Current Telephone Projects
Current Telephone Projects
(This web page last updated September 25, 2012.)
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If you are called it is because your household or cell phone was randomly selected and so you represent the voice of people just like you in the Commonwealth. We want to make sure everyone's opinions are heard! It's important that people who normally don't participate in surveys respond as well as those who like taking surveys so that we obtain an accurate picture of the views of Kentucky residents. You can find more about our selection procedures and their purpose in the frequently asked questions below.
- We are currently calling the Washington Metro Area to request assistance with the "National Asset Scorecard Survey." This survey will be expanding nationwide soon. Your participation will provide researchers and public officials a clearer picture of how different communities are faring in the current economic climate.
- We want to send out a hearty thank you to all local residents who participated in the first Jefferson Area Community Survey last winter. We call a sample of randomized landline and cellular telephones in the "greater Charlottesville area," by which we mean the City of Charlottesville and the adjacent counties of Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson. You may read a modified version of the query sheet we provide to interviewers to answer frequently asked questions about the study here. You may also view two recent media interviews regarding the survey. An NBC 29 story on the survey can be found here and a Newsplex UVa Today interview can be found at this link.
- If you are called and want to confirm a survey's legitimacy or make sure the call is really from us you may ring us toll free during the daytime at 1-800 CSR POLL (277-7655). In the evenings when we are calling you may reach a supervisor at 434-243-5226.
- Some of our phone calling methodology can be reviewed here.
- Below is a sample Frequently Asked Questions sheet: note specific details have been removed to make it generic. When we have a phone survey in the field you can select that study's link above to see the FAQ for that study.
Information provided as an FAQ for our interviewers to provide to respondents when asked
Who is sponsoring the survey?
The survey is sponsored by [insert name here].
Who is qualified to participate?
Residents who are 18 years of age or older and live in the household called (living in the household called does not apply to cell phones) are eligible to participate in the survey. In households with more than one eligible respondent, we will use a simple method to select one adult to represent that household. People whom we reach on their cell phones will be asked to participate without attempting to select from among the other adults who might live with them.
Why should I participate?
[Insert information here] will use this study to help them make decisions based on the results of the survey. This is your opportunity to voice your opinions and to make suggestions as to what you think is important.
How did you get my phone number?
We use a random-digit dialing method to get a statistically valid sample from cell phones and landlines. Your number had the same chance of being picked by our computer as any other phone number in the target area. Cell number groups are randomized using information from "rate centers," a geographic area used by local exchange carriers to set rate boundaries for billing and for issuing phone numbers.
Why do you want to call cell phones?
We realize that cell phones are considered personal by many people, though less so by others. Cell phone-only households have been shown to have different opinions from other households. The survey sponsors want their decisions to be based upon the advice of a truly representative sample of residents from the region.
I share this cell phone . . . why was I picked?
Because only a small proportion of cell phones are shared we decided to treat them as belonging to the first individual who answers. If an appointment is set up with that individual we will try to do the survey with him/her. But if no definite appointment is made and a second person answers the cell, we will interview that person instead.
Why are you calling me from Charlottesville?
The sponsor asked the University of Virginia's Center for Survey Research to conduct this survey to be sure that the results are objective and scientific. Our interviewers are UVA students or UVA temps, so you can give your honest opinions about these issues.
Are you auto-dialing? I'm supposed to be on the "Do not call" list!
Academic survey organizations are exempt from the list but strictly comply with the ethical standards of their professional organization (AAPOR). As such we will remove from our list anyone who does not wish to be contacted. Interviewers initiate the dialing of our calls, not a computer and we do not engage in large-scale "predictive dialing." As an academic survey organization, we are further bound by the University's Institutional Review Board protocols and try to serve the public good by providing objective information on how citizens feel about government services and where improvements can be made.
What about confidentiality?
The results from all our interviews will be put together in a statistical report. No one we interview will be identified in the report and no telephone numbers will be given to the state and local agencies. We dialed your number at random and we either don't know your address (for randomly generated numbers) or don't associate your address with your answers (for address-based sampling and randomly selected directory listed sample).
Why do you want to know my zip code (or the intersection nearest my house)?
We want that information so we can compare different parts of the Washington Metro area to see if there is a problem in a particular area that the government should give more attention to.
Why do you ask about my race/ethnicity?
Like other demographic data (income, age, gender) questions about race or ethnicity are for statistical purposes only. Sometimes an ethnic group that is known to be prevalent in an area is analyzed separately from the more generalized race category, to see if there are any statistical differences in how they respond. All of your answers are strictly confidential, that is, they will not be used to identify you personally, and you can skip any questions you don't wish to answer.
Why didn't you ask me about . . . ?
To keep the interviews from getting too long, we had to make some choices. If you have something that you think needs to be added to the survey, we can make a note of it.
I'd like to call & set a survey appointment, and who can I call for more information?
Please call 1-800-CSR-POLL (277-7655) and select option #1, or you can reach the supervisor of the telephone calling lab directly at 434-243-5226 during the day. Or I can set an appointment now if you prefer. If you'd like to know more about the study, you can contact [insert sponsor information], you can talk to my supervisor now, or you can contact Tom Guterbock at the Center for Survey Research (434) 243-5222. You can also see [insert sponsor website information].
How can I get the results?
The distribution
policy regarding the results depends on the particular study. For the
JACS survey we anticipate that the results will be available on the Internet
and they will be presented in the media shortly thereafter.
The researchers on
the National Asset Scorecard study will publish the results in academic
journals and other forum. We expect that some of the results of this survey
will be released to the media by our partner at Duke University when the
analysis is done. Further information can be obtained from CSR's website at http://surveys.virginia.edu.