The discussion after the PM session at HSRM took an interesting turn when a number of people questioned whether we were increasing respondent burden to unsustainable levels. In the MR side of the industry we clearly have gone over the top with many questionnaires, but mostly those questionnaires offend with their repetition and downright tediousness. They test respondents' tolerance for long surveys with detailed questions about things they really don't care about. But some government surveys take respondent burden to a whole new level:
- Performance tests to assess physical capacity, for example, by standing on one leg with your eyes closed or lifting a weight above our head.
- Collection of biomarkers (blood samples, urine samples, vaginal swabs, etc.).
- Questions about difficult-to-recall facts such as how often prescriptions for drugs were filled.
- Questions about events that are so routine or obscure that the respondent may never have cognitively processed them (such as how much insured paid versus the co-pay for a hospital visit).
There is no clear answer. It's a tough problem that the industry as a whole continues to grapple with.