Incentives

Social Exchange Theory

Social exchange theory proposes that when people consider participating in a survey, they evaluate a variety of nonmonetary costs and rewards, such as the desire to help or social validation. A pre-paid incentive, whether cash or noncash, is thought to be a goodwill gesture that puts the survey, the researcher, and the sponsor in a positive light, encouraging compliance with a request to complete a survey. In addition, this gesture may establish trust between the researcher and the respondent, further encouraging compliance. This theory assumes the creation of a sense of obligation or an expectation of reciprocity, which may be facilitated by the trust established between the researcher and respondent. The incentive produces a sense of obligation that a favor needs to be exchanged, regardless of the magnitude of the favor.

This theory encourages the presentation of an incentive as a token of appreciation. Don Dillman, an early proponent of this theory, has cautioned against matching the monetary incentives to the level of effort required to complete and return the survey. This matching could trigger thinking about the relationship as an economic exchange, making it easier for people to refuse. Instead, social exchange theory depends on the perception of the incentive as a token of appreciation or symbol of trust.

Economic Exchange Theory

Economic exchange theory proposes that incentives be used to compensate people for the costs (burden) associated with survey participation, that is, pay respondents for their time and effort. This theory depends on people exercising rational choice in deciding whether to participate in a survey. People weigh the costs of participating (time and effort) against the benefits of participating, such as receiving an incentive. From this perspective, the greater the burden is—that is, the longer and more demanding the survey—the greater the incentive should be.

Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance, as explained by social psychologist Leon Festinger and his colleagues in the 1950s, proposes that if people are given a noncontingent (pre-paid) incentive with a survey request, they will be motivated to comply with the request to avoid or to reduce an uneasy feeling that arises from accepting a reward without having done anything to deserve it. When presented with a pre-paid incentive to complete a survey, respondents are faced with several choices. They could keep the incentive and return the completed survey (as requested), or they could return the incentive with the uncompleted survey. Both choices avoid a state of dissonance. On the other hand, if the respondent accepts the incentive but does not return the survey, in theory, they experience dissonance because they did not comply with a request but accepted the reward of the request. This experience of dissonance will be unsettling and may lead to several courses of action at a later date, including returning the incentive or returning the completed survey. Survey researchers hope that most respondents will be inclined to complete and return the survey, because the other courses of action produce unsettled feelings or require as much effort as compliance with little reward—that is, returning the uncompleted survey and incentive.

...