Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing
(CATI)
Interviewer Training Manual
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CATI (Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing)
CATI is a special program we use to collect data over the phone. It is a unique software program
that has special capabilities including:
 CATI keeps track of every telephone number dialed and how many times it has been
dialed.
 Interviewers can communicate with each other by typing in a message to be associated
with a particular number. This is helpful for callbacks, for example if the respondent
would prefer to take the survey in Spanish then the first interviewer can note this in the
allocated space.
 CATI only shows the question that interviewers should be reading at that time to the
respondent.
 CATI helps us identify with codes what took place for each dial that occurred (e.g. no
answer, soft refusal, busy, hard refusal)
 CATI allows us to schedule callbacks as requested by the respondent or required by the
project protocol.
Importance of Interviewers
Researchers rely on interviewers to collect accurate information. You all play a vital role in
helping us collect data so that we can report statistics back to our client. Our goal is report
accurate statistics in an effort to help the client better understand the answers to their research
questions.
It is very important that all answers are recorded accurately. The first reason is because
answers that are not recorded cannot be analyzed, as they will not be in the data when we
download it from the CATI lab. Secondly, it is important to record accurate information so that
we can be sure our results and final statistics will not be skewed.
Included in our survey is a demographics section. Demographics usually include asking
information about the respondents’ gender, age, race/ethnicity, marital status, etc. This
information is important and useful to us because it helps us to more easily identify patterns of
behavior within and between groups of people.
It is important to ask the survey questions exactly as they are worded. First of all we want to
ensure that all respondents are asked the same questions the same way and this enables us to
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compare responses. Secondly, when an interviewer modifies a question, even with good
intentions, sometimes it changes the meaning of the question and the data becomes skewed.
We take care to follow specific protocol as require by the Institutional Review Board and
requested by the client.
If a number is dialed and the respondent refuses to answer questions, we should always ask if
there is a better time that we can call. For example, if we call at 4pm for Juanita Smith and at
4pm is when she is just getting home with her children and started to cook dinner, she may not
have time to answer our questions. However, maybe at 7pm when things have settled down in
her home she may have more time to answer our questions and be more willing.
Confidential Information
It is of the utmost importance that we ensure respondents of our survey that ALL
INFORMATION we collect is completely confidential! Furthermore, what happens in the CATI
lab, stays in the CATI lab. Part of ensuring that respondents’ information is kept confidential is
not discussing what you talk about over the phone outside of this room.
We can ensure the respondents of our survey that their information will be kept confidential
because none of their identifying information (e.g. name, phone number) will be stored with
the data they give us (e.g. whether or not they have care insurance, etc.). Furthermore, the
information that respondents give us will be combined with hundreds of other respondents’
answers and finally, the information collected is stored in a secure place and only the leader of
the project has access to this place.
Quotas and Goals
Most projects contain quotas, in other words, our goal for the final number of completed CATI
interviews. This really is a “numbers game”. The more phone numbers you dial, the greater
your chances are of getting a complete. Don’t get discouraged by the work, every effort that
you make is worthwhile.
While you are evaluated on your work, completes are not the only criteria. Supervisors will be
monitoring interviewer statistics. This includes the number of refusals, number of completed
interviewers, and how many numbers you are dialing every hour. This is not to intimidate you;
however, we want to make sure we are being as efficient as possible and to help you when you
need it.
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Techniques
The tone of your voice and how you speak with potential respondents is very important
because your speaking voice will influence whether respondents want to take part in our study.
To ensure that your voice sounds the best that it can over the phone, you should make sure
that you are VERY familiar with the questions we are asking. Make sure that you are speaking
directly into the phone or mouth piece so that your voice does not sound muffled. Speak at an
adequate pace with a relaxed and friendly tone of voice. Try to smile while you are speaking.
If you have a rude respondent, please be kind and remain pleasant. If, after ensuring the
respondent that their participation in our study is very important and that all of their
information is kept confidential, you are still having problems please do not hesitate to ask the
supervisor to take over the call. Sometimes people just want to speak to the person in charge
or they just want to vent. However, as interviewers you are helping this study tremendously
and as supervisors, we want to make sure that you are treated with the upmost respect.
Technical Steps – Logging in and Using CATI
CATI INTERVIEWER LOG IN
 Be sure to sign in on UEI TimeOnline website as well as on the sign-in sheet.
Step 1:
Open WinCATI Interviewer. Click Run.
Windows may ask you to log in again. (Ask the supervisor to do this)
If necessary open WinCATI Interviewer again. Click run.
Step 2.
Interviewer log in.
As interviewer. Log in
Interviewer ID: XX
Station number: XX
In case of error message “Questionnaire does not exist” comes up then follow steps
below to reconnect to the server network.
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Right click on the My Computer desktop icon. Click MAP NETWORK DRIVE
Drive: P: (\\ISR-SECURECATI\APPS)
Folder: \\ISR-SECURECATI\Apps
Click Finish and to connect Click Yes
Step 3.
Select Study of the day (CDI) and click log on.
You may be prompted to confirm that the mode is in DATA mode and Manual dialing.
Begin study.
In the event that the previous interviewer did not log off you will be prompted to log them
out first. Make a note of their interviewer number, type that in, then select log off.
(Nothing will happen, but it has worked). Type in your own ID number and station
number then log in to the study and proceed.
SURVEY
Ask questions exactly the way they are written, read out every option that is not in
BLACK. Words that are in CAP/BLACK are for interviewers only - do not read to
respondents.
If a respondent says “I don’t know” be sure that they really don’t know. Confirm: “Is your
answer to this question that you ‘don’t know”?
There are several skip patterns in the script please be sure to follow along as prompted
as each survey may a little bit different depending on the respondent’s answers.
Some surveys are available in English and Spanish with rare needs for additional
languages (Schedule Spanish or other language call backs if you need to).
**Note: If you reach a Spanish language voicemail, code the call as Spanish, not as no
answer.
CTRL + S = Spanish
CTRL + E = English
CTRL + N will allow you to make any notes during interview.
You may encounter rude people. It is very important not to take what they say
personally/stay calm/don’t internalize. You are not obligated to tolerate abuse, refer the
person to the supervisor as needed.
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End of Shift
Make sure to log off of CATI and shut down computers (unless you are the day shift on
the weekend, if you are please leave your computer on for the next shift coming in).
Clean up your work area.
Sign out and fill in your timecard, make sure supervisor knows if it is your last work day
of the pay period-MAKE SURE YOU SIGN A FINAL PRINTED TIMECARD.
911 and 9911 CALLS
You must dial 9 to make a call. You must also dial 1 if the phone number is outside the 916 area
code. As a result, it is relatively easy to accidentally dial 911 or 9911(which goes to Sac City Police).
If this happens, remain calm and follow these easy steps:
1) STAY ON THE LINE until the 911 operator answers.
2) Explain that there is no emergency, you are conducting a phone survey at the ISR and you
accidentally dialed 911 while placing a call.
3) Inform your supervisor that you accidentally dialed 911 and that you remained on the line to
tell the operator that it was an accident. Don’t worry, you are not in trouble if you follow these
steps.
If you panic and hang up after you accidentally dialed 911 or if you think you dialed 911, RELAX.
1) INFORM YOUR SUPERVISOR as quickly as you can. The supervisor will need to call
Sacramento State police department or Sac City Police department to notify them of the
accidental call.
The ONLY time anyone will be disciplined for making a 911 dial is if the supervisor is not
immediately informed. It costs a lot of money to send police officers out to a call. The ISR can be
held responsible for reimbursing the police department for responding to an accidental 911 dial. So
please, stay CALM and INFORM you supervisor if you dialed or think you dialed 911. The supervisor
simply needs enough time to call the dispatcher and inform them of the accident BEFORE they send
police officers to our building.
A FEW HOUSE RULES
Please call only numbers the computer prompts you to call.
Please do not discuss respondents’ answers outside of the CATI lab. We MUST maintain privacy
and confidentiality.
There normally is no Internet on these computers. Please do NOT change settings on computers.
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No cell phone use (calling, texting, web surfing, games, etc.) except during your 10 minute break
halfway through the shift or unless you have an emergency. Please step outside the lab to take
these calls.
Please remember no food, and especially no chewing gum while calling. The sound can be offensive
to respondents. You may have a drink with you. Please use a container that has a lid.
If you need to make a change to your work schedule, send an e-mail to
[email protected]. If you are going to be late to your shift or you are locked out, call the
Supervisor station phone (916) 278-2308 (all supervisors will check for messages on this phone and
the isr-04 e-mail).
If you need time off please send an email to [email protected] one week in advance (when
possible) and try to help find someone to cover your shift. Please try to stick to the schedule you
supplied. More than one no show, no call will result in termination. Changing scheduled hours often
or calling in “sick” will result in a loss of hours/preferences.
The Interview Process
•
Log-in
When you are ready to begin your shift you should first log-on to the CATI system with
your Interviewer ID and the station number you are at. Also, make sure to select the
appropriate survey so that you are asking the right questions.
•
Call Record
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The next screen is the Call Record screen and this screen shows information including
the respondents’ telephone number and whether or not we have already tried to call them.
This is also where you will see if another interviewer has left any messages from a previous call
attempt. When and if you are ready to begin the interview, you will click the “Start Manual”
button and then proceed by dialing the number.
• Queue
The Queue allows Interviewers to view calls that are waiting and selective an alternative
number to dial.
Contains:
• Primary Call (“In use”)
• Callbacks (Definite/Indefinite, No Answer, Busy)
• General Sample
•
Conducting Interviews
• Start New Attempt
• Ctrl/End to Terminate Attempt
• Select:
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•
•
•
Display all dispositions codes
Callback
Schedule Callback
• Shows Interviewer:
• Interviewing Day/Dates/Hours
• Current Date/Time
• Interviewer Enters:
• Callback Date/Time
• Definite/Indefinite Callback
• Respondent/Interviewer Time
• Contact Name
• Message
3. Script
After dialing and continuing on to the next screen, the actual script of what you are to
read to the respondent will appear. This is an example of what a script looks like; this script is
from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Interviewer Options
Retrieve
Can Retrieve Based On:







Record Number
Respondent Number
Telephone Number (example: 8660870)
Name (Last, First and Last)
Company
Address
User Defined Fields
Example
Select/Enter:
Use:
Name
To Find:
Johnson
Matching Record: David Johnson
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Transfer
This function is used to transfer call record to another interviewer and this function also
indicates which interviewers are assigned to the study and which are logged on. CATI will allow
an interviewer to review properties before transferring the call record.
Return
This function returns call record to the sample database without updating record or attempts.
Log Off
Continue- Continue with Current Call Attempt
Log on to another study
Switch Studies
Log Off
Log Off Without Updating Current Call Record
Submitting your timesheet
At the end of each pay period, (the 15th and last day of the month) you must submit your timesheet to UEI. It
is important to get your timesheet in before end of business on the last day you work during a given pay
period in order to get paid on time. For those of you who may be submitting a timesheet for the first time,
you may do this from your computer or smart phone by going to the UEI time online site
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https://timeonline.uei.csus.edu/nova4000/ewslogin.aspx
1. ENTER YOUR EMPLOYEE ID AND PASSWORD AND CLICK ON EMPLOYEE
WEB SERVICES….
2. CLICK ON
IN THE TOP RIGHTHAND CORNER AND A WINDOW WILL
OPEN ASKING YOU TO AGREE THAT YOU WORKED THE PROPER NUMBER OF
HOURS BLAH, BLAH…CLICK ON I AGREE AND YOU SHOULD SEE A
NOTIFICATION THAT YOUR TIMESHEET IS SUBMITTED…GREAT JOB!
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