4.5 Article

Completing Surveys With Different Item Formats: Testing Equivalence

Journal

SOCIAL SCIENCE COMPUTER REVIEW
Volume 39, Issue 6, Pages 1179-1202

Publisher

SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC
DOI: 10.1177/0894439320955143

Keywords

computer; item format; response; quantitative equivalence; qualitative equivalence; auxiliary equivalence

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Studies compared the effects of four different item formats on online self-report survey responses, finding higher levels of quantitative and qualitative equivalence but notable differences in auxiliary equivalence.
Studies examining the similarity of online self-report survey responses using different item formats have yielded inconclusive results. Additionally, no studies have used appropriate methods for thoroughly and correctly examining equivalence across conditions. We examined the comparability of survey responses across four item formats-horizontal radio button, text box, drop-down menu, and vertical radio button-in two studies. The second study added two response categories: optional responding and forced responding. Participants were college students at two institutions of higher education who were randomly assigned to conditions. They completed measures of computer self-efficacy, personality, and social desirability. Results of both studies indicated quantitative (mean scores) and qualitative (internal consistency estimates and scale intercorrelations) equivalence. However, there were notable differences in auxiliary equivalence such that participants in the text box condition had lower amounts of missing data than those in the other conditions, those in the horizontal radio button condition completed the study in the shortest amount of time, and participants across conditions generally preferred to use drop-down menus compared to other item formats.

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