This study analyzes the consequences of item nonresponse to the question about a household's total net income in the European Social Survey (2008-2018). We recognize two mechanisms in avoiding answering the income question: task complexity and question sensitivity, and apply multilevel logistic regressions to predict the probability of refusals or…

When conducting a postal survey, a traditional recommendation is to use paper postage stamps instead of an automated postage system, to make sure that invitations have a more personal and attractive appearance. In this research note, we investigate whether this traditional recommendation is still valid. In the autumn of 2020, a postal survey was…

This research analyzes the effectiveness of the list experiment and crosswise model in measuring self-plagiarism and data manipulation. Both methods were implemented in a large-scale survey of academics on social norms and academic misconduct. As the results lend little confidence about the effectiveness of the methods, researchers are best…

In a mixed-methods study on poverty in Germany, we conducted qualitative interviews and collected quantitative data on ego-centered networks using a name-generator approach and a single set of respondents. Based on the qualitative data, we first developed a typology of negative ties and then evaluated which of these ties the name generator (on…

Transactional validity, a common approach in participatory research, is attained when preliminary analyses of research results are discussed with research participants and their feedback is incorporated in the analysis. Member checking is one way of achieving transactional validity, which has been heralded as a stronger version of validity reached…

This study illustrates how the cognitive interviewing (CI) method can provide qualitative evidence of item, construct, and method bias in cross-cultural research. CI was conducted with participants from the Netherlands and Spain, who responded to quality-of-life (QoL) items included in international survey research projects. Qualitative findings…

Short message service (SMS or text messaging) surveys can collect data quickly and inexpensively. However, SMS surveys have space constraints that pose difficulties to questionnaire designers: Questions can only be 160 characters or less, surveys must be short, and many respondents use phones with small screens. In this article, we compare SMS and…

I used a subscriber identity module card reader to copy the lists of saved contacts from 170 mobile phones in Fiji. This approach has both advantages and disadvantages compared to other techniques for collecting telephone network data. Copying phone contacts avoids recall biases associated with survey-based name generators. It also obviates the…