Open AccessItem‐Level Nonresponse Rates in an Attitudinal Survey of Teachers Delivered via Mail and Web
Author(s) -
Wolfe Edward W.,
Converse Patrick D.,
Oswald Frederick L.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of computer‐mediated communication
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.15
H-Index - 119
ISSN - 1083-6101
DOI - 10.1111/j.1083-6101.2008.01430.x
Subject(s) - respondent , differential item functioning , psychology , demographics , item response theory , statistics , psychometrics , demography , clinical psychology , mathematics , sociology , political science , law
This article presents the results of an experiment designed to compare item‐level non‐response rates to paper‐ and web‐based versions of a survey questionnaire, focusing on attitudinal variables, that was administered to highly accomplished teachers. A sample of teachers reported their perceptions of professional community; half were assigned to a web‐based version of the questionnaire, and the other half to a paper‐based version. In both groups, the survey implementation procedures reflected Dillman’s (2007) Tailored Design Method . Item‐level nonresponses were compared between groups for overall rates, and differential response rates by demographics, item position, item format (i.e., branching items and respondent‐provided text), and item content. Results revealed small differences in item‐level nonresponse rates, both overall and in comparisons between demographic groups. In addition, there was no evidence of differential item‐level nonresponse by item position and item content. However, item‐level nonresponse rates were considerably higher for fill‐in‐the‐blank items on the web‐based questionnaire.