High-Frequency Survey Recall Validation
RCTClinical Trial
Evaluating business training interventions relies heavily on self-reported financial data, creating potential reporting bias if trained entrepreneurs record figures more accurately than control groups. High-frequency daily surveying is necessary to verify whether monthly recall data accurately reflects true microenterprise income without reporting distortions.
Picture this
Imagine testing whether an accounting class helps people manage money by asking them to estimate their monthly spending at the end of thirty days. To double-check if their end-of-month estimates are accurate or just wild guesses, a researcher checks in with them every single evening to log every penny spent that day, comparing the daily total against the monthly memory estimate.
What the evidence says
Daily visits averaged 8.11 GH¢ cash in and 3.32 GH¢ cash out. Comparing monthly recall to aggregated daily data showed no statistically significant difference in revenue (p-value > 0.10, difference of -4.08 GH¢) or expenses (difference of 8.71 GH¢), proving that monthly recall surveys do not introduce strategic reporting bias in consulting evaluations, though daily data exhibited higher variance for record-keepers (squared difference 22,895 GH¢, p < 0.05).
- Who was studied
- N = 150 tailors in Accra, Ghana.
- How
- Comparative methodological evaluation tracking tailors every other day for one month (Round 4, averaging 23.9 days per tailor) versus standard 30-day monthly recall surveys (Round 5).
What to do
Utilize standard monthly recall surveys for microenterprise financial evaluations, supplementing with high-frequency daily audits on a sub-sample to benchmark measurement variance.
From the source
"This gives two insights: (1) the recall data are on average quite similar to the daily visits data; and (2) the consulting group's reports do not appear to be more accurate than the control group."
8dfcee5c-2a63-4460-a220-837509002b85-Consulting and Capital Experiments with Microenterprise Tailors in Ghana.pdf