on Survey Research Methods
• Author(s): Martin Barron*+ and Karen Wooten
• Companies: NORC at the University of Chicago and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Keywords: National Immunization Survey ; Refusal Conversion ; Survey Response Rates ; Survey Error

Abstract

Refusals are an unfortunate but inevitable part of survey research. Refusals contribute to survey error, reduce response rates and increase costs. But how many conversion attempts are appropriate? At what point does the increased cost and respondent burden outweigh the reduction in survey error? This paper explores this issue using data from the National Immunization Survey (NIS). The NIS---a nationwide, list-assisted RDD survey conducted by NORC for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention---monitors the vaccination rates of children between the ages of 19 and 35 months. Each year, the NIS conducts interviews with approximately 29,000 households across the United States. The NIS allows up to three verbal refusals and three hang-ups without an explicit verbal refusal. Using NIS data from 2006, we model the impact of conversion attempts on survey error, cost, and response rates.