The role of interviewer-respondent gender dyads in cellphone interview retention and length

This article investigates the role of interviewer-respondent gender dyad in cellphone interview retention and length. Relying on a simple random sample of cellphone public opinion survey data of 1571 respondents collected in Albania in winter 2018–2019, we test a set of hypotheses arguing that, in cellphone public opinion surveys, female interviewers would yield better results both in terms of advancing the interview toward the last question (interview retention), and having it conducted in shorter time (interview time length). By complementing social distance theory and social desirability theory with genders differences in personality traits, we hope to contribute with models potentially stable and generalizable across different cultural and political settings. We found that, indeed, in cellphone surveys the female-female dyad would predict better interview results and the male-male dyad would predict the worst interview results, with the two other gender dyads in between.