Wednesday, June 22, 2005
(12:26 PM) | Adam Kotsko:
Survey Safety
At a recent summit sponsored by Nielsen Media Research, a variety of recommendations were reached on the impact of increasing cell phone usage on the polling community:As a result of this meeting, it was proposed that several “advisory” statements be drafted for the research community concerning reaching cell phones while conducting telephone surveys. The statements address: (1) the overall issue of accounting for cell phones in survey research sampling, (2) safety concerns of conducting research with a respondent while they are on a cell phone, (3) data quality concerns, and (4) the ethics of conducting research interviews with a respondent who is using a cell phone. (my emphasis)Here's some more info on number two:
The mobile nature of cell phone technology allows for a respondent to be engaged in numerous activities and to be physically present in various locations that would not normally be expected in reaching someone on a fixed landline number. In particular, the operation of a motor vehicle or any type of potentially harmful machinery by a respondent during a research interview presents a potential hazard to the respondent and to anyone else in the general vicinity of the respondent (e.g., fellow passengers in the car).So the survey person will call you up on your cell phone and you can have that classic conversation: Are you sure you're safe to drive right now?
As such, any researcher who conducts a survey that includes respondents being interviewed on a cell phone should take appropriate measures to protect the safety of the respondent and those around the respondent.
