Abstract #301076

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JSM 2003 Abstract #301076
Activity Number: 292
Type: Contributed
Date/Time: Tuesday, August 5, 2003 : 2:00 PM to 3:50 PM
Sponsor: Section on Survey Research Methods
Abstract - #301076
Title: An Application of a Method of Determining Optimum Number of Call Attempts in a Telephone Survey
Author(s): Kadaba P. Srinath*+ and Pamela Giambo and Susan Lewis Arday
Companies: Abt Associates, Inc. and Abt Associates, Inc. and HCFA
Address: 1110 Vermont Ave. NW, Washington, DC, 20005-3544,
Keywords: mean squared error ; survey cost ; bias reduction
Abstract:

In recent years, nonresponse to data collection attempts in telephone surveys is increasing due to a variety of reasons. Therefore, to reduce bias due to nonresponse, a common practice is to make several call attempts to collect data from eligible households or persons. These additional attempts increase the survey cost, and therefore it is important to determine whether the reduction in bias and the mean squared error is worth the increase in the cost of the survey. We want to determine the optimum number of call attempts taking into account both cost and mean squared error. There are several approaches to determining the optimum number of call attempts. One approach is to compare the cost and mean squared error after each attempt and choose the number of attempts that minimize mean squared error after adjusting for increased cost. We apply this method to determine the number of call attempts in the Survey of Medicare Beneficiaries conducted in 2000 to estimate the influenza vaccination coverage rates.

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