Assessing Interviewer Performance in Approaching Reissued Initial Nonrespondents

• Main Authors: Peeters Laurie, De Coninck David, Wuyts Celine, Loosveldt Geert
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sciendo 2020-09-01
• Series: Journal of Official Statistics
• Subjects: nonresponse; european social survey; reissuing
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.2478/jos-2020-0030

Nonresponse is a repeatedly reported concern in survey research. In this article, we investigate the technique of reissuing nonrespondents to another interviewer and attempting to convert them into respondents, using data of Rounds 7 and 8 of the European Social Survey (ESS) in Belgium. The results show no marked differences between respondents interviewed by the more and the less successful interviewers, indicating that the latter are not more successful in persuading more reluctant respondents to participate. Sample units that were unsuccessfully approached in the initial phase by an interviewer with a high response rate are more difficult to convert during the reissue phase. Sample units that were unsuccessfully approached in the initial phase by an interviewer with a low response rate are easier to convert during the reissue phase.