The quality of response in face-toface surveys. The case of the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas barometers

Abstract

Face-to-face interviews using structured questionnaires constituted the most common survey data collection method in Spain up until the year 2000. Interviews conducted in private at the respondent’s own pace, using visual aids (cards) to facilitate understanding of the questions produce a very low non-response rate. This paper attempts to challenge the above claim based on the evaluation of two factors: the circumstances in which interviews took place (as reported by the interviewers), and missing variable values (due to said circumstances). Interviewers reported that 14 % of in-the-home interviews took place in the presence of others as well as the respondent, 10 % of respondents rushed to complete the interview, and 21 % answered the questionnaire without using the visual aids. As far as partial non-response rates are concerned, four of the six surveys considered produced an average rate of more than 6 % in the «don´t know» «no answer» response categories. The rate of missing responses increases notably when respondents ignore the visual aids and/or rush to complete the interview.