PART-WHOLE QUESTION ORDER EFFECTS: VIEWS OF RURALITY

A split-ballot design was used to assess part-whole questionorder effects in a mail survey. A general question asked forthe respondent's perceptions of the overall life quality inrural areas relative to other areas; a series of 19 similarquestions asked for the relative quality of specific aspectsof rural life. When the general question was asked after thespecific items, subjects were more likely to answer the generalquestion, less likely to respond that rural areas were "thesame" as other areas, and more positive in their opinions aboutrural places. The addition of a preamble–instructing subjectsto read both the general and the list of specific items beforeanswering either–failed to alter these findings. The ordereffects on responses to the general question did not appearto represent either a simple assimilation (carryover) effector a contrast (backfire) effect, both of which have been foundby other researchers. Possible reasons for the conificting findingsare discussed.     

Erratum

We have been informed by NORC that in our article, "Trends inAttitudes Toward Abortion: 1972–1976" (POQ 43: 181–89),an error appeared on page 182 directly following response 3to the abortion approval question. It read: [1972 survey did not include the word "own" in the question.] It has been pointed out to us by NORC staff that the word "own"was included in the 1972 survey question "ABHLTH" on abortioneven though it does not appear in either the 1972–1977Cumulative Codebook or the 1972–1978 Cumulative Codebookpublished by NORC. For further clarification it should be mentionedthat the Arney and Trescher article (1976: 118) cited in ourpaper specifically states, in brackets, that "own" was insertedin the 1973–1975 surveys but not in the 1972 question.     

The Importance of Replicating a Failure to Replicate: Order Effects on Abortion Items

A failure to replicate a previously demonstrated order effecton responses to questions about abortion led to a second experimentwhich was designed to test the hypothesis that the failure wasdue to a change in the question context which had immediatelypreceded the abortion items in the original experiments by Schuman,et al. Unlike the results of the first experiment, the resultsof this second experiment showed that the order effect reportedby Schuman and his associates does replicate. In addition, thedata indicate that context may condition the magnitude of thisorder effect. The authors also suggest that the effect may bedue to the implicit contrast between the reasons given for abortionby the items when they are asked in one order rather than theother.     

EFFECTS OF INTERVIEWER GENDER, INTERVIEWER CHOICE, AND ITEM WORDING ON RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS CONCERNING SEXUAL BEHAVIOR

We examined factors influencing responses to questions on sexualbehavior among adult respondents 18–49 years old (unweightedN = 2,030) obtained through a random-digit dialing survey. Basedon self-disclosure and perceived control the ory, we hypothesizedthat giving people a choice in selecting the gender of theirinterviewer rather than being assigned an inter viewer, andusing questions that are "supportive" of what may be perceivedof as nonnormative behavior (enhanced items), would increasedata quality relative to, respectively, matched-or opposite-genderinterviewer conditions and standard worded items. The enhanceditems facilitated responding to a number of sensitive topics.However, the effects of item wording on item response are oftenmediated by interviewer conditions. The "choice" results suggestthat giving respondents greater control decreases question threat.However, the overall findings argue for matching respondentsand interviewers on gender over opposite-gender interviewersor allowing respondents to select their interviewer's gender.Wording and interviewer manipulations reduced the discrepanciesbetween men's and women's self-reports of sexual behavior, butthey did not eliminate them, and in some cases they had no effect.The present findings suggest that males tend to be influencedby variations in item wording, interviewer gender, and respondentcontrol across a somewhat wider range of sexual topics. In general,the findings recommend matching respondents and interviewerson gender and the use of more supportive wording in sexual behaviorquestions. However, for assessment of some topics (e.g., sexualviolence) in particular segments of the population (e.g., men),other procedures, such as increasing respondent control, maybe a better choice. Overall, the data support the view thatin terms of preferred procedures, not all sexual topics arecreated equal.     

Construct Validity and Error Components of Survey Measures: A Structural Modeling Approach

Measurement errors can have profound effects on statisticalrelationships, and better information on the quality of measuresseems needed. This study uses a new technology—structuralmodeling of data from special supplements to regular surveys—togenerate estimates of construct validity, method effects (amajor source of correlated error), and residual error (mainlyrandom error) for a broad set of measures obtained from fivenational surveys and an organizational survey (total respondents= 7,706). Analysis of these estimates suggested that a typicalsurvey item, when administered by a respected survey organizationto a general population sample, can be expected to yield 50–83percent valid variance, 0–7 percent method effects variance,and 14–48 percent residual variance. Multivariate analysisshowed that over two-thirds of the variation in measurementquality could be explained by 13 survey design characteristics;characteristics of respondents explained a small additionalportion. Results provide: (a) information on design conditionsassociated with better (or worse) measurement quality, (b) empiricallybased suggestions for improving measurement quality in futuresurveys, and (c) a set of coefficients for predicting the qualityof measures not studied here.     

ASSIMILATION AND CONTRAST EFFECTS IN PART-WHOLE QUESTION SEQUENCES: A CONVERSATIONAL LOGIC ANALYSIS

A theoretical model of the emergence of assimilation and contrasteffects in part-whole question sequences is presented. Whenone specific question precedes a general question and the twoare not assigned to the same conversational context, respondentsuse the information primed by the specific question to formthe general judgment. This results in part-whole assimilationeffects. If both questions are perceived as belonging to gether,however, conversational norms of nonredundancy prohibit therepeated use of information that has already been provided inresponse to the specific question when making the general judgment.Accordingly, respondents interpret the general question to referto aspects other than the ones covered by the specific question.Contrast effects may emerge in that case under specified conditions.If several specific questions precede the general question,however, the general one is always interpreted as a requestfor a summary judgment. This results in assimilation effects,even under conditions that would foster contrast effects ifonly one specific question is asked. The model is supportedby experimental data and provides a coherent account of apparentlycontradictory findings previously reported in the survey literature.     

'If you could change one thing...' What community-based researchers wish they could have done differently

Community-based research (CBR) is rapidly gaining recognitionsas an important tool in addressing complex environmental, healthand social problems. CBR attempts to marry community developmentwith knowledge generation. However, little is known about theCanadian CBR context. This paper reports on the analysis ofan element within a web-based survey to investigate the statusof CBR in Canada. The survey included 25 questions. This paperfocuses on responses to one open-ended question (Q20): ‘Ifthere was one thing you could change about [your last CBR] project,what would it be?’ A content analysis approach guidedanalysis and responses were coded into main theme and subthemes.Our collective reflections offer other CBR practitioners anopportunity to more effectively plan future partnerships.     

Measuring expectations of inflation: Effects of survey mode,wording, and opportunities to revise

Several national surveys aim to elicit consumers’ inflation expectations. Median expectations tend to track objective inflation estimates over time, although responses display large dispersion. Medians also tend to differ between surveys, possibly reflecting survey design differences. Using a nationally representative Dutch sample, we evaluate the importance of three survey design features in explaining observed differences: mode (face-to-face vs. web), question wording (‘prices in general’ vs. ‘inflation’), and the explicit opportunity to revise responses. We examine effects on item non-responses, revisions, reported inflation expectations and their deviation from the CPI inflation rate. We discuss implications of our findings for survey design.     

VIETNAM RECONSIDERED: AN ATTITUDINAL SURVEY OF U.S. ARMY GENERAL OFFICERS

The 173 individuals who held U.S. Army general officer commandpositions in Vietnam during the period 1965–1972 weresurveyed in September 1974 about various aspects of that conflict.Their responses reflected a general dissatisfaction with Washingtonmanagement of the war. Perceptions of media coverage of thewar were very negative. A striking absence of consensus wasapparent in many areas of the survey     

CONTRAST EFFECTS AND SUBTRACTION IN PART-WHOLE QUESTIONS

Responses to a question about the state economy changed whenthe question followed a similar item about the economy of therespondent's local community. The overall distribution of theanswers changed, as well as the correlation between the twoitems. Prior work has suggested that respondents may excludespecific aspects of a general issue from consideration whena question about the general issue follows a question aboutthe specific aspect of it. Responses to an open-ended item indicatethat respondents may have excluded a salient characteristicof the community economy when subsequently assessing the stateeconomy, even though this characteristic figured prominentlywhen respondents evaluated the state economy first.     

Assimilation and Contrast Effects in General/Specific Questions1

Abstract Data from five surveys that included specific and general questions on a similar topic are examined. Results suggest that when specific and general questions are paired in surveys, significant patterns will appear. In each of the five studies, correlations between pairs of questions were significantly different when the general followed the specific item compared with the general/specific order. But there was no consistent pattern of assimilation (answers to second item agree with the first) or contrast (response to second question opposite that of the first). One study showed clear evidence of assimilation; the other four showed varying degrees of contrast effects.     

Visual Context Effects in Web Surveys

There are many examples of context effects in survey measurement.Responses to survey questions can be shaped by the order ofquestions, the format of response options, the broader surveyenvironment, and so on. For Web surveys, the inclusion of visualimages is a trivial design issue, but may have consequencesfor the responses obtained because they change the visual context.We report a series of experiments examining how responses maybe affected by the use of images in Web surveys. Specifically,we examine the effect that pictures of a healthy woman exercisingversus a sick woman in a hospital bed have on self-rated health.We replicated the experiments in three different surveys, varyingsuch factors as the size and placement of the image and thelocation of the question within the questionnaire. In general,we find that when exposed to a picture of a fit woman, respondentsconsistently rate their own health lower than when exposed toa picture of a sick woman.     

The Effect of Including a Monetary Motive Item on the Gambling Motives Questionnaire in a Sample of Moderate Gamblers

This study explored the factor structure of the Gambling Motives Questionnaire (GMQ) with a large stratified sample of 839 moderate gamblers (49% female; median age category = 45–54 years) and examined the effect of including a monetary motive item on GMQ factor structure. Participants responded to a telephone survey in which they were asked how often they gamble for each of 16 reasons, including the 15 GMQ motives and an additional motive: “to win money”. Exploratory principal components analysis of the 15 GMQ items revealed three factors, together accounting for 49.04% of the total variance in GMQ scores. The factors tapped enhancement, coping and social motives, although only the coping subscale displayed strong internal consistency. A second exploratory principal components analysis of the 15 GMQ items and the monetary motive item continued to reveal three factors tapping enhancement, coping and social motives. The addition of the monetary motive item strengthened the independence of the components and dramatically improved the internal consistency of the enhancement factor. The results suggest that the psychometric properties of the GMQ, when used with a population of moderate gamblers, may be considerably strengthened with only minor modifications.     

The specific value of freedom

This article examines the question of how to assess our overall freedom in terms of its so-called specific value, i.e., the part of its value that can be reduced to the value of the various specific things we are free to do or be. It is argued that existing preference-based freedom rankings may fail to capture this value adequately and, drawing on earlier work by Puppe (J Econ Theory 68:174–199, 1996; in: Laslier et al. (eds.) Freedom in economics. New perspectives in normative analysis, 1998) and Puppe and Xu (Soc Choice Welf, this issue, 2010), an alternative, more general framework is proposed. Two rankings of freedom’s specific value are axiomatically characterized. The article concludes with a discussion of possible extensions of the framework.     

MEASURING HAPPINESS IN SURVEYS: A TEST OF THE SUBTRACTION HYPOTHESIS

Responses to an item on general happiness can change when thatitem follows one on marital happiness. Asking about maritalhappiness first sometimes reduces reported levels of overallhappiness. This reduction may result from a change in the interpretationof the general happiness item. According to this hypothesis,when the general item follows the item on marital happiness,respondents take the item to ask about aspects of their livesother than their marriages-in effect, the respondents subtracttheir (mostly happy) marriages in answering the general item.The study reported here tests this subtraction hypothesis byasking versions of the general happiness item that correspondto the different interpretations. A version of the general itemthat asked about general happiness "aside from your marriage"yielded responses that were quite similar to those given tothe standard item when it followed the item on marital happiness.Another version that asked about general happiness "includingyour marriage" elicited responses quite similar to those elicitedby the standard item when it preceded the marital happinessitem. However, reanalysis of the studies that originally demonstratedthe impact of the order of the two happiness items casts doubton the subtraction hypothesis and related models as explanationsof the earlier findings.     

The Effects of Branching on Item Nonresponse

The analysis of responses to a large sample survey instrumentindicates that branching instructions significantly increasethe rate of item nonresponse for items immediately followingthe branch. While older respondents did have a higher incidenceof item nonresponse, none of six other factors (education, gender,distance to next question, number of previous branches, futurebehavior, or nature of response) hypothesized to affect itemnonresponse were significantly related to the rate of nonresponse.     

Question Order Effects on Subjective Measures of Quality of Life1

The effects of question order on respondents' ratings of general and specific aspects of community life were assessed using data from separate mail surveys in Montana and Pennsylvania, The samples differed in locale, composition, and size and the relevant questions varied in number, format, and specific focus. Nevertheless, for both data sets the general question was more likely to be answered and more likely to receive positive responses when it was asked after—rather than before—the specific questions. There was some indication that carryover from the specific items to the general question responses were somewhat greater for those questions asked most recently and less for those asked earlier. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

How To Prepare the EU Integration: Banking System, Monetary Policy, and Exchange Rate in Macedonia

The significant progress in the reform of the financial sector, including the amendments to the banking law and the reinforcement of the deposit insurance scheme, has been reflected in increased confidence in the Macedonia banking sector. Monetary policy and exchange rates represent a crucial aspect for the countries of Southeast Europe which would like to position themselves on the threshold of negotiations on their accession to the European Union. In the case of Macedonia, which has already formally applied for EU membership, a very cautious approach has to be taken in order to facilitate the stability of the economic system as a whole. Such a policy will make an important contribution to the stabilization of the whole West Balkan area and in particular to the quadrangle of Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Serbia. The preparation of a favourable ground for EU membership negotiations leads first and foremost through a strict monetary and exchange rate policy, which the National Bank is pursuing firmly. Macedonia is now facing optimal conditions for creating the prerequisites for a faster negotiation with less rigorous internal repercussions of the pre-adhesion period. One should not forget the indirect impact of the shadow economy in the general context of efficiency of the instruments of economic and monetary policy. Finally, there is the question to be answered on the interrelation existing between transmission mechanisms linking productivity to the real exchange rate in Macedonia. At first glance, the stylized facts – low labor productivity growth and a trend of real depreciation – could even suggest that a Balassa–Samuelson effect is in play. But the depreciation of the real exchange rate could reflect mainly the behaviour of prices in the tradable sector and a prolonged transition associated with slow technological growth and the low quality of the country's tradable-goods basket.     

Effects of Filter Questions in Public Opinion Surveys

Extending previous work, the authors find that the wording ofa filter question can make a significant difference in the percentageof "don't know" (DK) responses elicited by an item, especiallywith topics that are more abstract or less familiar to surveyrespondents. They also find, however, that the content of anitem can have a substantial, independent effect on DK or "noopinion" responses, regardless of how the filter question isworded. In general, it appears that the less familiar the issueor topic, the greater the increase in DK responses producedby adding a filter. Even more important, the analysis showsthat filtering can in some instances dramatically affect theconclusions a pollster would draw about the distribution ofpublic opinion on an issue. Indeed, such effects may occur moreoften than has previously been suspected, though the circumstancesunder which they emerge remain elusive. The authors suggestthat such effects may become amenable to analysis by probingrespondents about "what they had in mind" as they answered thequestion.     

Abortion Counselling in Britain: Understanding the Controversy

This article reviews literature from a number of disciplines in order to provide an explanation of the political controversy attached to the provision of abortion counselling. It will show how this is an area of health policy debate in which women's reproductive bodies have become a setting for political struggle. The issue of abortion counselling in Britain has undergone a number of discursive shifts in response to political manoeuvring and changing socio‐legal framing of abortion. In particular, the article shows how much of the controversial reframing of abortion counselling was a tactical shift by political actors opposed to abortion per se, and this work is critiqued for not contextualising abortion. The article then focuses on women's abortion experiences and discusses research that shows how women's decision‐making processes, and responses to an abortion, are related to gendered socio‐cultural contexts: the extent to which women having an abortion feel they have transgressed societal norms and values, for example, is likely to affect their abortion experiences. Finally, it is suggested that providing a non‐judgemental context, and challenging negative discourses on abortion, may be the most effective way of minimising the possibility of negative emotions.