© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The World Association for Public Opinion Research. All rights reserved.
Alternatives to Prepaid Monetary Incentives in Mail Surveys
Address correspondence to Philip Gendall, Department of Communication, Journalism & Marketing, Massey University, Private Bag 11-222, Palmerston North, New Zealand, e-mail: p.gendall@massey.ac.nz
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Small, prepaid monetary incentives have consistently been shown to increase mail survey response rates (Brennan, Hoek, & Astridge, 1991; Brennan, 1992; Brennan, Seymour, & Gendall, 1993; Church, 1993; Jobber, Saunders, & Mitchell, 2004). The success of these monetary incentives is generally attributed to the fact that they are unconditional rather than conditional. Potential respondents receive the incentive even if they do not take part in the survey, but are assumed to be more willing to participate because compliance is seen as the repayment of a gift or favor.
However, in 1998 New Zealand postal legislation was changed to prohibit the sending of currency by mail. Thus, the practice of including 50 cents, $1 or $2 as an incentive in mail surveys is no longer legal. Furthermore, some organizations, such as charities or voluntary groups, may consider monetary incentives inappropriate for surveys of their members, and
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DIFFERENT TYPES OF INCENTIVES |
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Unconditional Incentives
Donation to Charity
Post-it® Note
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METHOD |
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RESULTS |
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Postage Stamps, Tea Bags, and Chocolate
Effect of Age and Sex of Respondents
Donation to Charity
Post-it® Notes
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DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS |
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