McGonagle Katherine A, Schoeni Robert F, Couper Mick P
Institute for Social Research, Survey Research Center, University of Michigan, PO Box 1248, Ann Arbor, MI 48106, U.S.A.
J Off Stat. 2013;29(2):261-276. doi: 10.2478/jos-2013-0022.
Since 1969, families participating in the U.S. Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) have been sent a mailing asking them to update or verify their contact information in order to keep track of their whereabouts between waves. Having updated contact information prior to data collection is associated with fewer call attempts, less tracking, and lower attrition. Based on these advantages, two experiments were designed to increase response rates to the between-wave contact mailing. The first experiment implemented a new protocol that increased the overall response rate by 7 - 10 percentage points compared to the protocol in place for decades on the PSID. This article provides results from the second experiment which examines the basic utility of the between-wave mailing, investigates how incentives affect article cooperation to the update request and field effort, and attempts to identify an optimal incentive amount. Recommendations for the use of contact update strategies in panel studies are made.
自1969年以来，参与美国收入动态面板研究（PSID）的家庭都会收到一份邮件，要求他们更新或核实其联系信息，以便在各轮调查之间追踪他们的行踪。在数据收集之前更新联系信息与减少呼叫尝试次数、减少追踪以及降低损耗率相关。基于这些优势，设计了两项实验以提高对两轮调查之间联系邮件的回复率。第一个实验实施了一项新方案，与PSID沿用数十年的方案相比，总体回复率提高了7至10个百分点。本文提供了第二个实验的结果，该实验考察了两轮调查之间邮件的基本效用，研究了激励措施如何影响对更新请求和实地工作的配合，并试图确定最优激励金额。文中还给出了在面板研究中使用联系信息更新策略的建议。
