A meta-analysis of 193 survey research studies examined differences in response rate by population type. Analysis suggests higher response rates may be expected from surveys of students and educators than from surveys of the general population. Effects of treatments intended to affect response rate differed minimally by type of population.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
BaumgartnerR. M.HeberleinT. A. (1984) Research on mailed questionnaire response rates. In LockhartD. C. (Ed.), Making effective use of mailed questionnaires. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Pp. 63–75.
2.
EichnerK.HabermehlW. (1978) Predicting response rates to mailed questionnaires (comment on Heberlein and Baumgartner, ASR, August 1978). American Sociological Review, 46, 361–363.
3.
GoyderJ. C. (1982) Further evidence on factors affecting response rates to mailed questionnaires. American Sociological Review, 47, 550–553.
4.
GreenK. E. (1995) Sociodemographic factors and mail survey response. Psychology and Marketing, 13, 171–184.
5.
GreenK. E.BoserJ. A.HutchinsonS. R. (1997) Effects of population type on mail survey response rates and on the efficacy of response enhancers. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, March. [ERIC ED 410 252].
6.
JobberD. (1986) Improving response rates in industrial mail surveys. Industrial Marketing Management, 15, 183–195.
7.
YammarinoF. J.SkinnerS. J.ChildersT. L. (1991) Understanding mail survey response behavior. Public Opinion Quarterly, 55, 613–639.