Surveying alumni by mail: Effect of booklet/folder questionnaire format and style of type on response rate

Current technology makes it possible to develop survey instruments with a professional appearance at a much lower cost than in the past. Type fonts resembling those that are typeset can be produced in varying sizes on personal computers. Photocopy equipment can reproduce questionnaires of varying page sizes, and sometimes collate, fold, and staple them automatically into booklets. The purpose of this research was to determine whether the use of professional-appearing type and/or booklet construction in questionnaires effected higher response rates than conventional typewriter type and single pages of questions stapled in the corner. Two investigations were conducted, each involving a survey of university alumni. Using split-sample procedures, questionnaire type font and construction were not found to have significant impact on response rates. Other considerations that may influence questionnaire design decisions are discussed in light of these findings.