title: Validating the Use of Anchoring Vignettes for the Correction of Response Scale Differences in Subjctive Questions.
abstract: Comparing self-assessed indicators of subjective outcomes such as health, work disability, political efficacy, job satisfaction, etc. across countries or socio-economic groups is often hampered by the fact that different groups use different response scales. This paper develops an integrated framework in which objective measurements are used to validate vignette-based corrections. The framework is applied to objective and subjective self-assessments of drinking behavior by students in Ireland. Model comparisons using the Akaike information criterion favor a specification with response consistency and vignette corrected response scales. Put differently, vignette based corrections appear quite effective in bringing objective and subjective measures closer together.
authors.affiliation: Tilburg University and RAND Corporation, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90153, 5000 LE Tilburg, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Van Soest
authors.forename: Liam
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Delaney
authors.forename: Colm
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Harmon
authors.forename: Arie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kapteyn
authors.forename: James P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Smith
keywords: anchoring vignettes; hopit model; reporting bias