Allyson L. Holbrook

Telephone versus Face-to-Face Interviewing of National Probability Samples with Long Questionnaires: Comparisons of Respondent Satisficing and Social Desirability Response Bias

The last 50 years have seen a gradual replacement of face-to-face interviewing with telephone interviewing as the dominant mode of survey data collection in the United States. But some of the most expensive and large-scale nationally funded, long-term survey re- search projects involving national area-probability samples and long questionnaires retain face-to-face interviewing as their mode. In this article, we propose two ways in which shifting such surveys to random digit dialing (RDD) telephone interviewing might affect the quality of data acquired, and we test these hypotheses using data from three na- tional mode experiments. Random digit dialing telephone respondents were more likely to satisfice (as evidenced by no-opinion responding, nondifferentiation, and acquiescence), to be less cooperative and en- gaged in the interview, and were more likely to express dissatisfaction with the length of the interview than were face-to-face respondents, despite the fact that the telephone interviews were completed more quickly than the face-to-face interviews. Telephone respondents were also more suspicious about the interview process and more likely to present themselves in socially desirable ways than were face-to-face respondents. These findings shed light on the nature of the survey re- sponse process, on the costs and benefits associated with particular survey modes, and on the nature of social interaction generally.

The Impact of "No Opinion" Response Options on Data Quality: Non-Attitude Reduction or an Invitation to Satisfice?

According to many seasoned survey researchers, offering a no-opinion option should reduce the pressure to give substantive re- sponses felt by respondents who have no true opinions. By contrast, the survey satisficing perspective suggests that no-opinion options may dis- courage some respondents from doing the cognitive work necessary to report the true opinions they do have. We address these arguments using data from nine experiments carried out in three household surveys. Attraction to no-opinion options was found to be greatest among re- spondents lowest in cognitive skills (as measured by educational at- tainment), among respondents answering secretly instead of orally, for questions asked later in a survey, and among respondents who devoted little effort to the reporting process. The quality of attitude reports ob- tained (as measured by over-time consistency and responsiveness to a question manipulation) was not compromised by the omission of no- opinion options. These results suggest that inclusion of no-opinion op- tions in attitude measures may not enhance data quality and instead may preclude measurement of some meaningful opinions.

Attitude Importance and the Accumulation of Attitude-Relevant Knowledge in Memory.

People who attach personal importance to an attitude are especially knowledgeable about the attitude object. This article tests an explanation for this relation: that importance causes the accumulation of knowledge by inspiring selective exposure to and selective elaboration of relevant information. Nine studies showed that (a) after watching televised debates between presidential candidates, viewers were better able to remember the statements made on policy issues on which they had more personally important attitudes; (b) importance motivated selective exposure and selective elaboration: Greater personal importance was associated with better memory for relevant information encountered under controlled laboratory conditions, and manipulations eliminating opportunities for selective exposure and selective elaboration eliminated the importance-memory accuracy relation; and (c) people do not use perceptions of their knowledge volume to infer how important an attitude is to them, but importance does cause knowledge accumulation.

Meta-Psychological Versus Operative Measures of Ambivalence

In building theories about the inner workings of political actors’ minds, political psychologists often posit the existence of latent constructs such as attitudes, beliefs, and personality dispositions. Although no one has ever directly seen an attitude, belief, or personality disposition, assuming that these constructs exist helps scholars to explain political behavior. In this sense, psychological constructs are similar to physical constructs (such as energy) that have been proposed by physicists, chemists, and other scientists to explain the observable phenomena of interest to them.

Culture Moderates the Relation Between Perceived Stress, Social Support, and Mental and Physical Health

Cultural differences in the relations between perceived stress and mental and physical health, and the role of social support in buffering these relations, are examined in a survey of multiple U.S. cultural/ethnic groups. Findings from a health survey of N = 603 adults comprising approximately equal numbers of non-Hispanic Whites, Mexican Americans, Korean Americans, and African Americans show that perceived stress is negatively correlated with one’s perceived mental and physical health, in line with previous research. However, the role of social support in mitigating this relationship is culturally contingent. A buffering effect of social support on the relation between perceived stress and both mental and physical health was only observed for Mexican Americans, not for the other cultural/ethnic groups. These patterns are discussed in the context of research on differences in social help seeking among distinct types of collectivistic cultural groups. The findings are consistent with recent research on horizontal versus vertical collectivism that highlights the importance of sociability and benevolence in Latin American cultural contexts. The results affirm the importance of distinguishing between collectivistic cultures in understanding how social support may impact mental and physical health.

Acculturation and health survey question comprehension among Latino respondents in the US.

Although research has documented cultural variability in respondent comprehension and interpretation of survey questions, little information is currently available on the role that acculturation might play in minimizing cross-cultural differences in the comprehension or interpretation of survey questions. To investigate this problem, we examine the potential effects of acculturation to host culture on respondent comprehension of a set of health survey questions among two distinct Latino populations on the US mainland: Mexican–Americans and Puerto Ricans. Specifically, comprehension-related respondent behaviors coded from 345 face-to-face interviews conducted with Mexican–American, Puerto Rican, African American, and non-Latino White adults living in Chicago are examined. Findings indicate that Latino respondents who were born outside of the US and who have a preference for communicating in Spanish, relative to English, were more likely to express comprehension difficulties. These findings suggest that pretest survey instruments with immigrant populations may be a useful strategy for identifying problematic questions.

Justice or compassion? Cultural differences in power norms affect consumer satisfaction with power-holders

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate cultural variations in the qualities that White Americans and Hispanic Americans believe power-holders should embody, and the situations in which these norms influence consumer satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach – Two experimental studies (n1=130 and n2=121) and one field study (n=241) were conducted with White American and Hispanic participants. Results were analysed using ANOVA and regression. Findings – White Americans are predisposed to apply to power-holders injunctive norms of treating others justly and equitably, whereas Hispanics are predisposed to apply injunctive norms of treating others compassionately. These cultural variations in the use of injunctive norms were more evident in business or service contexts in which power was made salient, and emerged in the norms more likely to be endorsed by White American and Hispanic participants (Study 1), their approval of hypothetical negotiators who treated suppliers equitably or compassionat...