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Survey misreporting of welfare receipt—Respondent, interviewer, and interview characteristics

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  • Bruckmeier, Kerstin
  • Müller, Gerrit
  • Riphahn, Regina T.

Abstract

We use matched survey and administrative data to study interviewer and interview related determinants of misreporting on welfare receipt in interviews. In our data, 12.2 % of German welfare recipients underreport benefit receipt. We find that underreporting is more likely in formal and standardized interviews compared to those with a more conversational character. Further, low interviewer education and matched interviewer–respondent characteristics with respect to immigration and education are associated with higher reporting quality.

Suggested Citation

  • Bruckmeier, Kerstin & Müller, Gerrit & Riphahn, Regina T., 2015. "Survey misreporting of welfare receipt—Respondent, interviewer, and interview characteristics," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 103-107.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:129:y:2015:i:c:p:103-107
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2015.02.006
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Lothar Essig & Joachim K. Winter, 2009. "Item Non-Response to Financial Questions in Household Surveys: An Experimental Study of Interviewer and Mode Effects," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 30(Special I), pages 367-390, December.
    2. Regina Riphahn & Oliver Serfling, 2005. "Item non-response on income and wealth questions," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 521-538, September.
    3. Kerstin Bruckmeier & Gerrit M�ller & Regina T. Riphahn, 2014. "Who misreports welfare receipt in surveys?," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(12), pages 812-816, August.
    4. Trappmann, Mark & Beste, Jonas & Bethmann, Arne & Müller, Gerrit, 2013. "The PASS panel survey after six waves," Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 46(4), pages 275-281.
    5. Min Gong & David Aadland, 2011. "Interview Effects in an Environmental Valuation Telephone Survey," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 49(1), pages 47-64, May.
    6. Bollinger, Christopher R & David, Martin H, 2001. "Estimation with Response Error and Nonresponse: Food-Stamp Participation in the SIPP," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, American Statistical Association, vol. 19(2), pages 129-141, April.
    7. Bruce D. Meyer & Wallace K. C. Mok & James X. Sullivan, 2009. "The Under-Reporting of Transfers in Household Surveys: Its Nature and Consequences," NBER Working Papers 15181, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Jan Pickery & Geert Loosveldt & Ann Carton, 2001. "The Effects of Interviewer and Respondent Characteristics on Response Behavior in Panel Surveys," Sociological Methods & Research, , vol. 29(4), pages 509-523, May.
    9. Trappmann, Mark & Beste, Jonas & Bethmann, Arne & Müller, Gerrit, 2013. "The PASS panel survey after six waves," Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 46(4), pages 275-281.
    10. Mark Trappmann & Jonas Beste & Arne Bethmann & Gerrit Müller, 2013. "The PASS panel survey after six waves [Die PASS-Panelbefragung nach sechs Wellen]," Journal for Labour Market Research, Springer;Institute for Employment Research/ Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), vol. 46(4), pages 275-281, December.
    11. Adriaan Kalwij, 2010. "An Empirical Analysis Of The Association Between Neighborhood Income And Unit Non‐Response In The Survey Of Health, Ageing, And Retirement In Europe," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 56(2), pages 351-365, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Xiaoning Huang & Neeraj Kaushal & Julia Shu-Huah Wang, 2021. "What Explains the Gap in Welfare Use Among Immigrants and Natives?," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 40(4), pages 819-860, August.
    2. Xiaoning Huang & Neeraj Kaushal & Julia Shu-Huah Wang, 2020. "What Explains the Gap in Welfare Use among Immigrants and Natives?," NBER Working Papers 27811, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Celhay, Pablo & Meyer, Bruce D. & Mittag, Nikolas, 2024. "What leads to measurement errors? Evidence from reports of program participation in three surveys," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 238(2).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Misreporting; Interviewer style; Conversational interviewing; Standardized interviewing;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • C81 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Data Collection and Data Estimation Methodology; Computer Programs - - - Methodology for Collecting, Estimating, and Organizing Microeconomic Data; Data Access

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