The Problem of Nonresponse in Sample Surveys

In an excerpt from the Journal of the American Statistical Association, Hansen and Hurwitz advocate a double sampling approach to reduce the variance and especially the bias that nonresponse in sample surveys can cause. The problem considered is to determine the number of mail questionnaires to be sent out and the number of personal interviews to take in following up nonresponses to the mail questionnaire, in order to attain the required precision at a minimum cost.