COLLECTING FOOD-RELATED DATA FROM LOW SOCIOECONOMIC GROUPS - HOW ADEQUATE ARE OUR CURRENT RESEARCH DESIGN

Australian researchers examining the relationship between socioeconomi c status and food-related behaviour have often selected their samples from the electoral roll and then collected their data using a mail-sur vey method. These studies have generally found statistically significa nt associations between socioeconomic status and behaviour although th ese relationships are usually only weak-to-moderate in strength. Given the consistent and strong pattern of association between socioeconomi c status and mortality, and diet acid mortality, there is a possibilit y that these studies may have used a research design that underestimat es the magnitude of the association, To assess this possibility, resul ts obtained using an electoral-roll sample and mail-survey method were compared with findings obtained by administering the same questionnai re directly to a sample of indigent clients contacted through a welfar e agency. The comparison suggests that studies that draw their samples from electoral rails and then collect data using a mail-survey questi onnaire may greatly understate the level of socioeconomic inequality i n food-related behaviour in the wider community.