The Tendency to Agree with Items in Social Survey Regardless of Their Content as a Possible Source of Bias

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6421300
AutoresPatrik Havan (0000-0003-3725-7718, Centre of Social and Psychological Sciences of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, autor de correspondencia), Peter Halama (0000-0002-6938-4845, University of Trnava), Michal Kohút (0000-0002-4544-1331, University of Trnava)
Año2024
Volumen61
Número3
Páginas301-321
Fecha de publicación2024-06-06
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaCzech Sociological Review (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0038-0288 • E-ISSN: 2336-128X
EditorialInstitute of Sociology of the Czech Academy of Sciences (PUBLISHER • CZ)
DOI10.13060/csr.2024.013
OpenAlexW4399386687
IdiomaEN
Referencias citadas56

Acquiescence is defined as the tendency of respondents to shift their answer towards agreeing rather than disagreeing with items, regardless of the items' content.As a response style, it can be a significant factor in distorting research results.This article examines the nature, predictors, and consequences of this response style and the possibility of identifying and controlling it.The results of time stability and domain/method specificity of acquiescence suggest that it is more a participant-related than situational-related construct.Two categories of correlates or predictors of acquiescence were identified: a high level of social deference/conformity and a low level of cognitive processing on the part of respondents.The two most common approaches used to estimate acquiescence are the manifest approach, which involves computing the deviation from the median of the response scale, and the latent approach, which uses confirmatory factor analysis with a bifactor model.The advantage of the manifest approach is its technical simplicity when certain criteria are met, but its ability to cleanse the results of the effect of acquiescence is rather limited.The more technically demanding latent approach, by contrast, is useful for its ability not only to identify acquiescence bias but also to reduce bias.In a model analysis using the latent approach, the results were cleansed of the effect of acquiescence

Content (measure theory · Data source · General Social Survey · Information retrieval · Statistics · Advanced Causal Inference Techniques · Computer Science · Mathematics · Psychology · Psychometric Methodologies and Testing · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology