Foreign Mail Surveys: Response Rates Using Monetary Incentives
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The difference in response rates was substantial as shown in Table 1. Out of the 200 questionnaires mailed, six (three for each country) were returned * CharlesF. Keownis an AssociateProfessorof Marketingat the Universityof Hawaii. Hisresearchinterestsare primarilyin the areaof internationalmarketing. Date Received:April9, 1984; Revised:October 18, 1984; RevisedAgain:February6, 1985;Accepted:April11, 1985.
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TABLE 1 Response Rate by Country
With US$1 Incentive Number
Country/ City State Japan Hong Kong
Mailed 50 50
Returned by Post Office 2 0
Response Received by Addressee
Number
%
48 50
24 0
50
50
0
50
Mailed
P
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FOREIGNMAIL SURVEYS
by the post office; presumably, the addresseeshad left their organizations with no forwarding address. For Japan, the response rate was 50% with incentive versus 22% without incentive (p = .02). Ten of the 24 Japanese respondents receiving the incentive returned both the questionnaire and the one-dollar bill. Although the questionnaire was anonymous, two wrote return letters, three sent their business cards, and four added postscripts. In comparison, for Hong Kong, the response rate was 0% with incentive versus 13% without incentive (p = .01). The zero response rate for the incentive mailing raises the slight possibility that post office personnel may have "pocketed" the $1 bill. But all questionnaires (both with and without incentives) were mailed in small batches on different dates, and three envelopes were returned by the Hong Kong post office; therefore, postal fraud is unlikely. In this study, Japanese business executives were more compliant than Hong Kongese in general, and the monetary incentive was successful in more than doubling the response from Japan but decreased the response from Hong Kong. These findings may be biased because of the small sample, the sampling frame, or the questionnaire content. However, the results may imply a cultural difference either toward responding to questionnaires, or toward monetary incentives. The cross-cultural researcher should be aware of such problems, and explore the effect of monetary incentives prior to the mass mailing of surveys. Theoretically, monetary incentives may increase response rates in any culture or country; however, the type (local or foreign currency) and amount may be important factors. REFERENCES Kanuk, L. and C. Berenson (1975). "Mail Surveys and Response Rates: A Literature Review." Journal of Marketing Research, 12 (November), 440-53.
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