Improving Return Rates on Equal Opportunity Surveys

Abstract

Return rates for both civilian and military surveys have been declining for the last several years. The present report examines possible causes and solutions to this problem for military equal opportunity surveys. A review of the civilian and military literature shows that several factors influence return rate: multiple contacts (including pre-notification and follow-ups), a user-friendly salient survey, postage, incentives, and survey length. This report recommends that the military might increase the return rates of equal opportunity surveys by making greater use of Web-based surveys, using multiple contacts, shortening their surveys, considering unique incentives, and considering more localized surveys.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 20, 2003
Accession Number
ADA417210

Entities

People

  • Stephen B. Knouse

Organizations

  • Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Behavioral Sciences
  • Business Administration
  • Commerce
  • Department Of Defense
  • Education
  • Electronic Mail
  • Human Behavior
  • Literature
  • Military Organizations
  • Motivation
  • Personnel Management
  • Psychology
  • Public Opinion
  • Public Policy
  • Sexual Harassment
  • User Friendly

Fields of Study

  • Mathematics

Readers

  • Mathematics or Statistics
  • Organizational Psychology.
  • Systems Analysis and Design