Restorative Dentistry Department, University Dental School & Hospital, University College Cork, Wilton, Co. Cork, Ireland; Prosthodontics Department, Dammam Specialist Dental Centre, Dammam Medical Complex, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
Restorative Dentistry Department, University Dental School & Hospital, University College Cork, Wilton, Co. Cork, Ireland.
J Dent. 2022 Nov;126:104284. doi: 10.1016/j.jdent.2022.104284. Epub 2022 Sep 8.
This systematic review aimed to investigate what is a reasonable response rate for dental questionnaire-based studies in recent literature and to assess the factors that affect the response rates.
We used MEDLINE/PubMed to search the dental literature of 2021 (January-October). Two reviewers independently assessed studies eligibility and extracted data using standardized electronic extraction form.
One hundred and seventy-two studies were eligible, of these a total of 149 response rates were reported from 133 studies, whereas the remaining 39 studies were excluded as they did not report response rates. The median response rate across the included studies was 77% (mean = 70.8%). We found significant negative correlation between the response rate and the actual number of distributed questionnaires (sample size) (r = -0.4127; P < 0.001). We also found an association between the response rate and the area of distribution, e.g., national or international (P = 0.0012). However, a wide variation was observed in the quality of information reported within this review and we did not find clear evidence of association between the response rate and other variables such as questionnaire piloting, number of questions in the questionnaire and the journal impact factor.
The findings of this systematic review confirm the association between the response rate and the sample size, where the response rate increases when the sample size less than 300 participants. In addition, a higher response rate could be achieved when the study conducted within the same institution (e.g., university).
Questionnaire-based research can provide answers to several questions that could not be answered by other types of research related to the field of dentistry, dental health practitioners and students' attitudes and behaviours and more. Questionnaire-based publications can effectively contribute to dental research; thus, dental journals should consider development of a minimum set of guidelines in the reporting of questionnaire-based manuscripts.
本系统评价旨在调查近期文献中基于问卷调查的牙科研究的合理应答率，并评估影响应答率的因素。
我们使用 MEDLINE/PubMed 检索了 2021 年（1 月至 10 月）的牙科文献。两位评审员独立评估了研究的入选资格，并使用标准化的电子提取表格提取了数据。
共有 172 项研究符合入选标准，其中 133 项研究共报告了 149 项应答率，而其余 39 项研究因未报告应答率而被排除。纳入研究的平均应答率为 70.8%（中位数为 77%）。我们发现，应答率与实际发放的问卷数量（样本量）之间存在显著的负相关关系（r=-0.4127；P<0.001）。我们还发现应答率与分布区域（如全国或国际）之间存在关联（P=0.0012）。然而，本综述中报告的信息质量存在很大差异，我们没有发现应答率与其他变量（如问卷预试验、问卷中的问题数量和期刊影响因子）之间有明确的关联证据。
本系统评价的结果证实了应答率与样本量之间的关联，当样本量小于 300 名参与者时，应答率会增加。此外，在同一机构（如大学）进行研究时，可能会获得更高的应答率。
基于问卷调查的研究可以为与牙科领域、牙科保健从业者以及学生态度和行为等相关的其他类型的研究无法回答的问题提供答案。基于问卷调查的出版物可以有效地为牙科研究做出贡献；因此，牙科期刊应考虑制定一套最低报告指南，以报告基于问卷的手稿。
