Summary
Grounded on persuasive communications theory, the impact of source credibility and message variation on response behaviour towards a mail survey on a sample of the general public are examined. An experimental design comprising three levels (high, medium and low) of these variables is employed. Source credibility and the interaction of message variation (i.e. usefulness of the study) and source credibility have a significant impact on response rate. Overemphasising the usefulness of a study is found to be counterproductive. For sources that are arguably average or lower in credibility, a strongly worded message (in terms of usefulness) was less effective than more modest objectives.

Summary
The recent census in the UK, taken in March 2011, may also have been our last – since the Office for National Statistics has announced that it intends to explore alternative more cost-effective options for ‘census taking’ in the future. In this paper, we consider what the options may be, based on approaches and experiences from other countries, and assess their implications for users. We start by reminding ourselves about the value of the census and the strengths and weaknesses of the current approach. We then identify the principal methods being followed in other countries, together with their advantages and disadvantages. This leads us to review methodological work in the UK, building up to the current ‘Beyond 2011’ ONS project. We focus on administrative records as a possible way of removing the need for a full population survey. Finally, we assess the options and discuss the implications for users in market research.

Summary
It is generally assumed that personalising mail survey covering letters increases the response to mail surveys. However, most of the studies that support this assumption were conducted in the 1970s, when personalisation was novel and relatively difficult to achieve. This paper reviews the evidence for the effect of personalisation on mail survey response and reports the results of a study of personalisation in a mail survey of the general public. The study found little or no effect of personalisation on response rate, response speed, item non-response, or social desirability bias. This suggests that personalisation may no longer be effective in mail surveys. Nevertheless, with the survey-processing technology now available it is often more difficult not to personalise survey correspondence than to personalise it. Thus, unless there is a good reason to avoid personalisation, survey researchers should use it. At worst, it will have no effect, but it might have a positive effect.

Summary
In this paper we examine the reasons why the non-use of mail surveys is so prevalent in research in Spain when so many researchers have stressed the low economic costs of this information-gathering method. The two main reasons held by some experts is the low rate of response attained by the mail survey and the poor quality of the results obtained. Here we are concerned with how to obtain quality responses from mail surveys. We establish the hypothesis that ‘the information gathered from mail surveys can achieve a high-quality response rate – indeed, a quality which varies little from that obtained from face-to-face or telephone surveys’.

Summary
Many claims have been made about the advantages of conducting surveys on the web. However, some concerns have been raised about the quality of the information gathered through this medium. The purpose of this research was to compare the quality of qualitative information obtained using three data collection methods, in the context of the development of a scale for the measurement of corporate image. First, a study was carried out to generate a list of items that could be used to describe all elements of the corporate image of three firms as perceived by consumers. Different lists of items were obtained from telephone, postal and web-based surveys. Next, a qualitative study was conducted to assess the predictive validity of the lists of items obtained from each data-collection method. The results showed that the quality of qualitative data obtained through a web-based survey was comparable to that of information obtained through telephone and postal surveys, for two of the three target firms.

Summary
Reliance on self-report survey data is pervasive across social science disciplines; therefore, understanding the accuracy, or inaccuracy, of such data is important. We identify forms of inaccuracy in survey responses (e.g., telescoping, projecting, and omitting) and determine the extent to which the various forms of inaccuracy occur. We present evidence from an empirical study designed to measure the correspondence of self-reports and actual purchase for consumers in a high-involvement buying context. Comparing the self-report data with each respondent's actual buying history information in the cooperating firm's database indicates that consumers' failing to report purchases actually made and false reporting of purchases not made may be considerable in self-administered buying surveys.

Summary
Combining quantitative and qualitative research, this study, undertaken by MORI amongst NHS staff in East Kent (UK), explored experiences of, and attitudes to, working in an NHS Trust, the communication and management style of the organisation, and a range of other variables. Aimed at supporting the human resources work of the organisation, group discussions were initially undertaken and these were followed by an all-staff self-completion questionnaire (which achieved a response rate of c. 45%), distributed to potential respondents with their payslips. Emphasis was put on integrating the findings from the work into management's discussions and plans for the future.

Summary
This study compares mail, fax and web-based surveys in a university setting for response speed, response rate and costs. The survey was distributed to 300 hospitality professors randomly chosen from the Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education members listed in the organisation's online directory as of April 2000. It was found that the fastest method was fax, with an average of 4.0 days to respond, followed by web surveys with 5.97 days. The slowest method, as expected, was mail surveys, with 16.46 days to respond. On average, the response rate was 28.91%: 26.27% for mail, 17.0% for fax, and 44.21% for web surveys. An LSD-type z-test shows significant differences between mail and email/web and between fax and email/web, but no significant difference between mail and fax. In addition, data were analysed for data consistency and cost.

Summary

Summary
This study reports the results of examining the reasons for participant refusal in industrial mail surveys. The existing literature provides us with very little knowledge on this topic. Managers who did not respond to a previous questionnaire were called and asked to indicate their reasons for 'refusal'. Referring to refusers as an information source, this study is among the first applying such a research design. In general, time constraints ('I am too busy'), technical characteristics of the questionnaire ('too long'), and a lack of value provided for organisations ('no benefit for company') are the most frequently cited reasons for refusal. Based on our research findings we also provide the reader with a discussion of the results and implications for future research.