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Problem: Tobacco industry market research defines segments of college students by psychographic characteristics to inform marketing campaigns. This study uses a similar approach to define college student market segments and [...]

Objective: Supplementary questionnaires provide additional information from subgroups, but may have an attritional effect on response rates. We examined the effects of different instruction methods on response rates to a two-part questionnaire. Methods: The ACT Kindergarten Health Survey comprises a health questionnaire for all school-entry children. A supplementary questionnaire targets children with respiratory symptoms. We cluster-randomised 109 schools in the ACT (4,494 children) to two instruction groups. Group 1 (instruction burden) had instructions to complete the supplementary questionnaire if certain questions in the primary questionnaire were answered. Group 2 (response burden) had instructions to complete both questionnaires irrespective of answers to the primary questionnaire. Results: Instructing all respondents to complete both questionnaires regardless of eligibility resulted in a statistically significantly lower primary questionnaire response rate (82% vs. 87%), but a statistically significantly higher response rate to the supplementary questionnaire (99% vs. 91%). The net effect was a small overall gain (82% vs. 79%) for the response burden group. Conclusion: Increasing the response burden had a minor impact on response rate to the primary questionnaire, but increased the response rate for most items to the supplementary questionnaire. Implications: Large surveys may be broken into primary and supplementary questionnaires, if strategies to maximise response rates are used. Questionnaires may need to be modified to take into account the likely attrition on response to either questionnaire resulting from instruction and response burdens.

Research indicates that reasonable precision of percentile estimates for the National Center for Health Statistics 1977 Growth Charts is dependent on the pooling of both NCHS survey data and The Third National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey, which was conducted between 1988 and 1991.

An analysis is presented on the Brush Inquiry, a health survey performed in the city of Cleveland, OH, from 1926 to 1942. Impacts of the survey include establishing norms for child development and growth, setting indicators for subsequent health outcomes, and incorporating a wide variety of categories, such as economic status and ethnicity.

Objectives. This study examined cross sectionally the physical activity patterns associated with low, moderate, and high levels of cardiorespiratory fitness. Methods. Physical activity was assessed by questionnaire in a clinic population of 13 444 men and 3972 women 20 to 87 years of age. Estimated energy expenditure (kcal [multiplied by] [wk.sup.-1]) and volume (min [multiplied by] [wk.sup.-1]) of reported activities were calculated among individuals at low, moderate, and high fitness levels (assessed by maximal exercise tests). Results. Average leisure time energy expenditures of 525 to 1650 kcal [multiplied by] [wk.sup.-1] for men and 420 to 1260 kcal [multiplied by] [wk.sup.-1] for women were associated with moderate to high levels of fitness. These levels of energy expenditure can be achieved with a brisk walk of approximately 30 minutes on most days of the week. In fact, men in the moderate and high fitness categories walked between 130 and 138 min [multiplied by] [wk.sup.-1], and women in these categories walked between 148 and 167 min [multiplied by] [wk.sup.-1]. Conclusions. Most individuals should be able to achieve these physical activity goals and thus attain a cardiorespiratory fitness level sufficient to result in substantial health benefits. (Am d Public Health. 1998;88: 1807-1813)