The Student Evaluation of Teaching (SET) instrument provides insight for instructors and administrators alike, often touting high response-rates to endorse their validity and reliability. However, response-rate alone omits consideration for "adequate quantity of 'observational sampling opportunity' (OSO) data points" (e.g., high student…

These appendices accompany the full report, "National Household Education Surveys Program of 2019: Qualitative Study of Nonresponding Addresses. NCES 2022-043" (ED617187). The full report documents the methods and findings of a qualitative study of nonrespondent addresses to the 2019 administration of the National Household Education…

The $2 bill is commonly used as a prepaid incentive in survey administration. Despite the widespread use of this incentive, there is no peer-reviewed research into how providing a single $2 bill rather than two $1 bills affects survey response rate. The results are from a mail survey of 2,970 rural landowners in Michigan with identical survey…

Best practices in mail survey design advise personalizing correspondence, but most research predates the use of address-based sampling (ABS) in which a householder's name either cannot be matched to an address or may be matched incorrectly. Further, recent evidence casts doubt on the effectiveness of personalization. The current study examines the…

We have less time and focus than ever before, while the demand for attention is increasing. Therefore, it is no surprise that when answering questionnaires, we often choose to strongly agree or be neutral, producing problematic and unusable data. The current study investigated forced-choice (ipsative) format compared to the same questions on a…

To provide a benchmark of survey methods used in agricultural education research, a content analysis of Journal of Agricultural Education (JAE) research articles was conducted to determine populations studied, survey contact and response mode use, the use of incentives, and response and participation rates reported. Findings revealed survey…

Background: Since the inception of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System in 1991, all surveys have been conducted in schools, using paper and pencil instruments (PAPI). For the 2019 YRBSS, sites were offered the opportunity to conduct their surveys using electronic data collection. This study aimed to determine whether differences in select…

Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) are an integral part of evaluating course outcomes. They are routinely used to evaluate teaching quality for the purposes of reappointment, promotion, and tenure (RPT), annual review, and the rehiring of adjunct faculty and lecturers. These evaluations are often based almost entirely on the mean or proportion…

Recent years have seen a growing number of studies investigating the accuracy of nonprobability online panels; however, response quality in nonprobability online panels has not yet received much attention. To fill this gap, we investigate response quality in a comprehensive study of seven nonprobability online panels and three probability-based…

The use of surveys to better understand students' experiences and teaching quality in higher education has a long history of implementation and critical review. Although research on student feedback surveys has highlighted a number of areas of concern, a well-designed student survey on teaching and learning will produce a strong foundation of…

Undergraduates' low participation/response rates on interdisciplinary (campus-wide) and disciplinary (specific department) surveys have been attributed to survey fatigue. To investigate this attribution's merits, the present study conducted a systematic literature search (five electronic databases plus one search engine) and critiqued findings of…

This article is a methodological critique of a survey process undertaken with international undergraduate students at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. Despite following best practice surveying protocols this research project initially achieved a 5% response rate. The research team had to change its approach part-way through the process…

Unit nonresponse in panel data sets is often a source of bias. Why certain individuals attrite from longitudinal studies and how to minimize this phenomenon have been examined by researchers. However, this research has typically focused on data sets collected via telephone, postal mail, or face-to-face interviews. Moreover, this research usually…

What subject lines and messages in an e-mailed invitation maximize cooperation for a web survey? Answering this question is ever more important as survey researchers increasingly turn to web surveys to reduce costs. We test respondents' preferences for subject lines and messages in an e-mailed invitation to participate in a Consumer Assessment of…

Panel attrition is a major problem in long-term panel studies. While the design of the German National Educational Panel Study adult survey--combining biannual competency tests with regular face-to-face interviews--is highly innovative, such a design could raise respondent burden and thus potentially increase panel attrition and nonresponse bias.…