Postal surveys - A view from the other side

Objectives — To explore the reasons why elderly people with arthritis choose to participate in a reliability study conducted by postal survey, and their views of the process of taking part. Methods — Twenty elderly people suffering from arthritis were interviewed in depth. They were chosen on the basis of how they had completed postal questionnaires about their arthritis, on two separate occasions to assess reliability, two weeks apart. Interviews were taped, with permission, and transcribed verbatim. Content analysis of the interview data, and any telephone calls, comments or letters received from all survey recipients, was conducted using NUD-IST. Key findings — Many respondents thought that such surveys only involved the worst sufferers and that anyone else was “a fraud”. Part of the motivation for individuals to participate was the desire to help the researcher, others with arthritis or, for some respondents, themselves. The details of the questionnaires were used by the respondents as clues to develop their theories of the survey's purpose. There was commonly a failure to perceive the need to complete the questionnaires twice, regardless of whether there had been a change in their health. Some respondents did not see the point of the second questionnaires, some apologised for their unchanged health, and others actively sought to find further information to put into the second set. Conclusion — These results have implications for researchers, by identifying the range of detail required by potential survey respondents to reduce response bias. If the purpose of the survey is not clearly communicated, participants will impose their own, probably different, interpretation, with unexpected consequences.