Does Audio-Casi Improve Reports of Risk Behavior? Evidence from a Randomized Field Trial among Male Youth in Urban India

Rukmini Potdar, Population Services International (PSI)

This study compares the effectiveness of audio computer-assisted self interviewing (Audio-CASI) with face-to-face interviews and self-administered questionnaires in collecting sensitive information on sexual and other risk behaviors among male youth in urban India. A randomized study design compared collected data from 900 male college students and 600 male youth residing in slums. For college youth, the reported prevalence of risk behaviors was higher for young men interviewed through the Audio-CASI approach than with face-to-face interviews; self-administered questionnaires failed to yield significantly higher estimates than face-to-face interviews. For slum youth, the results were more mixed, with the Audio-CASI approach failing to yield consistently higher responses for many risk behaviors compared to the face-to-face interview mode. Our results demonstrate that while Audio-CASI appears to yield higher estimates of youth risk behavior among college-educated, computer-literate populations of young men, the efficacy of this approach among less educated and less computer-literate populations appears doubtful.