Army Communications Objectives Measurement System (ACOMS): Survey Methods

摘要

This report, the final in a series that documents various aspects of the Army Communications Objectives Measurement System (ACOMS), discusses the methodology used in the implementation of the ACOMS survey, a multiyear telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 16- to 24-year-old American youth and their parents. Data were collected continuously throughout the year, using computer-assisted-telephone-interviewing (CATI) technology. The first chapter of this report presents an overview of the main elements of the ACOMS survey methodology: sampling and weighting, survey questionnaires, and data collection procedures. Each subsequent chapter presents further discussion of these topics. Chapter 2 discusses the characteristics of the various sample groups included in the survey, the sample selection procedures, the actual number of completed interviews for each major sample group, and the weighting procedures applied to the data. Chapter 3 describes the three survey instruments used: the household screening interview, the youth interview, and the parental interview. It also describes the major topics covered by each interview and the complex questionnaire structures implemented to accommodate the wide range of topics required by the Army, along with concerns for limiting questionnaire length and respondent burden. (kr)