SURVEY OF ATP APPLICANTS 2000
12. Survey of ATP Applicants 2000:
Methodology and Respondent Characteristics

This information sheet summarizes the methodology for the Survey of ATP Applicants 2000. Information is presented on survey development, data collection procedures, survey response rates, and characteristics of respondents.

Survey Development

The survey used a mixed-mode methodology that included a mail survey questionnaire followed up by telephone interviews with those companies that did not respond by mail. ATP and Westat staff collaborated in developing the survey. All companies applying for funding in the year 2000 award competition were included in the survey. A limited number of applicants were considered ineligible (e.g., companies that submitted incomplete proposals, companies that withdrew from awarded projects). Altogether, 470 applicants were eligible to respond to the survey, including 77 companies that were selected for an ATP award and 393 companies that were not selected for funding. The number of company applicants exceeds the number of project proposals submitted to ATP (417) because some ATP projects are joint ventures.

Data Collection

Data collection was carried out from November 2001 through February 2002. Following standard survey procedures, multiple contact attempts were made in order to maximize survey response rates. Advance letters describing the purpose of the survey were mailed to company contact persons who were responsible for the ATP project proposal in the year 2000. Survey questionnaires were mailed one week after the advance letter, with a second mailing of the questionnaire to nonresponding applicants three weeks after the initial questionnaire mailing. After another three weeks, Westat began contacting nonresponding applicants by telephone to collect the survey data. This telephone interview effort was aimed mainly at the nonawardee applicants.

Survey Response Rates

Of 470 applicants eligible to respond, a total of 346 responses were received, for an overall response rate of 74 percent. Among the 77 ATP awardees invited to respond, 74 responses were received (three by phone interview), yielding a response rate of 96 percent. Of the 393 nonawardees, 272 responses were received (of which 110 were by phone interview), yielding a response rate of 69 percent. Figure 1 shows the number of eligible sample applicants and the number of survey respondents.

FIGURE 1. Number of ATP Applicants: Eligible Sample and Survey Respondents

[Descriptive link for Figure 1]

Response Rate Comparisons

If companies that responded to the survey differed in some way from those that
did not respond, these differences might create misleading survey results. To
evaluate the possibility of nonresponse bias, response rates were compared for
applicants in terms of the following characteristics:

• Single Company versus Joint Venture
  
• Company Size (small, medium, large)†
  
• Technology Area (materials/chemistry, biotechnology, electronics, information
  technology)
  

These comparisons showed only small differences in response rates, suggesting
little or no nonresponse bias in survey results related to the above characteristics.

Characteristics of Survey Respondents:
Single Company versus Joint Venture

Figure 2 shows the distribution of survey respondents, for awardees and nonawardees, by single company versus joint venture applicant.

FIGURE 2. Distribution of Survey Respondents: Single Company versus Joint Venture Applicants

[Descriptive link for Figure 2]

Characteristics of Survey Respondents:
Company Size

Figure 3 shows the distribution of survey respondents, for awardees and nonawardees,
by company size of applicant.

FIGURE 3. Distribution of Survey Respondents: Applicants by Company Size

[Descriptive link for Figure 3]

Characteristics of Survey Respondents:
Technology Area

Figure 4 shows the distribution of survey respondents, for awardees and nonawardees,
by technology area of applicant.

FIGURE 4. Distribution of Survey Respondents: Applicants by Technology Area

[Descriptive link for Figure 4]

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† For ATP, small companies have fewer than 500 employees; large companies are Fortune 500 companies; medium-sized companies are all others.

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Date created: June 24, 2003
Last updated: August 2, 2005

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