Sampling Methods for Random Digit Dialing

Abstract A method of sample selection for household telephone interviewing via random digit dialing is developed which significantly reduces the cost of such surveys as compared to dialing numbers completely at random. The sampling is carried out through a two-stage design and has the unusual feature that although all units have the same probability of selection, it is not necessary to know the probabilities of selection of the first-stage or the second-stage units. Simple random sampling of possible telephone numbers, within existing telephone exchanges, is inefficient because only about 20 percent of these numbers are actually telephone numbers assigned to households. The method of selection proposed reduces the proportion of unused numbers sharply.