John Tarnai

A Comparison of Androgynous, Feminine, Masculine, and Undifferentiated Women on Self-Esteem, Body Satisfaction, and Sexual Satisfaction

Unmarried female undergraduates (n = 204) completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory and measures of body image and self-esteem. Androgyny and masculinity were associated with self-esteem, body satisfaction, and sexual satisfaction. Androgynous and masculine subjects were generally similar and well adjusted; whereas feminine and undifferentiated subjects were similar and less well adjusted. Results are interpreted as evidence for the adaptive nature of changing female sex roles.

Cost benefit of sumatriptan to an employer

Benefit and occupational health managers need information on whether new treatments, such as sumatriptan, for migraine headache improve organizational or individual performance. A work productivity outcomes assessment was conducted among sumatriptan-using employees of an Independent Practice Association-health maintenance organization population. Of the 164 sumatriptan users, 101 full-time employees were surveyed by telephone once in an open-label, before-after design. The results revealed that lost labor costs, a function of days missed from work and reduced productivity at work as a result of migraine, were decreased after sumatriptan treatment initiation. Incremental benefit of this reduction in lost productivity is valued at

Questionnaire Context as a Source of Response Differences in Mail and Telephone Surveys

435/month per employee. The sumatriptan cost associated with this benefit is

Understanding differences in people's answers to telephone and mail surveys

43.78/month. The benefit-to-cost ratio is 10:1. Other costs and benefits were excluded. In conclusion, the availability of sumatriptan for migraine headache treatments in this IPA-HMO resulted in improved work productivity and had a net benefit for the employer.

Improving response to business mail surveys

There are three sources for response effects in surveys: the survey task (mode of administration), the interviewer, and the respondent. Although most research has focused on response differences due to characteristics of the interviewer, and the respondent, research suggests that differences in the mode of administration are the major source of response effects (Bradburn, 1983). However, relatively little is known about the conditions under which response differences can be expected. The literature is mixed with respect to the extent of response differences between mail and telephone survey methods. The general consensus among survey researchers has been that mode of administration has only a modest effect on most survey responses (Singer & Presser, 1989, p. 187), although this view may be changing (Schwarz, Strack, Hippler, & Bishop, in press). Our purpose in this chapter is to present data testing whether some response differences between telephone and mail surveys are attributable to differences in the effect of the context established by the mode of administration.