Institute for Social Science Research

The purpose of this paper is to analyze (1) the response rates of a study that surveyed white and minority populations in Southern California, (2) the effectiveness of follow-up calling on reducing non-response with associated processing times for different outcomes, (3) the differences, if any, in response rates between trained students and professional interviewers, and {4) the impact of new technology on non-response and sample processing in general. This particular project provides an ideal opportunity to shed new light on these questions because few large-scale studies of this type are performed in the region and because frequent follow-up attempts were made to households until either the interview was obtained or the study was halted.