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Maximise EDI Survey Participation with Psychology

Maximising Diversity and Inclusion Survey Participation.

Applying Psychology to Drive Response Rates

17^th September 2024 by Mark Holt

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) surveys are a critical tool for organisations committed to creating inclusive workplaces where everyone feels valued and respected. However, a challenge with EDI Surveys can be maximising participation rates, to ensure that the results are truly representative of the entire organisation.

At Divrsity, we typically expect participation rates north of 70% because we understand that, even with constantly evolving EDI questions, running a successful DEI survey involves more than just sending out a link and hoping for the best. By applying some simple psychology principles, our customers can significantly increase response rates and gain deeper insights into their workforce.

In this article, we will explore proven techniques to encourage participation in your DEI survey and maximise its impact.

The Psychology of EDI Survey Participation

There are many psychological factors that influence an individual's decision to participate in a survey. By understanding these principles, organisations can create a strategy that appeals to employees' intrinsic motivations and encourages them to take part.

1. A Sense of Urgency

Creating a sense of urgency is a well-known tactic used by marketers to encourage purchases, and it can also be applied to surveys. When individuals feel that they have limited time to respond, they are more likely to take action promptly (Schelling, 1984). However, with DEI surveys, it's important to balance urgency with ensuring all employees have an opportunity to participate, particularly if your organisation has a large proportion of shift workers or diverse working patterns.

The ideal survey duration should be short enough to create a sense of urgency but allow for flexibility to accommodate different work schedules and time zones. At Divrsity, we generally recommend a survey window of 2-3 weeks as the optimal timeframe. This provides a focused period with a clear start and end date while allowing for any holidays or unexpected absences.

2. Loss Aversion

Loss aversion is a principle in behavioural economics which suggests that people strongly prefer avoiding losses over acquiring equivalent gains (Kahneman & Tversky, 1979). In the context of surveys, this can be applied by emphasising what employees might lose or miss out on if they don't participate. For example, you could communicate that their voice won't be heard, or they'll miss the opportunity to influence positive change in the organisation.

When considering the launch day for your DEI survey, Mondays tend to be more effective as it taps into people's fresh start mentality at the beginning of the work week and provides an immediate call-to-action after a weekend of potential downtime. It also means that you can leverage the full power of social influence (more on this later) throughout the working week.

3. Day of the Week Survey Closes

Just as the day of the week the survey launches is important, so too is the day it closes. Our data shows that closing the survey mid-week tends to yield higher response rates. Specifically, Wednesday or Thursday afternoons can be optimal as they provide a natural deadline before the end of the work week and create a sense of urgency without cutting into employees' leisure time over the weekend.

4. Time of Day Survey Launches

The best time of day to launch your DEI survey is generally mid-morning, ideally between 9:30am and 11:00am. This allows employees time to settle in for the day and check their emails before focussing on other tasks (Bickart & Schindler, 2001). Sending it at this time also means you can utilise social influence by creating a natural break in the workday where colleagues can discuss the survey over lunch or during morning breaks, encouraging those who haven't yet participated to do so.

5. Social Influence and Peer Pressure

Social influence is a powerful motivator for survey participation. People are more likely to respond when they believe their peers are also taking part (Cialdini, 2009). To leverage this principle, encourage managers and team leaders to promote the survey within their teams and emphasise its importance. At Divrsity, we've found that organisations with higher response rates tend to have strong internal advocacy from influencers who act as champions for DEI initiatives.

To help organisations apply this principle, the Divrsity platform enables administrators to query the interim response data. This means that we can, for example, see which departments or offices are doing a better job of encouraging participation. See our Product Tour for some screenshots of how this looks.

6. The Commitment Principle

The commitment principle states that people are more likely to follow through on a behaviour if they have already verbally or physically committed to it (Cialdini & Goldstein, 2004). When applied to surveys, this means that individuals who have previously expressed interest in the topic or committed to participating are more likely to complete the survey.

To utilise this principle effectively, consider sending a save-the-date communication prior to launching your DEI survey. This could be an email or even a poster in break rooms that reminds employees of the upcoming opportunity to have their say and encourages them to set aside time in their calendars to participate.

7. Reciprocity

Reciprocity is a social norm where people feel obligated to repay others for their actions or gifts (Gouldner, 1960). In surveys, this can be applied by reminding participants of the value they gain from the organisation's commitment to DEI and how their input will help drive positive change. You could also offer small incentives as a token of appreciation (e.g., a chance to win a gift card or a charity donation if participation hits XX%), but ensure these are inclusive and not coercive or overly influential on responses.

8. Authority

The principle of authority suggests that people tend to follow the directions or advice of those they perceive as experts or figures of authority. Within an organisational context, this can be utilised by having senior leaders endorse and promote the DEI survey. When employees see their leaders actively participating and encouraging responses, it reinforces the importance and legitimacy of the survey.

9. Consistency and Cognitive Dissonance

People generally strive for consistency in their attitudes and behaviours to maintain a sense of integrity. This principle can be leveraged by framing participation in the DEI survey as aligned with employees' existing values or previous actions related to diversity and inclusion. For example, you could remind them that by taking part, they are contributing to an inclusive culture where everyone's perspectives matter.

10. Curiosity Gap

The curiosity gap principle suggests that people are more likely to engage when their curiosity is piqued and they want to close the information gap. DEI surveys can tap into this by using intriguing (but honest) subject lines or preview text for emails, such as "We Want Your Perspective: Help Us Shape Our Future". This approach invites employees to learn more without resorting to clickbait tactics that may undermine trust.

11. Anonymity and Confidentiality

We'd be remiss not to mention the importance of emphasise the confidentiality and anonymity of responses. Assuring employees that their feedback is anonymous and will not impact their job security or performance reviews can increase participation rates and the honesty of the responses. At Divrsity, we are Obsessed with anonymity and all surveys start with a page explaining how the Divrsity platform protects their data.

Dark Patterns to Avoid

While applying psychological principles can significantly boost participation rates, it's important to draw a line at using manipulative or coercive techniques known as "dark patterns" in user experience design. These are unethical strategies that exploit cognitive biases and can damage employee trust if applied in the context of DEI surveys.

One such dark pattern is forced continuation, where employees feel pressured to continue with the survey once they've started even if they no longer want to participate or feel uncomfortable with certain questions. At Divrsity, we ensure our platform avoids this by providing a clear and guilt-free "prefer not to say" option on every page of the survey.

Other dark patterns to avoid include deception about the nature or length of the survey (we know that many organisations like to launch a survey for 2 weeks, knowing that they will extend it to three close to the end-date - employees soon get wise to this kind of behaviour), Misleading Questions that are either leading or biased; and the excessive use of reminders that cause the survey to be perceived as intrusive and may lead to survey fatigue. The Divrsity platform automatically sends an initial invitation e-mail, a reminder, after about 10 days, and a final reminder 24 hours before the survey terminates. These tie in to our recommended targeted programme of comms from senior managment.

Optimising Your Survey Strategy: A Summary of Recommendations

To maximise participation in your DEI survey while applying ethical psychological principles, consider the following key recommendations for timing and communication:

Launch your survey on a Monday morning between 9:30am and 11:00am to capture employees' fresh focus at the start of the work week.
Aim for a survey window of approximately 17 days to balance a sense of urgency with flexibility for different schedules and holidays.
Close the survey on a Wednesday or Thursday afternoon, creating a natural deadline before the weekend that encourages prompt responses without infringing on employees' leisure time.

In addition to timing, leverage social influence by enlisting managers and team leaders as advocates, emphasising the commitment principle through save-the-date communications, and reminding employees of the value their participation brings via reciprocity. Ensure your organisation's senior leaders are actively promoting and participating in the survey to harness the authority principle effectively.

By applying these psychological insights ethically and respectfully, organisations can significantly increase response rates for DEI surveys while avoiding manipulative dark patterns that may undermine employee trust. Divrsity is dedicated to helping companies create inclusive cultures through data-driven insights and ethical practices every step of the way.

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