Non-response to a life course socioeconomic position indicator in surveillance: comparison of telephone and face-to-face modes

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dc.contributor.authorChittleborough, C.
dc.contributor.authorTaylor, A.
dc.contributor.authorBaum, F.
dc.contributor.authorHiller, J.
dc.date.issued2008
dc.description.abstractBackground Measurement of socioeconomic position (SEP) over the life course in population health surveillance systems is important for examining differences in health and illness between different population groups and for monitoring the impact of policies and interventions aimed at reducing health inequities and intergenerational disadvantage over time. While face-to-face surveys are considered the gold standard of interviewing techniques, computer-assisted telephone interviewing is often preferred for cost and convenience. This study compared recall of parents' highest level of education in telephone and face-to-face surveys. Methods Questions about father's and mother's highest education level were included in two representative population health surveys of South Australians aged 18 years and over in Spring 2004. A random sample selected from the electronic white pages (EWP) responded to a computer-assisted telephone interview (n = 2999), and a multistage clustered area sample responded to a face-to-face interview (n = 2893). A subsample of respondents in the face-to-face sample who owned a telephone that was listed in the EWP (n = 2206) was also compared to the telephone interview sample. Results The proportion of respondents who provided information about their father's and mother's highest education level was significantly higher in the face-to-face interview (86.3% and 87.8%, respectively) than in the telephone interview (80.4% and 79.9%, respectively). Recall was also significantly higher in the subsample of respondents in the face-to-face interview who had a telephone that was listed in the EWP. Those with missing data for parents' education were more likely to be socioeconomically disadvantaged regardless of the survey mode. Conclusion While face-to-face interviewing obtained higher item response rates for questions about parents' education, survey mode did not appear to influence the factors associated with having missing data on father's or mother's highest education level.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityCatherine R Chittleborough, Anne W Taylor, Fran E Baum and Janet E Hiller
dc.identifier.citationBMC Medical Research Methodology, 2008; 8(54):1-9
dc.identifier.doi10.1186/1471-2288-8-54
dc.identifier.issn1471-2288
dc.identifier.issn1471-2288
dc.identifier.orcidChittleborough, C. [0000-0003-3196-7137]
dc.identifier.orcidTaylor, A. [0000-0002-4422-7974]
dc.identifier.orcidBaum, F. [0000-0002-2294-1368]
dc.identifier.orcidHiller, J. [0000-0002-8532-4033]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/51880
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherBioMed Central Ltd.
dc.rights© 2008 Chittleborough et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2288-8-54
dc.subjectHumans
dc.subjectPopulation Surveillance
dc.subjectParents
dc.subjectSocial Class
dc.subjectTelephone
dc.subjectAdolescent
dc.subjectAdult
dc.subjectAged
dc.subjectMiddle Aged
dc.subjectEducational Status
dc.subjectOccupations
dc.subjectSouth Australia
dc.subjectFemale
dc.subjectMale
dc.subjectInterviews as Topic
dc.titleNon-response to a life course socioeconomic position indicator in surveillance: comparison of telephone and face-to-face modes
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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