Survey Incentive Fees, Microeconomic Data Quality, and Nonresponse

• Activity Number: 628
• Type: Contributed
• Date/Time: Thursday, August 4, 2011 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
• Sponsor: Section on Survey Research Methods
• Author(s): Jesse Bricker*+
• Companies: Federal Reserve Board
• Keywords: Incentive Fees ; Nonresponse ; Data Quality

Abstract

This paper uses both the 2007-2009 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) panel surveys and the 2007 and 2010 SCF cross section surveys to investigate whether monetary incentives help data quality, conditional on responding to the survey, and help reduce time in the field. The 2007 SCF had a base incentive of $20, though many needed $50 before responding; the base incentive in 2009 and 2010 was $50.

In the 2007-2009 SCF panel, when given the base $50 in 2009 do the $20 types give higher quality data than they gave in 2007? Data quality is measured by the use verifying documents and the precision or responses. Further, does the change in response quality of the $20 types differ relative to the $50 types? The increase in incentive given to SCF respondents between the 2007 and 2010 survey years allows one to compare the time from initial contact until a respondent begins the interview. Not only is there variation across time, but there is also variation across sampling regions, as $1 in a rural town will go further than $1 in a big city. All 2007 sampling areas were used in the 2010 survey, thus allowing a comparison between years.