OBJECTIVES: To illustrate how cognitive interviewing techniques can be used to identify question-response problems for poorer and less educated survey respondents and to describe how qualitative analyses of interviews can improve survey questionnaires. METHODS: A cognitive interviewing project testing a general health questionnaire was administered in southern rural Mississippi. RESULTS: Three themes of response difficulty were identified: 1) responding within a survey interaction, 2) making mathematical calculations, and 3) responding within another system of knowledge. CONCLUSION: Understanding how sociocultural factors impact the response process is vital for survey research.
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Kristen R. Miller (2003) studied this question.