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A Case Study of Error in Survey Reports of Move Month Using the U.S. Postal Service Change of Address Records
[journal article]
Abstract Correctly recalling where someone lived as of a particular date is critical to the accuracy of the once-a-decade U.S. decennial
census. The data collection period for the 2010 Census occurred over the course of a few months: February to August, with some
evaluation operations occurring up to 7 mon... view more
Correctly recalling where someone lived as of a particular date is critical to the accuracy of the once-a-decade U.S. decennial
census. The data collection period for the 2010 Census occurred over the course of a few months: February to August, with some
evaluation operations occurring up to 7 months after that. The assumption was that respondents could accurately remember moves
and move dates on and around April 1st up to 11 months afterwards. We show how statistical analyses can be used to investigate
the validity of this assumption by comparing self-reports and proxy-reports of the month of a move in a U.S. Census Bureau survey
with an administrative records database from the U.S. Postal Service containing requests to forward mail filed in March and April of
2010. In our dataset, we observed that the length of time since the move affects memory error in reports of a move and the month of
a move. Also affecting memory error of moves is whether the respondent is reporting for themselves or another person in the
household . This case study is relevant to surveys as well as censuses because move dates and places of residence often serve as
anchors to aid memory of other events in questionnaires.... view less
Keywords
statistical analysis; official statistics; United States of America; case study; questionnaire; census; response behavior; data capture; validity; change of residence; place of residence
Classification
Methods and Techniques of Data Collection and Data Analysis, Statistical Methods, Computer Methods
Document language
English
Publication Year
2016
Page/Pages
8 p.
Journal
Survey Methods: Insights from the Field (2016)
ISSN
2296-4754
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed
Licence
Creative Commons - Attribution