Trial reportBMC medical research methodology2007
Improving response rates using a monetary incentive for patient completion of questionnaires: an observational study.
Trial report in BMC medical research methodology, 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Methods to increase response to postal and electronic questionnaires.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2023Pooled it
- Non-randomised evaluations of strategies to increase participant retention in randomised controlled trials: a systematic review.Systematic reviews · 2020Pooled it
- Small Social Incentives Did Not Improve the Survey Response Rate of Patients Who Underwent Orthopaedic Surgery: A Randomized Trial.Clinical orthopaedics and related research · 2019Trial
- Population Survey Features and Response Rates: A Randomized Experiment.American journal of public health · 2016Trial
- The use of incentives in vulnerable populations for a telephone survey: a randomized controlled trial.BMC research notes · 2012Trial
- Trial
- Pharmacist-initiated general practitioner referral of patients with suboptimal asthma management.Pharmacy world & science : PWS · 2008Trial
- Towards socially inclusive research: an evaluation of telephone questionnaire administration in a multilingual population.BMC medical research methodology · 2008Trial
- The effect of remuneration schedule on data completion and retention in the pregnancy eating attributes study (PEAS).PloS one · 2021Observational
- Article
- Frequency of use of diagnostic and manual therapeutic procedures of the spine taught at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College: A preliminary survey of Ontario chiropractors. Part 1 - practice characteristics and demographic profiles.The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association · 2013Article
- Effect of Small Monetary Incentive and Demographic Characteristics on Response Rate of Self-Administered Questionnaire Mailed to Rural Women.Online journal of rural research and policy · 2013Article
- Payment for participation in clinical research: Review of proposals submitted to the ethics committees.Perspectives in clinical researchArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
21 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPoor response rates to postal questionnaires can introduce bias and reduce the statistical power of a study. To improve response rates in our trial in primary care we tested the effect of introducing an unconditional direct payment of 5 pounds for the completion of postal questionnaires.
methodsWe recruited patients in general practice with knee problems from sites across the United Kingdom. An evidence-based strategy was used to follow-up patients at twelve months with postal questionnaires. This included an unconditional direct payment of 5 pounds to patients for the completion and return of questionnaires. The first 105 patients did not receive the 5 pounds incentive, but the subsequent 442 patients did. We used logistic regression to analyse the effect of introducing a monetary incentive to increase the response to postal questionnaires.
resultsThe response rate following reminders for the historical controls was 78.1% (82 of 105) compared with 88.0% (389 of 442) for those patients who received the 5 pounds payment (diff = 9.9%, 95% CI 2.3% to 19.1%). Direct payments significantly increased the odds of response (adjusted odds ratio = 2.2, 95% CI 1.2 to 4.0, P = 0.009) with only 12 of 442 patients declining the payment. The incentive did not save costs to the trial--the extra cost per additional respondent was almost 50 pounds.
conclusionThe direct payment of 5 pounds significantly increased the completion of postal questionnaires at negligible increase in cost for an adequately powered study.
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