TY  - JOUR
PY  - 1999//
TI  - What is the price of perfection? The hidden costs of using detailed assessment instruments to measure alcohol consumption
JO  - Journal of studies on alcohol
A1  - Cunningham, J. A.
A1  - Ansara, D.
A1  - Wild, T. C.
A1  - Toneatto, T.
A1  - Koski-Jännes, A.
SP  - 756
EP  - 758
VL  - 60
IS  - 6
N2  - OBJECTIVE: This article describes results from a study investigating the effects of using long assessment instruments on attrition rates in mailed-out surveys. METHOD: Participants were randomly assigned to receive one of two versions of a mailed-out survey; one version incorporated a detailed assessment of drinking using the Timeline Follow back method (TLFB; n = 46) and the other employed a brief graduated frequency measure of alcohol consumption (n = 49). RESULTS: 29% fewer respondents who received the TLFB returned any of their survey materials as compared to those respondents who received just the graduated frequency measure (22% vs 51%). CONCLUSIONS: In some situations, e.g., mailed-out surveys, employing detailed survey instruments may not be justified as the increased respondent burden may result in increased attrition rates.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0096-882X
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -