Sampling Telephone Numbers and Adults, Interview Length, and Weighting in The California Health Interview Survey Cell Phone Pilot Study

This article describes several features included in a CaliforniaHealth Interview Survey cell phone pilot study that differ fromearlier cell phone surveys conducted in the United States. Onedifference is that the study used a screening design and onlyadults living in cell-only households were interviewed. Mostof the previous studies used dual frame designs. Another differencewas the development and implementation of a within-householdadult sampling procedure to cover adults when cell phones wereshared in the household. The study was also intended to determineif conducting a cell phone interview of the same scope and lengthas a regular telephone interview was feasible. Most previoussurveys were focused on cell phone topics and were shorter thanthe comparable landline surveys. We then explore some interestingproblems that arise in weighting a cell phone survey using ascreening design. We conclude with a discussion of planninga new cell phone survey in 2007 that incorporates findings fromthis study.     

The State of Surveying Cell Phone Numbers in the United States: 2007 and Beyond

By the late 1970s, household telephone coverage grew to exceed90 percent in the United States, and by the mid-1980s telephonesurveying of the general public had become commonplace. Nevertheless,20 years later, the ability of researchers to reach representativesamples of the U.S. public via landline (wired) telephone surveysand gather reliable data is being seriously challenged for manyreasons, especially those related to cell phones and the growthof the "cell phone only" population. However, at present thereexists no widely accepted set of Cell Phone Surveying "bestpractices" for U.S. survey researchers to follow. Despite whatsome appear to believe, surveying persons reached on cell phonenumbers in the United States currently is a very complex undertakingif one wants to do it "right," i.e. to do it legally, ethically,and in ways that optimally allocate one's finite resources togather the highest quality data, and to analyze and interpretthose data accurately. This final "wrap-up" article in the specialissue provides a review of the empirical articles in the issuewith a focus on their practical implications for the decisionsthat researchers need to make regarding sampling, coverage,nonresponse, measurement, and weighting in surveys that includeinterviews with persons reached on cell phones. The articlealso highlights the practical implications of a number of legal,ethical, and other issues that relate to surveys in the UnitedStates that include cell phone numbers. Surveying the U.S. cellphone population is possible, if at a higher cost than surveyingtheir landline counterparts, and if with less precision thancurrently can be done surveying the landline population. Thenext five years should see a considerable growth in the methodologicaland statistical know-how that the survey community uses to plan,implement, and interpret cell phone surveys. There is a greatdeal that still must be learned.     

Cell Phone Survey Feasibility in The U.S.: Sampling and Calling Cell Numbers Versus Landline Numbers

In 2004, we conducted a nationwide dual frame survey of landlineand cell phone numbers to evaluate the feasibility of includingcell phone numbers in a random digit dial telephone survey.Households with both landline and cell phones were eligiblefor selection in both samples. This article describes our designand data collection methods; compares the results from the twosamples (with an emphasis on operational characteristics); andpresents the outcomes of two experimental manipulations designedto improve the cell phone response rate.     

Space invaders: the negotiation of teenage boundaries through the mobile phone

Drawing on interview data, this paper explores the area of child/parent negotiation. Specifically, we examine the increasing significance of the mobile phone in the way teenagers negotiate spatial boundaries with their parents. Utilising theories of time and space, especially Giddens’ concept of ‘distanciation’, we show how parents and their children use the mobile phone as a tool for negotiating curfews in public space, thus extending household discussion and negotiation outside of the home. We point out that parents are using the mobile phone to enter their children's time and space as an ‘absent Other’, and see this as a means of extending parental authority and control. Children, conversely, see themselves gaining a degree of empowerment from the mobile phone, as parents are more lenient with curfews if they posses one. The mobile phone, then, has become an important facilitator of negotiations between parents and teenagers regarding boundary setting. We conclude that the mobile phone has enabled teenagers to gain increased leverage in their negotiations with their parents, but underline that parents still hold control and authority by ‘invading’ their children's space.     

Material hardship in families with children with health conditions: Implications for practice

Cross-sectional data from the third wave of a ten-year data collection initiative were used to assess the odds of experiencing four material hardships between families who have a child member with a limiting health condition, and families with children who do not have a child member with a limiting health condition. The odds of experiencing material hardship in families with more than one child with a limiting health condition were also assessed. In the multivariable models, having a child in the household with a limiting health condition increases the odds the household will be unable to pay bills, and have their phone service disconnected. Also, having more than one child in a household with a limiting health condition increases the odds of being unable to pay bills, having a phone disconnected, and receiving food stamps. Interventions to assist these vulnerable families are presented.     

Sexual History and Present Attractiveness: People Want a Mate With a Bit of a Past,But Not Too Much

The aim of this study was to explore how people’s sexual history affects their attractiveness. Using an Internet survey, 188 participants rated their willingness to engage in a relationship with a hypothetical individual with a specified number of past sexual partners, ranging from 0 to 60+. The effect of past partner number was very large. Average willingness ratings initially rose as past partner number rose, but then fell dramatically. For short-term relationships, men were more willing than women to get involved (although the difference was not large). For long-term relationships, in contrast, there was virtually no sex difference. Thus, contrary to the idea that male promiscuity is tolerated but female promiscuity is not, both sexes expressed equal reluctance to get involved with someone with an overly extensive sexual history. Finally, participants with an unrestricted sociosexual orientation (high SO participants) were more tolerant than low SO participants of prospective mates with higher numbers of past sexual partners but were also less tolerant of prospective mates with low numbers of past sexual partners.     

Telephone surveys under different frame constructions—evaluating differences in estimates,precision, and cost

Dual-frame, random-digit-dialing (DFRDD) surveys, using a frame of landline telephone numbers and a frame of cell phone numbers, have become the norm for telephone surveys. Two alternative frame constructions sample exclusively from a cell phone frame, referred to as the ‘single-frame cell,’ and sample from the listed landline frame and the cell phone frame, referred to as ‘listed/cell.’ The listed/cell frame construction differs from the DFRDD in that it does not select unlisted-landline frame members. We observe in our simulated data that the listed/cell frame construction results in estimates that more closely approximate the estimates from DFRDD compared with the single-frame cell, results in an improvement in precision compared with the DFRDD that is not as large as the improvement in the single-frame cell, and has lower cost than both the DFRDD and the single-frame cell. We conclude that a listed/cell frame construction might be a better solution than either a DFRDD or single-frame cell frame construction.     

Using equivalent income of equivalent adults to rank income distributions

The paper proposes the consistent and rigorous use of equivalence scales for households of different size. Equivalence scales are employed for deriving the income of an equivalent adult representing the household and for weighting the different household types. The proceeding takes into account the possibilities and the needs of different household types at the same time and seems to be adequate if income distributions are to be compared in terms of social welfare or inequality. The approach allows to define and to investigate the usual concepts (Lorenz curve, Lorenz dominance, social welfare function, progressive transfers etc.) for heterogeneous populations. They can be interpreted in an obvious way, and the results, well known for homogeneous populations, can be generalized. Furthermore, some unpleasant and unsatisfactory paradoxa or impossibility results, which can be found in the literature, vanish in the framework considered. Received: 7 March 1997/Accepted: 4 November 1997     

The Networked Household

The authors argue that individuals, rather than family solidarities, have become the primary unit of household connectivity. Many households do not operate as traditional densely knit groups but as more sparsely knit social networks where individuals juggle their somewhat separate agendas and schedules. At a time when many people enact multiple, individual roles at home, in the community and at work, the authors ask: how do adult household members communicate with each other? How do adult household members use information and communication technologies (ICTs) to organize, communicate and coordinate their leisure and social behavior both inside and outside the home? Interviews and surveys conducted in 2004-2005 in the Toronto, Canada area of East York show that households remain connected - but as networks rather than solidary groups. The authors describe how networked individuals bridge their relationships and connect with each other inside and outside the home. ICTs have afforded household members the ability to go about on their separate ways while staying more connected - by mobile phone, email and IM - as well as by traditional landlines. In such ways, rather than pulling families apart, ICTs often facilitate communication, kinship and functional integration.     

Region-specific versus country-specific poverty lines in analysis of poverty

An analysis of poverty based on a country-specific income poverty line suffers from disregarding regional differences in prices and needs within a country and may, therefore, produce results that give a misleading picture of the extent of poverty as well as the geographic and demographic composition of the poor. To account for differences in prices and needs, this paper introduces an alternative method for identifying the poor based on a set of region-specific poverty lines. Applying Norwegian household register data for 2001 we find that the national level of poverty is only slightly affected by the change in definition of poverty line. However, the geographic as well as the demographic poverty profiles are shown to depend heavily on whether the method for identifying the poor relies on region- or country-specific thresholds. As expected, the results demonstrate that an analysis of poverty based on a country-specific threshold produces downward biased poverty rates in urban areas and upward biased poverty rates in rural areas. Moreover, when region-specific poverty thresholds form the basis of the poverty analysis, we find that the poverty rates among young singles and non-western immigrants are significantly higher than what is suggested by previous empirical evidence based on a joint country-specific poverty line.     

Sources of information and portfolio allocation

This research investigates the relationship between how a household receives financial information and the degree to which investment portfolios are diversified. Diversification is measured as allocation across asset classes and share of assets held in each asset class. Propensity score-based techniques incorporating stratification and weighting are employed to better isolate causal links, while also controlling for objective and subjective financial literacy and overconfidence. Results indicate that the use of financial planners and brokers is associated with an increase in asset class diversification. Households that consult with financial planners and bankers allocate their wealth systematically different from those who do not. These results highlight the role that financial professionals play in helping households make investment decisions.     

Mental health citizen surveys: a comparison of two within household telephone sampling techniques.

Two within household telephone sampling techniques for collecting citizen survey data for community mental health center's needs assessments were compared on the basis of respondent demographic characteristics; response, completion, and refusal rates; and, administrative costs. Initially, all households were chosen via random digit dialing. Then, one technique allowed the surveyor to interview any adult member of a household who answered the phone. The other technique used was developed by Troldahl and Carter and required the use of a reference table procedure to determine the appropriate respondent. While more expensive, the Troldahl-Carter method produced significantly better representativeness of the population for a rural county. Factors relating to a decision regarding which technique to employ are discussed.     

Nonresponse Bias in a Dual Frame Sample of Cell and Landline Numbers

We conducted a dual frame survey of landline and cell phonenumbers in 2004 to evaluate the feasibility of including cellphone numbers in random digit dial telephone surveys in theUnited States. By sampling cell phone numbers, the coveragebias associated with households that have only cell phones iseliminated. However, we discovered two major sources of nonresponsebias in the dual frame sample. In an attempt to reduce thesebiases, we applied several different estimation schemes. Buta comparison to the 2004 Current Population Survey Cell PhoneSupplement showed that none of the estimation schemes substantiallyreduced the nonresponse bias of the estimates. We suggest othermethods that might be used in future surveys that include cellphones and discuss the need for additional data collection andresearch on this issue.     

The value of mixed-method longitudinal panel studies in ict research

This paper uses a unique British three-wave longitudinal dataset to examine the rates of transitions into and out of 'ICT poverty' defined as having Internet access in the household and/or having a mobile phone. This serves three purposes: it shows that many are still 'passing by' ICT ownership, that 'gaining ICT' access is not a one-way street - many just pass through; and that the rates of dropping out differ for different ICTs and for different groups of people. This has implications for both commercial and public policy strategy. It also shows the value of longitudinal approaches to data collection without which this kind of analysis would be impossible.     

What's Missing from National Landline RDD Surveys?: The Impact of the Growing Cell-Only Population

The number of cell phone only households has continued to grow– 12.8 percent of all households by the end of 2006, accordingto the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). To assess theextent and nature of the potential bias in landline telephonesamples created by the absence of cell-only households, thePew Research Center conducted four independent dual frame studiesin 2006, three of which included at least 200 interviews withcell-only respondents. Despite the fact that there are significantdifferences between cell-only and landline respondents on manyimportant variables, across the four surveys with differentsubstantive content we find that including a cell-only samplewith a landline RDD sample produces general population estimatesthat are nearly identical to those from the landline samplealone. Yet, while the noncoverage problem is currently not damagingestimates for the entire population, we find evidence that itdoes create biased estimates on certain variables for youngadults, 25 percent of whom are cell-only according to the mostrecent government estimate.     

Household Production and Symptoms of Stress in Post-Soviet Russian Villages1

Abstract This paper examines the impact of human capital (the number of working age household members), social capital (social exchange helping networks and community integration), technological capital (use of mechanical agricultural tools), and village of residence on stratification of Russian peasant households in the post-Soviet era. Findings from a 1995 survey of households in three Russian villages show that the number of working age adults in the household has the strongest influence on household agricultural production. Social capital and technological capital also are associated with differences in the amount of sales obtained from household production. One village, which is located in an oblast (province) which has a program to assist peasant households had substantially higher agricultural production than did the other two villages which are located in oblasti without such programs. The number of working age adults in the household, social exchange networks, and community attachment are negatively associated with symptoms of stress, while higher village levels of production are associated with higher average levels of symptoms of stress in the village. The implications of the findings for the future of Russian agriculture and Russian rural village life are discussed.     

女性参政比例太低？

2010年3月，为了纪念《北京行动纲领》通过15周年，联合国回顾了第四次世界妇女大会（1995年在北京召开）以来世界妇女的发展历程和所取得的各项成果．其中提到全球女性参政议政的比例尚未达到20％．这与15年前联合国在第四次世界妇女大会上设立的30％的目标相去甚远。     

USING DUAL FRAME DESIGNS TO REDUCE NONRESPONSE IN TELEPHONE SURVEYS

This article reports on the results of a series of experimentsdesigned to improve response rates for telephone surveys. Inthree surveys telephone households were selected using bothstandard random digit dialing (RDD) techniques and lists oftelephone numbers purchased from a commercial firm. In the RDDportions of the samples "cold contact" interviewing methodswere used; in the list frame portions advance letters were mailed,and the listed household name was used in the introduction.Experiments were designed to test the effects on response ratesof the advance letters and use of the listed household nameas a means of establishing rapport. The advance letters increasedresponse rates, but no difference could be attributed to theuse of names. The mixture of RDD and list sampling techniquesis also used to evaluate the effects of relative response rateson substantive findings. The cost consequences of these dualframe designs are assessed along a number of dimensions, andthe cost and error components of these designs are discussed.     

Inference for the measurement of poverty in the presence of a stochastic weighting variable

Empirical applications of poverty measurement often have to deal with a stochastic weighting variable such as household size. Within the framework of a bivariate distribution function defined over income and weight, I derive the limiting distributions of the decomposable poverty measures and of the ordinates of stochastic dominance curves. The poverty line is allowed to depend on the income distribution. It is shown how the results can be used to test hypotheses concerning changes in poverty. The inference procedures are briefly illustrated using Belgian data. An erratum to this article can be found at