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Reducing Bias in Phone Survey Samples : Effectiveness of Reweighting Techniques Using Face-to-Face Surveys as Frames in Four African Countries

Author

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  • Ambel,Alemayehu A.
  • Mcgee,Kevin Robert
  • Tsegay,Asmelash Haile

Abstract

Several developing countries are currently implementing phone surveys in response to immediate data needs to monitor the socioeconomic impact of COVID-19. However, phone surveys are often subject to coverage and non-response bias that can compromise the representativeness of the sample and the external validity of the estimates obtained from the survey. Using data from high-frequency phone surveys in Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria, and Uganda, this study investigates the magnitude and source of biases present in these four surveys and explores the effectiveness of techniques applied to reduce bias. Varying levels of coverage and non-response bias are found in all four countries. The successfully contacted samples in these four countries were biased toward wealthier households with higher living standards. Left unaddressed, this bias would result in biased estimates from the interviewed sample that do not fully reflect the situation of poorer households in the country. However, phone survey biases can be substantially reduced by applying survey weight adjustments using information from the representative survey from which the sample is drawn. Applying these methods to the four surveys resulted in a substantial reduction in bias, although the bias was not fully eradicated. This highlights one of the potential advantages of drawing phone survey samples from existing face-to-face, representative surveys over random digit dialing or using lists from telecom providers where such adjustment methods can be more limited.

Suggested Citation

  • Ambel,Alemayehu A. & Mcgee,Kevin Robert & Tsegay,Asmelash Haile, 2021. "Reducing Bias in Phone Survey Samples : Effectiveness of Reweighting Techniques Using Face-to-Face Surveys as Frames in Four African Countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9676, The World Bank.
  • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:9676
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    Cited by:

    1. Kugler, Maurice & Viollaz, Mariana & Duque, Daniel & Gaddis, Isis & Newhouse, David & Palacios-Lopez, Amparo & Weber, Michael, 2023. "How did the COVID-19 crisis affect different types of workers in the developing world?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 170(C).
    2. Bundervoet, Tom & Dávalos, Maria E. & Garcia, Natalia, 2022. "The short-term impacts of COVID-19 on households in developing countries: An overview based on a harmonized dataset of high-frequency surveys," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    3. Dessy, Sylvain & Gninafon, Horace & Tiberti, Luca & Tiberti, Marco, 2023. "Free compulsory education can mitigate COVID-19 disruptions’ adverse effects on child schooling," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    4. Anderson, Ellen & Lybbert, Travis J. & Shenoy, Ashish & Singh, Rupika & Stein, Daniel, 2024. "Does survey mode matter? Comparing in-person and phone agricultural surveys in India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    5. Joshua Brubaker & Talip Kilic & Philip Wollburg, 2021. "Representativeness of individual-level data in COVID-19 phone surveys: Findings from Sub-Saharan Africa," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(11), pages 1-27, November.
    6. Acevedo, Ivonne & Castellani, Francesca & Lotti, Giulia & Székely, Miguel, 2022. "Labor Market Gender Gaps in the Time of COVID-19 in Latin America and the Caribbean," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 12568, Inter-American Development Bank.
    7. Gourlay, Sydney & Kilic, Talip & Martuscelli, Antonio & Wollburg, Philip & Zezza, Alberto, 2021. "Viewpoint: High-frequency phone surveys on COVID-19: Good practices, open questions," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    8. Tilman Brück & Mekdim D. Regassa, 2023. "Usefulness and misrepresentation of phone surveys on COVID-19 and food security in Africa," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(2), pages 423-453, April.
    9. Abate, Gashaw T. & de Brauw, Alan & Hirvonen, Kalle & Wolle, Abdulazize, 2023. "Measuring consumption over the phone: Evidence from a survey experiment in urban Ethiopia," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    10. Zezza,Alberto & Mcgee,Kevin Robert & Wollburg,Philip Randolph & Assefa,Thomas Woldu & Gourlay,Sydney, 2022. "From Necessity to Opportunity : Lessons for Integrating Phone and In-Person Data Collectionfor Agricultural Statistics in a Post-Pandemic World," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10168, The World Bank.

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