Wer macht mit? Zur Repräsentativität einer Elternbefragung im Rahmen der Schuleingangsuntersuchung.

Abstract

In an evaluation study of preventive programmes, the recruitment success of families in difficult socio-economic circumstances was examined during the school entrance examination (SEE). Using a 3-stage recruitment procedure, parents were motivated to participate in the survey. The response rate was calculated for the entire cohort and separately for the single recruitment stages. Non-participants and participants were compared on 4 indicators of difficult socio-economic circumstances. 52% of the parents participated in the study. The response rate reached 21% for the recruitment stage 'questionnaire with invitation to the SEE', 28% for stage 'personal delivery at the health department' and 4% for stage 'stamped addressed envelope'. Families with low education were more often non-participants (multivariate Odds Ratio (OR) 2.2; 95%-confidence interval (CI) 1.3-3.6). Marginal differences in study participation were present for unemployed families (OR 1.4; CI 0.6-3.2), single parents (OR 1.0; CI 0.6-1.8) and families with immigration background (OR 1.2; CI 0.7-1.5). The response rate was adequate. Personal delivery achieved the highest response rate compared to the other stages. A parent survey at the SEE is a promising approach to access families in difficult socio-economic circumstances. Nevertheless, families with low education are still underrepresented.