Asking Questions - The Definitive Guide To Questionnaire Design ...

76 ASKING QUESTIONS
can be eliminated in the more extensive interview conducted with
the subsample of people who are reported to have the given characteristic.
False negatives, those with the required attribute who are
not reported by informants, are, however, missed by this screening.
Summary
In this chapter we have stressed that respondents may not be able
to recall previous behavior. Anything that can be done to make this
task easier should lead to improved quality of data as well as
increased respondent and researcher satisfaction with the interview.
The techniques suggested for helping jog the respondent’s memory
of an event and for reducing telescoping included the following:
(1) include aided recall, (2) make the question specific, (3) select
an appropriate time period to ask about, (4) use bounded recall,
(5) use secondary records, (6) use diaries and panel research, (7) use
the right words, and (8) make questions the appropriate length.
In general, it is critical to select tasks that can be realistically
accomplished. Here the use of informants must be considered.
With easy tasks and appropriate procedures, highly accurate
reports of behavior can be obtained from these informants. When
the task is difficult, however, even the best procedures will not produce
error-free results. In this situation the best alternative, in our
judgment, is neither to reject all results because complete accuracy
cannot be obtained nor to ignore the basic problems with the data.
Use the data with caution, recognizing their limitations but also
recognizing that slightly flawed results can often be better than no
results at all.
Additional Reading
The reader interested in the research findings that led to the recommendations
in this chapter will find them in Thinking About
Answers (Sudman, Bradburn, and Schwarz, 1996; see especially