Monitoring Youth Behavior in Response To Structural Changes

Random digit dial (RDD) telephone and self-administered school-based surveys of drinking and drinking and driving were compared foradolescents from two Northern California communities. The RDD and school-based surveys resulted in very different samples. The telephone sample contained a greater proportion of European Americans and a smaller proportion of Asian Americans and "other" ethnicities. Respondents to the telephone sample also tended to be older and of higher socioeconomic status (SES). The telephone survey captured very few school dropouts Moreover, it resulted in lower self-reports of drinking and drinking and driving. Survey mode appeared to influence respondents equally, regardless of their gender, age, ethnicity, or SES.