Dealing with Careless Responding in Survey Data: Prevention, Identification, and Recommended Best Practices.

Surveys administered online have several benefits, but they are particularly prone to careless responding, which occurs when respondents fail to read item content or give sufficient attention, resulting in raw data that may not accurately reflect respondents' true levels of the constructs being measured. Careless responding can lead to various psychometric issues, potentially impacting any area of psychology that uses self-reported surveys and assessments. This review synthesizes the careless responding literature to provide a comprehensive understanding of careless responding and ways to prevent, identify, report, and clean careless responding from data sets. Further, we include recommendations for different levels of screening for careless responses. Finally, we highlight some of the most promising areas for future work on careless responding.

Characterizing participants who respond to text, email, phone calls, or postcards in a SARS-CoV-2 prevalence study.

INTRODUCTION: Multiple modalities and frequencies of contact are needed to maximize recruitment in many public health surveys. The purpose of this analysis is to characterize respondents to a statewide SARS-CoV-2 testing study whose participation followed either postcard, phone outreach or electronic means of invitation. In addition, we examine how participant characteristics differ based upon the number of contacts needed to elicit participation. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional analysis of survey data collected from participants who were randomly selected to represent Indiana residents and were invited to be tested for Covid-19 in April 2020. Participants received invitations via postcard, text/emails, and/or robocalls/texts based upon available contact information. The modality, and frequency of contacts, that prompted participation was determined by when the notification was sent and when the participant responded and subsequently registered to participate in the study. Chi square analyses were used to determine differences between groups and significant findings were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. RESULTS: Respondents included 3,658 individuals and were stratified by postcards (7.9%), text/emails (26.5%), and robocalls/text (65.7%) with 19.7% registering after 1 contact, 47.9% after 2 contacts, and 32.4% after 3 contacts encouraging participation. Females made up 54.6% of the sample and responded at a higher rate for postcards (8.2% vs. 7.5%) and text/emails (28.1 vs. 24.6%) as compared to males (χ2 = 7.43, p = 0.025). Compared to males, females responded at a higher percentage after 1 contact (21.4 vs. 17.9%, χ2 = 7.6, p = 0.023). Those over 60 years responded most often after 2 contacts (χ2 = 27.5, p < 0.001) when compared to others at younger age groups. In regression analysis, participant sex (p = 0.036) age (p = 0.005), educational attainment (p = < 0.0001), and being motivated by "free testing" (p = 0.036) were correlated with participation in the prevalence study. DISCUSSION: Researchers should be aware that the modality of contact as well as the number of prompts used could influence differential participation in public health studies. Our findings can inform researchers developing studies that rely on selective participation by study subjects. We explore how to increase participation within targeted demographic groups using specific modalities and examining frequency of contact.

Reliability of proxy reports on patient reported outcomes measures in stroke: An updated systematic review.

OBJECTIVES: With the rising global burden of stroke-related morbidity, and increased focus on patient-centered healthcare, patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) are increasingly used to inform healthcare decision-making. Some stroke patients with cognitive or motor impairments are unable to respond to PROMs, so proxies may respond on their behalf; the reliability of which remains unclear. The aim of the study is to update a 2010 systematic review to investigate the inter-rater reliability of proxy respondents answering PROMs for stroke patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Studies on the reliability of proxy respondents in stroke were searched within CINAHL, Embase, PsycInfo, and WoS databases (01/07/22, 08/07/22). Fifteen studies were included for review. ICC and k-statistic were extracted for PROMs scales and categorized as poor (0.80). Bias was assessed using the CCAT. RESULTS: Five studies reported PROMs with inter-rater reliability scores ranging from 0.80. Two studies reported activities of daily living (ADLs) scores ranging from 0.41 to 0.80 and 8 studies reported quality of life (QoL) measures with scores ranging from 0.80. Subcategories of these scales included physical (ICC/k-statistic 0.41- >0.8), cognitive (ICC/k-statistic 0.40-0.80), communication (ICC/k-statistic <0.4-0.80,) and psychological (ICC/k-statistic <0.40-0.60) measures. CONCLUSIONS: Proxy respondents are reliable sources for PROM reports on physical domains in ADLs, PROMs and QoL scales. Proxy reports for measures of communication and psychological domains had greater variability in reliability scores, ranging from poor to substantial; hence, caution should be applied when interpreting proxy reports for these domains.

Detecting inattentive respondents by machine learning: A generic technique that substitutes for the directed questions scale and compensates for its shortcomings.

Web surveys are often used to collect data for psychological research. However, the inclusion of many inattentive respondents can be a problem. Various methods for detecting inattentive respondents have been proposed, most of which require the inclusion of additional items in the survey for detection or the calculation of variables for detection after data collection. This study proposes a method for detecting inattentive respondents in web surveys using machine learning. The method requires only the collection of response time and the inclusion of a Likert scale, eliminating the need to include special detection items in the survey. Based on data from 16 web surveys, a method was developed using predictor variables not included in existing methods. While previous machine learning methods for detecting inattentive respondents can only be applied to the same surveys as the data on which the models were developed, the proposed model is generic and can be applied to any questionnaire as long as response time is available, and a Likert scale is included. In addition, the proposed method showed partially higher accuracy than existing methods.

Non-response for health-related quality of life outcomes in ICU patients: A systematic review of the reporting in randomised trials.

BACKGROUND: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is frequently assessed in randomised clinical trials (RCTs) in the intensive care unit (ICU), but data are limited regarding the proportions of patients without responses or not surviving to HRQoL follow-up and the handling of this. We aimed to describe the extent and pattern of missing HRQoL data in intensive care trials and describe how these data and deaths were handled statistically. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis following a published protocol. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL and Cochrane Library for RCTs involving adult ICU patients reporting HRQoL as an outcome and excluded RCTs unobtainable in full text. We performed risk of bias assessment independently and in duplicate. RESULTS: We included 196 outcomes from 88 RCTs published in the years 2002-2022; the numbers of patients alive and eligible to respond HRQoL were reported in 76% of trials. At follow-up, median 27% (interquartile range 14%-39%) of patients had died, and median 20% (9%-38%) of survivors did not respond across outcomes. Analyses of 80% of outcomes were restricted to complete cases only. The handling of non-survivors in analyses were reported for 46% of outcomes, with 26% of all outcomes reported as including non-survivors (using the value zero or the worst possible score). CONCLUSION: For HRQoL outcomes in ICU trials, we found that mortality at time of follow-up was high and non-response among survivors frequent. The reporting and statistical handling of these issues were insufficient, which may have biased results.

Fostering research in pediatric interventional radiology: needs assessment and suggestions for support.

BACKGROUND: Due to the rarity of pediatric diseases, collaborative research is the key to maximizing the impact of research studies. A research needs assessment survey was created to support initiatives to foster pediatric interventional radiology research. OBJECTIVE: To assess the status of pediatric interventional radiology research, identify perceived barriers, obtain community input on areas of research/education/support, and create metrics for evaluating changes/responses to programmatic initiatives. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A survey link was sent to approximately 275 members of the Society for Pediatric Interventional Radiology (SPIR) between May and October 2020. Data was collected using a web-based interface. Data collected included practice setting, clinical role, research experience, research barriers, and suggestions for future initiatives. RESULTS: Fifty-nine surveys were analyzed with a staff physician survey response rate of 28% (56/198). A wide range of practice sizes from 15 countries were represented. Respondents were predominantly staff physicians (95%; 56/59) with an average of 11 years (range: 1-25 years) of clinical experience working at academic or freestanding children's hospitals. A total of 100% (59/59) had research experience, and 70% (41/58) had published research with a mean of 30 peer-reviewed publications (range: 1-200). For job security, 56% (33/59) of respondents were expected or required to publish, but only 19% (11/58) had research support staff, and 42% (25/59) had protected research time, but of those, 36% (9/25) got the time "sometimes or never." Lack of support staff, established collaborative processes, and education were identified as top barriers to performing research. CONCLUSIONS: The needs assessment survey demonstrated active research output despite several identified barriers. There is a widespread interest within the pediatric interventional radiology community for collaborative research.

[Social portrait of persons older the active working age visiting of health centers.]

Persons older an active working age, having behind shoulders a cargo of the collected chronic pathology are ready to performance of any instructions from medical workers. Doctors of the centers of health have more possibilities of carrying out of educational work on the population and delivery of recommendations on conducting a healthy way of life, conservation and strengthening of health. On the basis of it sociological interrogation of 135 respondents, with objective of concept of a social portrait of potential visitors of the center of health among persons older an active working age has been lead. During the analysis of the received data, it is possible to define it as follows. It is women in the age of 67,17±7,09 the years, not having the bad habits, living in the city, having the higher education, being in marriage, idle by virtue of the age more often. Addressing in medical institutions some times in a year as have it is long current chronic diseases, but thus estimating all the same the health as satisfactory. As the basic sources of the information on activity of the center for respondents, their familiar persons and doctors on a residence have served, recommended to visit the given establishment. As a whole 9 from 10 interrogated have been satisfied by visiting and practically 2/3 have felt high demand for it.

Predictors of Non-Response to a Sexual Health Survey in a North American Preconception Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Refusal to participate in studies related to sexual health can compromise the internal and external validity of findings. Research examining non-response to sexual health studies has primarily focused on predictors such as specific sexual attitudes and behaviors. AIM: Evaluate predictors of non-response to a supplemental sexual health survey added to a web-based cohort study, focusing on predictors that may be important in epidemiologic studies of sexual health. METHODS: In March 2021, we added the "Sexual Health and Wellbeing Questionnaire" (SQ), an optional supplemental sexual health survey, to the protocol for Pregnancy Study Online , a web-based North American prospective cohort study. Eligible participants identified as female and were aged 21-45 years, actively trying to conceive, and in a relationship with a male partner. Participants completed a baseline questionnaire at enrollment and follow-up questionnaires every 8 weeks. Participants were invited to complete the SQ 30 days after baseline questionnaire completion. The analytic sample included all Pregnancy Study Online participants who enrolled between March 2021 and December 2021 and was divided into 3 mutually-exclusive groups: (i) those who completed the baseline questionnaire only (ie, did not complete a follow-up questionnaire or the SQ), (ii) those who completed at least 1 follow-up questionnaire but not the SQ, and (iii) participants who completed the SQ (with or without a follow-up questionnaire). We compared sociodemographic, medical, lifestyle, and reproductive factors across these groups. RESULTS: Of the 1,491 enrolled participants, 302 (20.3%) completed the baseline questionnaire only, 259 (17.4%) completed a follow-up questionnaire but not the SQ, and 930 (62.4%) completed the SQ. Strong predictors of non-response (absolute difference in response >10% comparing SQ responders to baseline-only responders) included longer pregnancy attempt time at study entry, a history of infertility, and lower income and education. Compared with response to the follow-up questionnaire only, SQ response was lower among Hispanic/Latina participants and participants aged <25 years. CLINICAL TRANSLATION: The addition of sexual health surveys to established cohort studies may be an effective way to expand epidemiologic sex research efforts. STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: Study strengths include the prospective design, geographic heterogeneity of the cohort, and use of online methods. Our findings may not generalize to clinic-based sex research. CONCLUSION: We report that in an established North American cohort study, response to the SQ exceeded 60%. We observed few strong predictors for SQ non-response among engaged participants. Bond JC, Abrams J, Wesselink AK, et al. Predictors of Non-Response to a Sexual Health Survey in a North American Preconception Cohort Study. J Sex Med 2022;19:1707-1715.

Data profile: Expanding the research potential of the Canadian Health Measures Survey using paired respondent data.

The family environment is an important influence on the health and behaviours of children. Few large-scale datasets include detailed and objectively measured health data about multiple individuals from the same family who are living in the same household. The Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) is a repeating, cross-sectional survey that selects two members of a household-a child and a randomly selected older member of the household aged 12 to 79 years-with at least one child aged 3 to 11 years in residence. These paired respondent records, available in the CHMS relationship files, provide unique opportunities to researchers interested in examining associations between two members of the same household for health behaviours and outcomes. A range of pairings are captured in the relationship files (e.g., parent and child, siblings, grandchild and grandparent) with birth parent-child pairs being the most common. These paired respondent data are an important analytical asset of the CHMS and enhance the research potential of the survey significantly.

Developing Trauma-Informed Research Methods: Using Proxy Respondents to Assess Sexual Assault Survivors' Experiences Seeking Medical Forensic Exams.

In research on sexual assault victims' help-seeking, proxy data sources are often utilized because outreach to survivors immediately postassault may increase a study's risk-to-benefit ratio. Victim advocates and services providers are common proxy respondents, but empirical research comparing the accuracy of their information is needed. We collaborated with seven sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) programs to collect de-identified, paired data from nurses and advocates regarding the help-seeking experiences of N = 744 adult victims. Using pairwise McNemar tests, we found statistically significant agreement on victim demographics, assault characteristics, and victims' decisions regarding medical forensic exams, sexual assault kit (SAK) collection, and release of SAKs for forensic DNA testing. Nurses and advocates had different information regarding victims' disclosure histories and their reasons for seeking SANE care.

Assessment of climate change pattern in the Pauri Garhwal of the Western Himalayan Region: based on climate parameters and perceptions of forest-dependent communities.

This study assessed the climate change in Pauri district, Uttarakhand, India, a region highly vulnerable to climate change with potentially high loss of livelihoods and lives. The scale of change in the district's climate was analyzed using meteorological station data (1901-2000) and grid data (1985-2015). Perceptions of climate change among forest-dependent communities in three altitude zones (< 1200 m asl (zone A); 1200-1800 m asl (zone B), and > 1800 m asl (zone C)) in the study region were surveyed with respect to 14 climate-specific indicators. Annual mean, maximum, and minimum temperature of seasonal data indicated increasing trends except monsoon. Percentage cloud cover showed an increase, of approximately 3%, while diurnal temperature displayed decreasing trends. Rainfall in the district showed a decreasing trend, with more than 50% of years 1985-2015 receiving less rainfall than the annual average. More than 90% of respondents in zones A and B, and around 65-70% respondents in zone C, reported changes in climate parameters. These findings confirm the long-term observable changes in climate in the region and demonstrate the utility of station data, grid data, and surveys of local communities' perceptions when analyzing climate change. The analysis provided important clues about the nature of climate changes in the district. The results can be used to reduce the gap between bottom-up understanding and top-down policies and to formulate precautionary and ongoing site-specific adaptation practices for communities in different altitude zones in the study region, leading to effective and efficient mitigation of climate change impacts.

Influence of sanitary - domestic conditions in the rural settlements of dnepropetrovsk region on the peasants' healh.

OBJECTIVE: The aim: Implementation results of sociological survey to the practice of hygienic researches at the subjective estimation of the drinking water quality and sanitary conditions of people's life. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Materials and methods: At our study was used standardized "Questionnaire survey about quality of piped drinking water, which enters to the building (apartment)", which contained 25 questions. In the sociological survey were participated 150 respondents. RESULTS: Results: Peasants of Dnepropetrovsk region considered that the following indicators of drinking water quality impact on their health: deterioration quality of piped drinking water, smell - 22.6%, color - 14.6 %, rust - 13.3 %, precipitate - 8.0 %, turbidity and suspended solids - 10.6 %, taste and aftertaste - 13.3 %, foam and impurities - 10.6% (p<0.05). Some of peasants (14.6 %) have unsatisfactory sanitary conditions, living on 5 - 6 persons in 1 rooms flat (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Conclusions: Results of sociological survey shown that among rural residents increased the demand for a consumption of pre-treated drinking water, due to the deterioration quality of tap water in the rural area. It was determined, that increased frequency of use the bottled drinking water - daily it was used by 13 rural respondents (17.3%), once a week - 21 respondents (28%), 2-3 times a week - 8 respondents (10.6%).

The Effectiveness of Vitamin E Treatment in Alzheimer's Disease.

Vitamin E was proposed as treatment for Alzheimer's disease many years ago. However, the effectiveness of the drug is not clear. Vitamin E is an antioxidant and neuroprotector and it has anti-inflammatory and hypocholesterolemic properties, driving to its importance for brain health. Moreover, the levels of vitamin E in Alzheimer's disease patients are lower than in non-demented controls. Thus, vitamin E could be a good candidate to have beneficial effects against Alzheimer's. However, evidence is consistent with a limited effectiveness of vitamin E in slowing progression of dementia; the information is mixed and inconclusive. The question is why does vitamin E fail to treat Alzheimer's disease? In this paper we review the studies with and without positive results in Alzheimer's disease and we discuss the reasons why vitamin E as treatment sometimes has positive results on cognition but at others, it does not.

Correlation of arsenic level in drinking water and hair of male respondents of district Sheikhupura.

OBJECTIVE: To find out the correlation between arsenic concentration in drinking water and biological samples of young male respondents. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted at Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, Pakistan, from March 2013 to February 2015, and comprised biological samples i.e. hair of young males aged 15-25 years from Sheikhupura district of the Punjab province. The study questionnaire was designed to assess the general health status of the subjects as well. Drinking water samples were collected from the houses of those who volunteered to fill up the questionnaire and gave hair samples for the study. Acid digestion method was used to pre-treat the water and hair samples for the analysis of arsenic content. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer method was used to measure arsenic concentration. SPSS 13 was used for data analysis. RESULTS: There were 100 subjects and as many water samples. Overall, 46(46%) respondents had a range of health problems, including acne, skin lesions, allergies and respiratory problems. The average arsenic concentration was higher in water samples of tehsil Sheikhupura (67.11±3.8µg/L) and Sharaqpur (61.65± 3.3µg/L) than Muridke (41.7±1.5 µg/L), Ferozwala (40.79± 1.3 µg/L) and Safdarabad (29.7± 0.5 µg/L) (p< 0.05). Positive correlation was established between arsenic in drinking water and hair samples with respect to area and age (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The presence of arsenic in drinking water was found to be likely affecting general metabolism and its accumulation in biological tissues..

Can men be trusted in population-based surveys to report couples' medical care for infertility?

BACKGROUND: Men are usually excluded from surveys on reproductive health as some works have cast doubts on their ability to accurately report information on reproduction. Recent papers challenged this viewpoint, arguing that the quality of men's reports depends strongly on use of an appropriate study design. We aimed to explore the relevance of evaluating couples' use of medical care for infertility based on men's interviews in a population-based survey. METHODS: The study was based on the last French sexual and reproductive health study (Fecond) conducted by phone interviews among a population-based sample of 2863 men and 4629 women aged 20-49 years. RESULTS: Among respondents who had ever tried to have a child, the use of infertility medical care by couples (i.e. by the respondents and/or their partners) within the previous 15 years was 16% (95%CI 14 to 18%) based on men's reports and 17% (95%CI 15 to 18%) based on women's reports (p = 0.43). Men's and women's reports were remarkably concordant on most items (infertility duration, treatment). The main discrepancy concerned male medical checkup, which was reported much more often by male respondents than female respondents (86% vs. 57%, p < 0.001 for sperm analysis, 56% vs. 27%, p < 0.001 for male genital examination). CONCLUSIONS: It is time to trust men to report couples' infertility medical care in reproductive surveys, as they provide information remarkably concordant with that provided by women. Conversely, women may poorly report the infertility checkups of their male partner.

Consequences of an Extended Recruitment on Participation in the Follow-Up of a Child Study: Results from the German IDEFICS Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Declining response proportions in population-based studies are often countered by extended recruitment efforts at baseline that may, however, result in higher attrition in a subsequent follow-up. This study analysed the effect of extended recruitment efforts on attrition at the first follow-up of a child cohort. METHODS: We used paradata (i.e. information about the process of data collection) from the German IDEFICS cohort investigating dietary- and life style-induced health effects on children to quantify recruitment effort and classify respondents as completing the recruitment early vs. late for baseline and follow-up separately. Multilevel logistic regression models were used to investigate the association between recruitment effort and attrition at follow-up (loss to follow-up) adjusted for sociodemographic and health related variables. RESULTS: Individuals who were late respondents at baseline and early respondents at the follow-up had a higher chance of attrition (odds ratio 1.65, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19, 2.28) as compared to other groups. An investigation of reasons for non-participation revealed that members of this group were more likely to be not reachable by phone. CONCLUSIONS: An extended recruitment effort at baseline of a child cohort study is not per se associated with a higher chance of attrition at follow-up. Much care should be taken to collect valid telephone numbers.

Perception of young adults with sickle cell disease or sickle cell trait about participation in the CHOICES randomized controlled trial.

AIMS: To gain an in-depth understanding of the perceptions of young adults with sickle cell disease and sickle cell trait about parenthood and participating in the CHOICES randomized controlled trial that used computer-based, educational programmes. BACKGROUND: In the USA, there is insufficient education to assure that all young adults with sickle cell disease or sickle cell trait understand genetic inheritance risks and reproductive options to make informed reproductive decisions. To address this educational need, we developed a computer-based, multimedia program (CHOICES) and reformatted usual care into a computer-based (e-Book) program. We then conducted a two-year randomized controlled trial that included a qualitative component that would deepen understanding of young adults' perceptions of parenthood and use of computer-based, educational programmes. DESIGN: A qualitative descriptive approach completed after a randomized controlled trial. METHODS: Sixty-eight men and women of childbearing age participated in semi-structured interviews at the completion of the randomized controlled trial from 2012-2013. Thematic content analysis guided the qualitative description. RESULTS/FINDINGS: Three main themes were identified: (1) increasing knowledge and new ways of thinking and behaving; (2) rethinking parenting plans; and (3) appraising the program design and delivery. Most participants reported increased knowledge and rethinking of their parenting plans and were supportive of computer-based learning. Some participants expressed difficulty in determining individual transmission risks. CONCLUSION: Participants perceived the computer programs as beneficial to their learning. Future development of an Internet-based educational programme is warranted, with emphasis on providing tailored education or memory boosters about individual transmission risks.

Sociological research on the population awareness regarding ophthalmological care in ukraine.

INTRODUCTION: nowadays, there are about 45 million blind individuals and, according to the prognosis, their quantity will reach over 76 million in 2020. In such a way, nowadays ophthalmological problems become more widespread, and the market of the ophthalmological services is not studied enough to understand all the tendencies and processes. AIM: was to study the patients' awareness on eye diseases and choice peculiarities of the information sources and medical institutions among various population age groups of Lutsk, Rivne and Ternopil cities. MATERIALS AND METHODS: the research was conducted as an anonymous questionnaire survey of respondents according to a specially designed integrated protocol by means of interviewing people at the streets of Lutsk (n=2000), Rivne (n=1500) and Ternopil (n=1500) cities. RESULTS: there was conducted a research on the population awareness concerning vision problems, analysis of social factors and peculiarities of the choice of information sources about eye diseases and factors influencing the choice of a medical institution and an ophthalmologist. It was determined that younger population prefers private medical institutions in almost half of the cases (95% confidence interval (CI) of the private institution choice probability: 0,48-0,52), while older population prefers mainly state ones (95% CI of the choice probability: 0,71-0,74). CONCLUSION: it was determined depending on the age, the range of people having vision problems varied from 22% in the "under 30 years" population group up to 76% in the "over 60 years" group, although at least 21,5% of the whole population realizing their problems do not address an ophthalmologist.

Sociological research on the population awareness regarding ophthalmological care in ukraine.

INTRODUCTION: nowadays, there are about 45 million blind individuals and, according to the prognosis, their quantity will reach over 76 million in 2020. In such a way, nowadays ophthalmological problems become more widespread, and the market of the ophthalmological services is not studied enough to understand all the tendencies and processes. AIM: was to study the patients' awareness on eye diseases and choice peculiarities of the information sources and medical institutions among various population age groups of Lutsk, Rivne and Ternopil cities. MATERIALS AND METHODS: the research was conducted as an anonymous questionnaire survey of respondents according to a specially designed integrated protocol by means of interviewing people at the streets of Lutsk (n=2000), Rivne (n=1500) and Ternopil (n=1500) cities. RESULTS: there was conducted a research on the population awareness concerning vision problems, analysis of social factors and peculiarities of the choice of information sources about eye diseases and factors influencing the choice of a medical institution and an ophthalmologist. It was determined that younger population prefers private medical institutions in almost half of the cases (95% confidence interval (CI) of the private institution choice probability: 0,48-0,52), while older population prefers mainly state ones (95% CI of the choice probability: 0,71-0,74). CONCLUSION: it was determined depending on the age, the range of people having vision problems varied from 22% in the "under 30 years" population group up to 76% in the "over 60 years" group, although at least 21,5% of the whole population realizing their problems do not address an ophthalmologist.

Response rates for patient-reported outcomes using web-based versus paper questionnaires: comparison of two invitational methods in older colorectal cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: Improving questionnaire response rates is an everlasting issue for research. Today, the Internet can easily be used to collect data quickly. However, collecting data on the Internet can lead to biased samples because not everyone is able to access or use the Internet. The older population, for example, is much less likely to use the Internet. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Following Initial Treatment and Long-Term Evaluation of Survivorship (PROFILES) registry offers a platform to collect Web-based and paper questionnaires and to try different measures to improve response rates. OBJECTIVE: In this study, our aim was to study the influence of two methods of invitation on the response rate. Our second aim was to examine the preference of questionnaire mode of administration (paper or Web-based) for the older patient in particular. METHODS: To test these two invitational methods, 3406 colorectal cancer patients between ages 18 and 85 years received an invitation containing an access code for the Web-based questionnaire. They could also request a paper questionnaire with an included reply card (paper-optional group). In contrast, 179 randomly selected colorectal cancer patients received a paper questionnaire with the invitation (paper-included group). They could also choose to fill out the Web-based questionnaire with the included access code. RESULTS: Response rates did not differ between the paper-optional and the paper-included groups (73.14%, 2491/3406 and 74.9%, 134/179, P=.57). In the paper-optional group, online response was significantly higher when compared to the paper-included group (41.23%, 1027/2491 vs 12.7%, 17/134, P<.001). The majority of online respondents responded after the first invitation (95.33%, 979/1027), which was significantly higher than the paper respondents (52.19%, 764/1464, P<.001). Respondents aged 70 years and older chose to fill out a paper questionnaire more often (71.0%, 677/954). In the oldest age group (≥80 years), 18.2% (61/336) of the respondents filled out a Web-based questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: The lack of difference in response rates between invitation modes implies that researchers can leave out a paper questionnaire at invitation without lowering response rates. It may be preferable not to include a paper questionnaire because more respondents then will fill out a Web-based questionnaire, which will lead to faster available data. However, due to respondent preference, it is not likely that paper questionnaires can be left out completely in the near future.