The association between interviewer gender and responses to sensitive survey questions in a sample of Haitian women

Kianersi, Sina; Luetke, Maya; Jules, Reginal; Rosenberg, Molly

doi:10.1080/13645579.2019.1661248

Cited by 22 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Four follow-up surveys were designed to be administered every 2 weeks after the baseline laboratory visit. We decided to use surveys instead of face-to-face interviews because the latter is prone to different types of interviewer bias, such as interviewer gender bias [ 31 ]; more importantly, face-to-face interviews were not advised in Fall 2020 to minimize the risk of COVID-19 spread. Follow-up surveys were originally conceptualized as separate Events within the structure of the original longitudinal REDCap project.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of research electronic data capture (REDCap) in a COVID-19 randomized controlled trial: a practical example

Kianersi

Luetke

Ludema

et al. 2021

BMC Med Res Methodol

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Background Randomized controlled trials (RCT) are considered the ideal design for evaluating the efficacy of interventions. However, conducting a successful RCT has technological and logistical challenges. Defects in randomization processes (e.g., allocation sequence concealment) and flawed masking could bias an RCT’s findings. Moreover, investigators need to address other logistics common to all study designs, such as study invitations, eligibility screening, consenting procedure, and data confidentiality protocols. Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) is a secure, browser-based web application widely used by researchers for survey data collection. REDCap offers unique features that can be used to conduct rigorous RCTs. Methods In September and November 2020, we conducted a parallel group RCT among Indiana University Bloomington (IUB) undergraduate students to understand if receiving the results of a SARS-CoV-2 antibody test changed the students’ self-reported protective behavior against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In the current report, we discuss how we used REDCap to conduct the different components of this RCT. We further share our REDCap project XML file and instructional videos that investigators can use when designing and conducting their RCTs. Results We reported on the different features that REDCap offers to complete various parts of a large RCT, including sending study invitations and recruitment, eligibility screening, consenting procedures, lab visit appointment and reminders, data collection and confidentiality, randomization, blinding of treatment arm assignment, returning test results, and follow-up surveys. Conclusions REDCap offers powerful tools for longitudinal data collection and conduct of rigorous and successful RCTs. Investigators can make use of this electronic data capturing system to successfully complete their RCTs. Trial registration The RCT was prospectively (before completing data collection) registered at ClinicalTrials.gov; registration number: NCT04620798, date of registration: November 9, 2020.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of research electronic data capture (REDCap) in a COVID-19 randomized controlled trial: a practical example

Kianersi

Luetke

Ludema

et al. 2021

BMC Med Res Methodol

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…That study compared survey responses to male and female interviewers and found differences in responses to knowledge and attitude questions regarding HIV/AIDS; however, there were few discrepancies in sexual behaviour reported to male enumerators. In contrast, a study in Zambia found, female respondents were more likely to report sexual behaviours to female interviewers than to males [ 11 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While it may seem logical that matching interviewer and respondent should reduce social distance and the potential for response error, evidence of interviewer effects across studies on response rates and response quality are inconsistent [1,2,[5][6][7][8][9]. Several methodological studies show that interviewer effects vary by country and geographic area; however, little is known how cultural norms or social context influence the interviewer-respondent rapport and lead to measurable interviewer effects [1,3,4,10,11]. Few qualitative studies have explored respondents' perceptions of the interview process, in particular the acceptability of an interviewer's gender or how social norms influence female respondent behaviour and survey responses [12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does interviewer gender influence a mother’s response to household surveys about maternal and child health in traditional settings? A qualitative study in Bihar, India

et al. 2021

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Background Two probability surveys, conducted in the same districts of Bihar, India (Aurangabad and Gopalganj) at approximately the same time in 2016 using identical questionnaires and similar survey methods, produced significantly different responses for 37.2% (58/156) of the indicator comparisons. Interviewers for one survey were men while for the other they were women. Respondents were mothers of children aged 0–59 months living in a traditional rural setting. We examined the influence of interviewer gender on mothers’ survey responses and their implications for interpreting survey results. Methods We used qualitative methods including 10 focus group discussions (FGDs) and 33 in-depth interviews (IDIs) in the same locations as the 2016 surveys. FGD participants were purposefully selected mothers with children 0–59 months, husbands and other in-law family members. IDIs were carried out with frontline health-workers, enumerators and supervisors from the two previous household surveys. Results Findings revealed a preference for female interviewers for household surveys in study districts as they facilitated access to mothers and reduced their discomfort as survey participants. However, this gender preference was related to the survey question. Regardless of age, caste and educational level, most mothers were not permitted to communicate with men (aside from husbands) about female-specific health topics, including birth preparedness, delivery, menstrual cycles, contraception, breastfeeding, sexual behaviour, sexually transmitted disease, and domestic violence. Mothers in higher castes perceived these social restrictions more acutely than mothers in lower castes. There was no systematic direction of the resulting error. Mothers were willing to discuss child health issues with interviewers of either gender. Conclusions Interviewer gender is an important consideration when designing survey protocols for maternal and reproductive health studies and when selecting and training enumerators. Female interviewers are optimal for traditional settings in Bihar as they are more likely to obtain accurate data on sensitive topics and reduce the potential for non-sampling error due to their reduced social distance with maternal respondents.

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“…Kianersi et al noted that much of the scholarship on interview effects is now relatively old, while attitudes, sensitivity and norms are shifting and the public health community should maintain a contemporary understanding of interviewer effects on the reporting of sexual activity [ 23 ]. Future research into the effects of interviewer characteristics on responses to sensitive questions in LMICs should be ongoing and focus on improving collection methods, better understanding what interviewer characteristics make response editing more likely, and re-evaluating estimates of indicators that may be vulnerable to interviewer effects.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is likely that some interviewer characteristics – and how they interact with respondent characteristics – may exacerbate the risk of bias. For example, there is robust evidence in higher income countries and some low income countries that responses about sexual activity can be modified by interviewer and respondent gender [ 23 , 24 ]. Age has also been long identified as a potential source of interviewer effects, though age difference is less thoroughly studied [ 24 , 25 ].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of interviewer-respondent age difference on the reporting of sexual activity in the Demographic and Health Surveys: Analysis of data from 21 countries

et al. 2023

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Background Interviewer effects can have consequential impacts on survey data, particularly for reporting sensitive attitudes and behaviours such as sexual activity and drug use, yet these effects remain understudied in low- and middle-income countries. The Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) present a unique opportunity to study interviewer effects on the self-report of sensitive topics in low- and middle-income countries by including interviewer characteristics data. This paper aims to narrow the gap in research on interviewer effects by studying the effects that age difference between interviewer and respondent and interviewer survey experience have on the reporting of ever having sexual intercourse. Methods We used DHS data from 91 066 women and 56 336 men in 21 countries where the standard DHS was implemented among all women of reproductive age, and interviewer characteristics were included in the data set. Using a Bayesian cross-classified model with random intercepts for interviewer and cluster, we assessed whether the effect of an age difference of 10 years or greater was associated with a difference in self-report of ever having sexual intercourse, adjusting for respondent demographics. Results There was a meaningful association between an age difference of greater than ten years and reporting of ever having had sexual intercourse in most countries for both genders after adjusting for interviewer age and experience, rural or urban cluster, and individual-level characteristics. Among women, the marginal posterior probability of reporting ever having sexual intercourse if the interviewer was ten years or more years older was lower for 17 of 19 countries (countries ranged from -12.50 to 3.90 percentage points). Among men, the marginal posterior probability was lower for 16 of 20 countries, ranging from -18.30 to 17.10 percentage points. Conclusions In most countries, women and men were less likely to report ever having sexual activity if the interviewer was ten or more years older than them, adjusting for potential confounders. These findings have important implications for interpreting numerous sexual health indicators, such as unmet family planning needs and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) risk. Survey administrators may consider more careful interviewer-respondent characteristic matching or novel approaches like Audio Computer Assisted Self Interview to minimize interviewer-induced variance.

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The association between interviewer gender and responses to sensitive survey questions in a sample of Haitian women

Cited by 22 publications

References 18 publications

Use of research electronic data capture (REDCap) in a COVID-19 randomized controlled trial: a practical example

Use of research electronic data capture (REDCap) in a COVID-19 randomized controlled trial: a practical example

Does interviewer gender influence a mother’s response to household surveys about maternal and child health in traditional settings? A qualitative study in Bihar, India

The effect of interviewer-respondent age difference on the reporting of sexual activity in the Demographic and Health Surveys: Analysis of data from 21 countries

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