An Experiment Investigating the Effects of Requesting-vs--Not-Requesting Demographics in an Anonymous Army Survey on Sensitive Topics.

Abstract

The research sought evidence on the following hypothesis derived from previous research: Including standard military and social demographic items in an Army survey (a) increases respondents' concern about anonymity (proximal effect) and (b) leads respondents to respond to sensitive items in a more cautious and socially desirable manner (distal effect). Subjects were 100 enlisted soldiers E2-E4. The experimental manipulation was validated, and some proximal effects were demonstrated. The hypothesis concerning the distal effect, however, was only partly supported. Possible explanations for the results are discussed, along with suggestions for further research.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 1996
Accession Number
ADA319451

Entities

People

  • Andrea J. Bright
  • Joel M. Savell

Organizations

  • U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Army
  • Army Personnel
  • Demography
  • Education
  • Gambling
  • Military Research
  • Minority Groups
  • Questionnaires
  • Social Sciences
  • Social Security
  • Sociology
  • Standards
  • Surveys
  • United States
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • Psychology

Readers

  • Gender and Food Studies
  • Molecular and Cellular Biology
  • Systems Analysis and Design