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Mail communications remain a prominent aspect of survey research, especially due to the increasing adoption of web-push surveys throughout the world. However, there is a lack of research on the effectiveness of comprehensive communication strategies for increasing response rates. This paper tests the influence of two communication theories—social exchange theory and pre-suasion theory—on response rates in a survey of residents of southern West Virginia. Social exchange theory has long been used as a strategy for encouraging response, but the theory of pre-suasion offers a new approach of tailoring and sequencing written and visual communications. We operationalized pre-suasion and social exchange communications techniques in the cover letter and questionnaire, then conducted a 2-by-2 experimental design to identify differences in response and data quality. The results show significant differences in response based on the communications in the letter, but no differences based on the questionnaire. The versions with social exchange letters received a response rate 5.5 percent higher than pre-suasion letters. Further, communication differences had no statistically significant effect on measures of data quality. These findings suggest future avenues for research on broad communication strategies in mail survey materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, web-push strategies have been developed in cross-sectional mixed-mode surveys to improve response rates and reduce the costs of data collection. However, pushing respondents into the more cost-efficient web mode has rarely been examined in the context of panel surveys. This study evaluates how a web-push intervention affects the willingness of panel members to switch survey modes from mail to web. We tested three web-push strategies in a German probability-based mixed-mode panel by randomly assigning 1,895 panelists of the mail mode to one of three conditions: (1) the web option was offered to panelists concurrently with the paper questionnaire including a promised €10 incentive for completing the survey on the web, (2) the web option was presented sequentially two weeks before sending the paper questionnaire and respondents were also promised an incentive of €10, or (3) same sequential web-first approach as for condition 2, but with a prepaid €10 incentive instead of a promised incentive. The study found that a sequential presentation of the web option significantly increases the web response in a single survey but may not motivate more panelists to switch to the web mode permanently. Contrary to our expectation, offering prepaid incentives neither improves the web response nor the proportion of mode switchers. Overall, all three web-push strategies show the potential to effectively reduce survey costs without causing differences in panel attrition after five consecutive waves. Condition 2, the sequential web-first design combined with a promised incentive was most effective in pushing respondents to switch to the web mode and in reducing costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Address-based sampling(ABS) involves drawing probability samples from address frames; in the United States, ABS frames are usually based, in part, on U.S. Postal Service mail delivery databases. Its use has grown rapidly over the past 10 years to the point where it is considered a viable alternative to random-digit-dial dual frame telephone sample designs. Although telephone surveys are well established in the U.S., they have seen declining response rates and the need to sample from both the landline telephone number sampling frame and the cell phone sampling frame. ABS typically involves sampling from a single address frame and opens up the possibility of using various contact and data collection modes including mail, Internet, telephone, and in-person. Mixed modes are often employed in ABS with anywhere from one to multiple phases of contact and/or data collection. The American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) Council, operating under the auspices of the AAPOR Standards Committee, convened a task force to prepare a comprehensive report on Address-based Sampling. This paper is drawn from the AAPOR report and focuses on sampling, approaches to data collection, and weighting procedures. We also address an important and somewhat challenging aspect of ABS designs for population surveys, the random selection of an adult from the sample household. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]