Can findings from postal questionnaires be combined with interview results to improve the response rate among ethnic minority populations?
OBJECTIVE
To maximise the response rate in a community survey among ethnic minorities by combining postal questionnaires and interviews and to evaluate the validity of combining results from these different methods.


METHODS
A cross-sectional community survey of a local population using postal questionnaires with interview questionnaires for non-respondents. Postal questionnaires were in English and interview questionnaires were prepared in South Asian languages. A sub-sample completed both postal and interview questionnaires.


METHODS
Two general practices in Tameside, Greater Manchester, UK.


METHODS
Questionnaires were mailed to 1,267 people. People were included if they defined their ethnicity as Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi or a combination of these. Fifty-five people who returned postal questionnaires were also interviewed.


RESULTS
Overall response rate was 75%. Comparison of questionnaire and interview responses produced values of kappa ranging from marginally below zero to one. Equivalence was greater with a shorter time between postal completion and interview and where questions were more objective.


CONCLUSIONS
It is possible to achieve a good response rate for an epidemiological study among ethnic minorities by using both postal questionnaires and interviews. Care should be taken when results from these two methods are combined, since equivalence is uncertain.
Allison
T
T
National Primary Care R&D Centre, University of Manchester, UK. tim.allison@eypct.nhs.uk
Ahmad
T
T
Brammah
T
T
Symmons
D
D
Urwin
M
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001210:Asia, Southeastern / Q000208:ethnology; D005006:Ethnicity; D005194:Family Practice; D005260:Female; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008913:Minority Groups; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom