Incorrect interviewing procedures are a major source of survey error. The purpose of this research is to develop, test, and document a commercial-quality Telephone Interviewer Monitoring and Evaluation System (TIMES). TIMES will measure, evaluate, and report interviewer errors so that they may be reduced and the quality of survey data increased. TIMES will be particularly useful in reducing interviewer errors that occur during the administration of sensitive questions concerning sexual practices, drug and alcohol abuse, and the incidence of disease.
The aim of Phase II is to expand the TIMES software prototype developed in Phase I into a fully functioning software system and to develop empirically-based interviewer evaluation computer screens. TIMES is an enhancement for CASES, the CATI system developed by the University of California, Berkeley under the direction of Dr. Merrill Shanks. He will serve as a Senior Research Associate. CASES is used by over 60 of the largest survey research organizations. Research to develop evaluation screens will be conducted under the direction of Dr. Floyd Fowler, at the University of Massachusetts, a leading researcher in interviewer error. Using TIMES the supervisor may simultaneously monitor the interviewer's administration of the interview and enter question- specific evaluation data.
