Research note: The impact of incentives and three forms of postage on mail survey response rates

Abstract

Mail surveys are an important methodological tool for collecting data for leisure research. Researchers have looked at numerous issues involving mail surveys (e.g., the impact of nonresponse bias and of various elements of the mail survey process on response rates). This study involved an experimental design to test the efficacy of two components of the mail survey process, different types of postage and the use of incentives, to determine their impact on the overall response rate. The manipulation of these two components has proved effective in other types of studies, but with mixed results. The present study used a 3 × 2 factorial design, controlling for three types of postage and the inclusion or exclusion of an incentive. The results indicate the use of incentives did make a positive contribution to the overall response rate, and the use of various types of postage was mixed and not in the expected direction.

Keywords:

• incentives to respond
• mail questionnaires
• response rates
• survey research