This paper examines questionnaire-related issues of variations in the wording of questions and the objective accuracy of the response, in terms of three traffic-related phenomena (accident frequency, incident frequency, and speeding). ca. 900 survey respondents, living along four major arterialstreets in Malm_, Sweden, estimated the occurrence of the phenomena in question. The dispatch consisted of two parallel questionnaires with minor variations in question wording which showed significant differences in the given estimates of accident and incident frequency depending on the phrasing. The correspondence between the subjective estimates and objectively measured accident and speeding figures is discussed along with the potentialimpact of wording, the phenomenon¦s characteristics and response scales. Increased knowledge of these factors could ease communication with the public in the municipal traffic-planning process. (A) Reprinted with permission from Elsevier.
Abstract