A prospective study of response error in food history questionnaires: Implications for foodborne outbreak investigation

J.M. Mann

American Journal of Public Health, 1981, vol. 71, issue 12, 1362-1366

Abstract: To explore the problem of response error in food history data, a prospective study examined the validity of food questionnaire data obtained five days after the study meal. Unobtrusive observation of 64 persons selecting two different foods at a buffet-style luncheon were compared with subsequent histories of food consumption. The predictive value of a positive response was 0.73 for one food and 0.82 for the second food. The response error measures obtained were then applied to data from a published foodborne outbreak to illustrate the impact of predictive value positive and predictive value negative levels on the significance of a food-illness association. Public health workers engaged in food questionnaire administration and analysis must consider response error and should explore methods of reducing this problem through attention to both interviewer-respondent interaction and questionnaire design.

Date: 1981
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aph:ajpbhl:10.2105/ajph.71.12.1362_9

DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.71.12.1362

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