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T. vaginalis infection (trichomoniasis) is the most common curable sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the U.S. It is associated with increased HIV risk and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Trichomoniasis surveillance data do not exist for either national or local populations. The Monitoring STIs Survey Program (MSSP) collected survey data and specimens which were tested using nucleic acid amplification tests to monitor trichomoniasis and other STIs in 2006-09 among a probability sample of young adults (N = 2,936) in Baltimore, Maryland--an urban area with high rates of reported STIs. The estimated prevalence of trichomoniasis was 7.5% (95% CI 6.3, 9.1) in the overall population and 16.1% (95% CI 13.0, 19.8) among Black women. The overwhelming majority of infected men (98.5%) and women (73.3%) were asymptomatic. Infections were more common in both women (OR = 3.6, 95% CI 1.6, 8.2) and men (OR = 9.0, 95% CI 1.8, 44.3) with concurrent chlamydial infection. Trichomoniasis did not vary significantly by age for either men or women. Women with two or more partners in the past year and women with a history of personal or partner incarceration were more likely to have an infection. Overall, these results suggest that routine T vaginalis screening in populations at elevated risk of infection should be considered.

Numerous studies have shown that audio-computer-assisted self-interviewing (audio-CASI) and telephone audio-CASI (T-ACASI) technologies yield increased reporting of sensitive and stigmatized objective phenomena such as sexual and drug use behaviors. Little attention has been given, however, to the impact of these technologies on the measurement of subjective phenomena (attitudes, opinions, feelings, etc.). This article reports results for the seven subjective measurements included in the National STD and Behavior Measurement Experiment (NSBME). NSBME drew probability samples of USA and Baltimore adults (Ns = 1,543 and 744, respectively) and randomized these respondents to be interviewed by T-ACASI or telephone interviewer-administered questioning (T-IAQ). Response distributions for all subjective measurements obtained by T-ACASI diverge from those obtained by human telephone interviewers. For six of our seven ordinal-scaled measurements, this divergence involved shifting responses directionally along the ordinal scale, as opposed to a nondirectional redistribution among response categories. When interviewed by T-ACASI, respondents were more supportive of traditional gender roles and corporal punishment, less supportive of integrated neighborhoods and same-gender sex, and more likely to agree that occasional marijuana use is harmless and to describe themselves as attractive. The majority of these results suggest that telephone survey respondents may provide more \"tolerant\" and \"socially liberal\" responses to human interviewers than to a T-ACASI computer. Similarly, although the evidence is not entirely consistent, the impact of T-ACASI appears to increase with the social vulnerability of the population surveyed.

Background: Although telephone surveys provide an economical method for assessing patterns of diagnosed sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and STD-related behaviors in populations, the requirement that respondents report such information to human telephone interviewers introduces an opportunity for substantial reporting bias. Telephone computer-assisted self-interviewing (T-ACASI) surveys substitute a computer for human interviewers when asking sensitive questions. Methods: A randomized experiment was embedded in a telephone survey that drew probability samples of the populations of the United States (N = 1543) and Baltimore city (N = 744). Respondents were randomly assigned to have sensitive questions asked either by a TACASI computer or by a human telephone interviewer. Results: Respondents interviewed by a T-ACASI computer were more likely to report STD symptoms [dysuria, genital sores, genital discharge, and genital warts; adjusted odds ratios (ORs) = 1.5-2.8] and a diagnosis of gonococcal or chlamydial infection during the past year (adjusted ORs = 3.6 and 6.1). T-ACASI respondents with a main sex partner in the past year were more likely to report that their partner has had an STD (adjusted OR = 2.4). For some measurements, the impact of T-ACASI was strongest among younger and less-educated respondents. When sampling weights were applied to project National STD and Behavior Measurement Experiment results to the populations of the United States and Baltimore, we found that reliance on data obtained by human interviewers would underestimate the annual incidence of chlamydial and gonococcal infections in these populations by factors of 2.4 to 9.7. Conclusions: Compared with human telephone interviewers, T-ACASI surveys obtain increased reporting of STD symptoms, infections, and STD-related behaviors.

Trends in reporting of same-gender sex are assessed using data from the 1988-2002 General Social Surveys (Ns = 9,487 males and 12,336 females). Analyses indicate that the reported prevalence of female-female sexual contact increased substantially and monotonically across twentieth-century birth cohorts, rising from 1.6 percent (Standard error [SE] = 0.60) for the cohort of U.S. women born prior to 1920 to 6.9 percent (SE = 0.81) for women born in 1970 and afterward. Increases in the reported prevalence of female-female contacts also occurred within the 1990s. These trends persist when statistical controls are introduced for changes in attitudes toward same-gender sexual behavior. No parallel trend is observed in the reporting of male-male sexual contacts during adulthood, although the proportion of U.S. men reporting such contacts in the past year and in the past five years increased during the 1990s.

Trends in reporting of same-gender sex are assessed using data from the 1998-2002 General Social Surveys (Ns = 9,487 males and 12,336 females). Analyses indicate that the reported prevalence of female-female sexual contact increased substantially and monotonically across twentieth-century birth cohorts, rising from 1.6 percent (Standard error [SE] = 0.60) for the cohort of U.S. women born prior to 1920 to 6.9 percent (SE = 0.81) for women born in 1970 and afterward. Increases in the reported prevalence of female-female contacts also occurred within the 1990s. These trends persist when statistical controls are introduced for changes in attitudes toward same-gender sexual behavior. No parallel trend is observed in the reporting of male-male sexual contacts during adulthood, although the proportion of U.S. men reporting such contacts in the past year and in the past five years increased during the 1990s.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress household survey of young adults 26-35 years old uses a unique monetary incentive procedure to effectively reduce nonresponse and to increase overall cost effectiveness. As a result of poor response in the first year of National Assessment, a special followup study was conducted to examine alternative field procedures; four different incentive plans were tested in a designed experiment imposed on 64 area segment sampling units. The results of the experimental study and of the adopted monetary incentive procedure on response rates in Years 2, 3, 4, and 5 of the National Assessment household surveys are reported.

T. vaginalis infection (trichomoniasis) is the most common curable sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the U.S. It is associated with increased HIV risk and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Trichomoniasis surveillance data do not exist for either national or local populations. The Monitoring STIs Survey Program (MSSP) collected survey data and specimens which were tested using nucleic acid amplification tests to monitor trichomoniasis and other STIs in 2006-09 among a probability sample of young adults (N = 2,936) in Baltimore, Maryland - an urban area with high rates of reported STIs. The estimated prevalence of trichomoniasis was 7.5% (95% CI 6.3, 9.1) in the overall population and 16.1% (95% CI 13.0, 19.8) among Black women. The overwhelming majority of infected men (98.5%) and women (73.3%) were asymptomatic. Infections were more common in both women (OR = 3.6, 95% CI 1.6, 8.2) and men (OR = 9.0, 95% CI 1.8, 44.3) with concurrent chlamydial infection. Trichomoniasis did not vary significantly by age for either men or women. Women with two or more partners in the past year and women with a history of personal or partner incarceration were more likely to have an infection. Overall, these results suggest that routine T vaginalis screening in populations at elevated risk of infection should be considered.

The Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) has been used by policymakers and research analysts to provide information on a wide array of topics about the Medicare Program. Nonresponse bias is potentially one of the most important threats to the validity of the estimates from the MCBS. In this article we present results of our methodological study that analyzes the impact of nonresponse on MCBS estimates, including initial round unit nonresponse, panel attrition, and item nonresponse. Our findings indicate that for most of the measures studied, the bias caused by differences between nonrespondents and respondents in the MCBS was substantially reduced or eliminated by the nonresponse procedures currently employed.

Trends in reporting of same-gender sex are assessed using data from the 1998–2002 General Social Surveys (Ns = 9,487 males and 12,336 females). Analyses indicate that the reported prevalence of female-female sexual contact increased substantially and monotonically across twentieth-century birth cohorts, rising from 1.6 percent (Standard error [SE] = 0.60) for the cohort of U.S. women born prior to 1920 to 6.9 percent (SE = 0.81) for women born in 1970 and afterward. Increases in the reported prevalence of female-female contacts also occurred within the 1990s. These trends persist when statistical controls are introduced for changes in attitudes toward same-gender sexual behavior. No parallel trend is observed in the reporting of male-male sexual contacts during adulthood, although the proportion of U.S. men reporting such contacts in the past year and in the past five years increased during the 1990s.

This book contains papers and discussions of these papers from a symposium held by the Board on International Comparative Studies in Education. \"The purpose was to draw on the wealth of experience gathered over a four-decade period, to evaluate improvement in the methodology, and to identify the most pressing methodological issues that remain to be solved.\" The following questions were addressed in the symposium and are answered : 1) \"What is the methodological quality of the most recent international surveys of student achievement? How authoritative are their results? 2) Has the methodological quality of international achievement studies improved over the past 40 years? 3) What are promising opportunities for further improvement?\" The articles are grouped into three parts: After an introduction on \"progress and challenges for large-scale studies\" there are 3 articles concerning study design, 3 about cultural and other contextual influences and 3 about making inference. (DIPF/Bi.).