Web Surveys May Be Reliable in Estimating Secondary Effects of Substance Use in College PopulationMay 1, 2006
Research Summary Contact:
Center for Substance Abuse Research (CESAR)
www.cesar.umd.edu
Web surveys can effectively collect data on consequences associated with substance use by college students, according to a study of students attending a large Midwestern public university in 2001.
A random sample of 7,000 undergraduate students were randomly assigned to participate in either a mail-or Web-based survey that asked about the consequences they had experienced in the past year as a result of other people's drinking or drug use.
Both the mail and Web surveys provided nearly identical results. In addition, the Web survey had a higher response rate (63%) than the mail survey (40%).
A previous analysis of data from this study found similar results for prevalence of drug use among undergraduate students (see CESAR FAX, Volume 14, Issue 21).
The authors note that since "college students are a unique sector of the U.S. and international populations as they have near-universal use of, and access to, the Internet," Web surveys may not be a feasible alternative to mail surveys in other populations.
For details, including data charts, source information and caveats, download the PDF file at www.cesar.umd.edu/cesar/cesarfax/vol15/15-17.pdf.
Reprinted from CESAR Fax, a weekly, one-page overview of timely substance abuse trends or issues, from The Center on Substance Abuse Research (CESAR) at the University of Maryland.
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