Improvement of the Quality of Responses to Factual Survey Questions by Interviewer Training

Abstract

In this study we analyze the effects of interviewer training on the quality of responses. Data from a field experiment reveal a number of significant differences between trained and untrained interviewers in terms of nonresponse and the amount of information obtained. For some questions, an interaction effect occurred between interviewer training, the use of tape recorders, and the kind of responses. The effects of training appear to be dependent on the structure of the questions. Since such effects occur primarily with questions that assume a great deal of inter- viewer activity, it is suggested that they are indeed due to the application of the techniques acquired by training, namely giving instructions, probing, and feedback. A brief analysis of the inter- viewer-respondent interaction supports this interpretation. It is generally accepted that the task performance of the interviewer can have an effect on the responses to factual survey questions. This awareness of the interviewer's potential for manipulating responses has generated numerous attempts to control interviewer behavior. Task rules (Brenner, 198 la, 198 lb) and special interviewing techniques (Cannell, Miller, and Oksenberg, 1981) have been designed in the ex- pectation that their correct application will yield an improvement in response quality. Moreover, efforts have been made to develop instru- ments for analyzing question-answer sequences in order to have a