REDUCING RESPONSE EFFECTS FOR SENSITIVE QUESTIONS - A COMPUTER-ASSISTED SELF INTERVIEW WITH AUDIO

MacInterview is a computer-assisted self-interview program designed to increase privacy for interviews that ask about potentially self-incriminating behavior. Implemented on a small lightweight laptop computer, MacInterview ''reads aloud'' ques tions to a respondent over either a built-in speaker or a more private headphone set. The interview ''voice'' has the natural qualities of a recording. The software controls question branching so that a respondent sees and hears only appropriate questions. Respondents answer using specially marked keys or the built-in trackball. The coded data from each interview are available in electronic form upon completion of the interview. Pilot tests with 21 teenagers and with 24 older respondents suggest that the technology poses little difficulty for most respondents. Older subjects are less enthusiastic about it as an alternative to other modes of interviewing. Most subjects estimate that people would be more likely to tell the truth using the computer than using a written questionnaire or face-to-face interview. Most also believe that their answers are more secure inside the computer.