Bias from questionnaire invitation and response in COVID-19 research: an example using ALSPAC

Wellcome Open Research

article

Alba Fernández-Sanlés¹  Daniel Smith¹  Gemma L Clayton¹  Kate Northstone²  Alice R Carter¹  Louise AC Millard¹  Maria Carolina Borges¹  Nicholas John Timpson¹  Kate Tilling¹  Gareth J Griffith¹  Deborah A Lawlor¹ 

[1] MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol;Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol;Bristol National Institute of Health Research ,(NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre

关键词: COVID-19;    COVID-19 risk factors;    Selection Bias;    Longitudinal Study;    ALSPAC;    Missing Data;    Questionnaire Invitation;    Questionnaire Response.;   

DOI  :  10.12688/wellcomeopenres.17041.2

学科分类：内科医学

来源: Wellcome

【 摘 要 】

Background: Longitudinal studies are crucial for identifying potentialrisk factors for infection with, and consequences of, COVID-19, but relationships can be biased if they are associated with invitation and response to data collection. We describe factors relating to questionnaire invitation and response in COVID-19 questionnaire data collection in a multigenerational birth cohort (the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, ALSPAC).Methods: We analysed online questionnaires completed between the beginning of the pandemic and easing of the first UK lockdown by participants with valid email addresses who had not actively disengaged from the study. We assessed associations of pre-pandemic sociodemographic, behavioural, anthropometric and health-related factors with: i) being sent a questionnaire; ii) returning a questionnaire; and iii) item response (for specific questions). Analyses were conducted in three cohorts: the index children born in the early 1990s (now young adults; 41 variables assessed), their mothers (35 variables) and the mothers’ partners (27 variables).Results:95%. In this cohort, 78% of factors were associated with being sent a questionnaire, 56% with returning one, and, as an example of item response, 20% with keyworker status response. For instance, children from mothers educated to degree-level had greater odds of being sent a questionnaire (OR=5.59; 95% CI=4.87-6.41), returning one (OR=1.60; 95% CI=1.31-1.95), and responding to items (e.g., keyworker status OR=1.65; 95% CI=0.88-3.04), relative to children from mothers with fewer qualifications. Invitation and response rates and associations were similar in all cohorts.Conclusions: These results highlight the importance of considering potential biases due to non-response when using longitudinal studies in COVID-19 research and interpreting results. We recommend researchers report response rates and factors associated with invitation and response in all COVID-19 observational research studies, which can inform sensitivity analyses.

【 授权许可】

CC BY