Book Chapter

The use of contact data in understanding cross-national differences in unit nonresponse

By Annelies G. Blom, Annette Jäckle and Peter Lynn

Edited by Janet A. Harkness, Michael Braun, Brad Edwards, Timothy P. Johnson, Lars E. Lyberg, Peter Ph. Mohler, Beth-Ellen Pennell and Tom W. Smith

Publication details

Publication date
Series or book
Survey methods in multinational, multiregional, and multicultural contexts
Series or chapter number
No. 18
Pages
pp. 333–354
Publisher
John Wiley
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470609927.ch18
ISBN
9780470177990

Summary

This chapter reviews the use of auxiliary data in studies of cross-national variations in the above factors and the impacts upon survey nonresponse. It discusses expected sources of cross-national differences in survey participation processes. Then, the chapter classifies potential sources of auxiliary data, focusing on contact data. It reviews existing cross-national studies of nonresponse and summarizes findings with respect to some of the key questions. The chapter discusses the main limitations of currently available contact data, and suggests three quality criteria which would improve the usefulness of contact data for the study of cross-national nonresponse: equivalence of design of contact forms, of implementation, and of the coding of outcomes.

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