Telling the truth? Many subjects don’t give honest answers to questions about activities that are illegal or sensitive in some other way. One study divided a large group of white adults into thirds at random. All were asked if they had ever used cocaine. The first group was interviewed by telephone: 21%

said “Yes.” In the group visited at home by an interviewer, 25% said “Yes.” The final group was interviewed at home but answered the question on an anonymous form that they sealed in an envelope. Of this group, 28% said they had used cocaine.

(a) Which result do you think is closest to the truth? Why?

(b) Give two other examples of behavior you think would be underreported in a telephone survey.

AppendixLO1