article · PLoS ONE
Computer assisted telephone interviews conducted via mobile phones offer a rapid, cost-effective method to gather nutrition data at scale across rural Africa. A study of 1,821 households in Kenya evaluated the feasibility and biases of mobile telephone interviews compared to traditional face-to-face surveys. Assessments tracked dietary diversity among women as well as minimum acceptable diets for infants and young children. The telephone approach successfully reached 75 percent of participants. While women's dietary scores remained consistent across both survey methods, reported nutrition scores for children were significantly higher during telephone calls, leading to a 17 percent increase in the estimated prevalence of adequate child diets. Women lacking mobile access were younger and owned fewer assets, introducing a modest non-coverage bias. Overall, mobile surveys yielded nutrition estimates between 0 and 25 percent higher than in-person interviews.
Rapid nutrition monitoring is vital in regions experiencing drought and food insecurity. Demonstrating how mobile phone surveys differ from in-person interviews helps public health agencies, donors, and policymakers correctly interpret remote data. Recognising that telephone surveys can systematically overestimate child nutrition prevents organisations from drawing overly optimistic conclusions about community health, ensuring that aid and resources reach vulnerable populations effectively.
This research provides applied and tested operational benchmarks directly usable by survey software providers, international development agencies, and research firms operating in rural African settings. By quantifying the bias margins of computer assisted telephone interviews, data collection organisations can calibrate remote monitoring tools and analytical algorithms. The approach is immediately applicable for groups seeking to transition costly in-person household surveys to lower-cost mobile phone data systems.
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Despite progress in fighting undernutrition, Africa has the highest rates of undernutrition globally, exacerbated by drought and conflict. Mobile phones are emerging as a tool for rapid, cost effective data collection at scale in Africa, as mobile phone subscriptions and phone ownership increase at the highest rates globally. To assess the feasibility and biases of collecting nutrition data via computer assisted telephone interviews (CATI) to mobile phones, we measured Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women (MDD-W) and Minimum Acceptable Diet for Infants and Young Children (MAD) using a one-week test-retest study on 1,821 households in Kenya. Accuracy and bias were assessed by comparing individual scores and population prevalence of undernutrition collected via CATI with data collected via traditional face-to-face (F2F) surveys. We were able to reach 75% (n = 1366) of study participants via CATI. Women's reported nutrition scores did not change with mode for MDD-W, but children's nutrition scores were significantly higher when measured via CATI for both the dietary diversity (mean increase of 0.45 food groups, 95% confidence interval 0.34-0.56) and meal frequency (mean increase of 0.75 meals per day, 95% confidence interval 0.53-0.96) components of MAD. This resulted in a 17% higher inferred prevalence of adequate diets for infants and young children via CATI. Women without mobile-phone access were younger and had fewer assets than women with access, but only marginally lower dietary diversity, resulting in a small non-coverage bias of 1-7% due to exclusion of participants without mobile phones. Thus, collecting nutrition data from rural women in Africa with mobile phones may result in 0% (no change) to as much as 25% higher nutrition estimates than collecting that information in face-to-face interviews.
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DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0210050
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