Designing randomized response surveys to support honest answers to stigmatizing questions

Randomized response survey methods use noise to mask respondents’ answers to stigmatizing questions in an attempt to elicit honest responses. Respondents weigh the preference for honesty against the disutility of stigmatization when deciding how to answer. Since the disutility of stigmatization depends on the degree of noise, the interviewer designs the survey to balance two goals: (i) honest reporting by respondents and (ii) maximization of the accuracy of estimates based on the survey. We fully characterize the non-linear set of design parameters that lead to truth-telling, as well as the interviewer’s equilibrium survey design.