Attitudes toward Surveys: Development of a Measure and Its Relationship to Respondent Behavior

Abstract

Attitudes toward surveys were conceptualized as having two relatively independent components: feelings about the act of completing a survey, called survey enjoyment, and perceptions of the value of survey research, called survey value. After developing a psychometrically sound measure, the authors examined how the measure related to respondent behaviors that directly impact the quality and quantity of data collected in surveys. With the exception of a response distortion index, survey enjoyment was generally related to all the respondent behaviors studied (item response rates, following directions, volunteering to participate in other survey research, timeliness of a response to a survey request, and willingness to participate in additional survey research). Survey value was related to item response rates, following directions, and willingness to participate in additional survey research. A respondent motivation and intentions explanation is provided. Although the identified effect sizes were generally small, a number of practical implications emerge and are discussed.The use of surveys to address organizational research needs (e.g., pinpointing areas of concern, monitoring program impact, and providing input for future decisions) has Downloaded from increased tremendously over the past half century (Kraut, 1996). As a result, millions of employees are asked to complete at least one organizational questionnaire each year (Gallup, 1988). Given the ubiquity of surveys, it is surprising how little research has examined individuals' attitudes toward this frequently used research methodology (i.e., the degree of positive or negative feelings a person has about surveys). The present study addresses this deficiency by introducing a reliable measure of attitudes toward surveys and examining how those attitudes relate to survey respondent behaviors that affect data quality and quantity (e.g., completing survey items, following directions).Research on attitudes toward surveys began with the descriptive work of Sjoberg (1955), who interviewed 148 people about their attitudes toward government polling (e.g., "Do you think the city should set up controls to restrict the interviewing of people?"). Although this study did not examine the relations between attitudes about polling and other variables (e.g., how people respond to surveys), it identified respondents' attitudes toward surveys as an important consideration in conducting survey research. Other research has found that the number of requests an individual receives to participate in survey projects was related to that individual's attitudes toward surveys. Specifically, individuals inundated with survey requests expressed more negative attitudes toward surveys than individuals with fewer survey solicitations (Goyder, 1986). Attitudes toward surveys were also found to be unrelated to respondents' decision-making vocalizations when completing a survey, as assessed via verbal protocol analysis (Helgeson & Ursic, 1994;Ursic & Helgeson, 1989). More recently, Baruch (1999) arg...

Attitudes Toward Surveys, Attitude Accessibility and the Effect on Respondents’ Susceptibility to Nonresponse

“…Similar results were found in two other studies (Rogelberg et al, 2001;Sharp, 1981). However, in all available studies where the effect of attitudes toward surveys has been analyzed, refusals and 'don't know' responses have been aggregated into a single indicator for nonresponse.…”

“…Some evidence for this hypothesis has been found in research about the determinants of other dimensions of respondents' cooperation in surveys. Subjects with a more favorable survey attitude were found to be more easily convinced to participate in surveys, showed more compliance with instructions on how to complete a mail questionnaire and were less susceptible to social desirability bias (Erbslöh and Koch, 1988;Jones, 1979;Rogelberg et al, 2001;Stinchcombe et al, 1981;Stocké, 2004). A few studies have analyzed whether respondents' evaluation of surveys predicts their disposition to item nonresponse.…”

Web-based research: Methodological variables’ effects on dropout and sample characteristics

“…In addition, the effects on dropout observed in Studies 2 and 4 were independent of the measured attitudes. As has been explained by Rogelberg, Fisher, Maynard, Hakel, and Horvath (2001), attitudes toward research are important determinants of who participates. Thus, to further explain dropout, future research should add additional measures of these attitudes and of motivation.…”

Focus of B-to-B e-commerce initiatives and related benefits in manufacturing small- and medium-sized enterprises

“…CEOs of the selected firms were reached by e-mail and asked to participate in an on-line survey. Compared to a traditional mail questionnaire, an electronic survey offers certain advantages such as the creation of a more interactive and attractive instrument, the reduction in handling costs and response cycle time and the elimination of errors due to data re-entry (Couper 2000;Dillman 2000;Rogelberg et al 2001). Moreover, generalized access to the Internet, which a few years ago was considered a potential shortcoming for on-line surveys, no longer represents an important issue since most North-American SMEs have Internet access.…”