Using data mining to predict the occurrence of respondent retrieval strategies in calendar interviewing: The quality of retrospective reports

Robert F. Belli, L. Dee Miller, Tarek Al Baghal, Leen Kiat Soh

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

Determining which verbal behaviors of interviewers and respondents are dependent on one another is a complex problem that can be facilitated via data-mining approaches. Data are derived from the interviews of 153 respondents of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) who were interviewed about their life-course histories. Behavioral sequences of interviewer-respondent interactions that were most predictive of respondents spontaneously using parallel, timing, duration, and sequential retrieval strategies in their generation of answers were examined. We also examined which behavioral sequences were predictive of retrospective reporting data quality as shown by correspondence between calendar responses with responses collected in prior waves of the PSID. The verbal behaviors of immediately preceding interviewer and respondent turns of speech were assessed in terms of their co-occurrence with each respondent retrieval strategy. Interviewers’ use of parallel probes is associated with poorer data quality, whereas interviewers’ use of timing and duration probes, especially in tandem, is associated with better data quality. Respondents’ use of timing and duration strategies is also associated with better data quality and both strategies are facilitated by interviewer timing probes. Data mining alongside regression techniques is valuable to examine which interviewer-respondent interactions will benefit data quality.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)579-600
Number of pages22
JournalJournal of Official Statistics
Volume32
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2016

Keywords

  • Calendar interviewing
  • Data mining
  • Interviewing
  • Memory aids

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Statistics and Probability

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Using data mining to predict the occurrence of respondent retrieval strategies in calendar interviewing: The quality of retrospective reports'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this