Telephone interviews are a method of collecting data from respondents over the phone, using a structured or semi-structured questionnaire. They can be an efficient and effective way to reach a large and diverse sample of respondents, especially in areas where internet access or face-to-face contact is limited or difficult. However, telephone interviews also require a high level of quality control to ensure the accuracy, reliability, and validity of the data collected.
These are some of our quality control procedures and standards for telephone interviews that can help ensure high-quality and reliable data collection:
- Experienced interviewers: Our interviewers have relevant experience and skills in conducting telephone interviews, such as communication, listening, probing, recording, and data entry skills. They have knowledge and familiarity with the topic and purpose of the survey, the questionnaire design and logic, and the target population and sample.
- Detailed training on survey and questionnaire: The interviewers receive detailed training on the survey and questionnaire before they start the telephone interview. The training covers the objectives and scope of the survey, the structure and content of the questionnaire, the instructions and guidelines for asking questions and recording answers, the scenarios and strategies for dealing with rejections or refusals, and the ethical and professional standards for conducting telephone interviews.
- Call protocol (including introductions): The interviewers must follow a call protocol that specifies the steps and procedures for making and completing a phone call. The call protocol should include introductions, such as greeting the respondent, introducing oneself and the organization, explaining the purpose and duration of the survey, obtaining consent and cooperation from the respondent, verifying the eligibility and identity of the respondent, etc. The call protocol also includes closing remarks, such as thanking the respondent, confirming or updating contact information, providing contact details for further inquiries or feedback, etc.
- Handling rejections: The interviewers are trained to handle different rejections or refusals from respondents, such as busy signals, no answers, hang-ups, callbacks, appointments, etc. They use polite and persuasive techniques to overcome rejections or refusals, such as emphasizing the importance and benefits of the survey, offering incentives or rewards, providing assurances of confidentiality and anonymity, etc. They also record the reasons and outcomes of rejections or refusals, and follow up accordingly.
- Asking questions properly and practicing: The interviewers must know how to ask questions properly and effectively to elicit accurate and complete responses from respondents. They must use clear and simple language, avoid leading or biased questions, read the questions exactly as they are written, follow the question order and skip patterns, probe for more details or clarification when needed, repeat or rephrase questions when asked or necessary, etc. The interviewers must practice asking questions before they start the telephone interview, either by themselves or with a supervisor or colleague.
- Daily report: The interviewers submit a daily report to their supervisor or manager at the end of each day of telephone interviewing. The daily report includes information such as the number of calls made and completed, the number of respondents contacted and interviewed, the number of rejections or refusals encountered and handled, the number of callbacks or appointments scheduled or completed, etc. The daily report also includes any issues or problems that occurred during the telephone interview, such as technical difficulties, complaints, or errors, and how they were resolved or reported.
- QC follow-up call: The supervisors or managers conduct a quality control (QC) follow-up call with a minimum of 10% of the respondents who completed the telephone interview. The QC follow-up call is a short verification call that aims to confirm the identity and consent of the respondent
- Data validation by data team: The data team validates the data collected from the phone interview to ensure its accuracy and reliability. The data validation methods include checking for missing or invalid data, cross-tabulating and analyzing the data, comparing the data with other sources or benchmarks, and conducting back-checks or re-interviews with a sample of respondents to confirm their responses.
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