Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the mark
Purpose: The goal of the present methodological note is to show that surveys which are not targeted at primary grocery shoppers risk substantially underestimating the uptake of e-grocery services. Research based on such data is also liable to mismeasure the impact of explanatory variables. Design/me...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | Catalan |
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OmniaScience
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Intangible Capital |
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| Online Access: | https://www.intangiblecapital.org/index.php/ic/article/view/3154 |
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| author | Leo Van Hove |
| author_facet | Leo Van Hove |
| author_sort | Leo Van Hove |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Purpose: The goal of the present methodological note is to show that surveys which are not targeted at primary grocery shoppers risk substantially underestimating the uptake of e-grocery services. Research based on such data is also liable to mismeasure the impact of explanatory variables.
Design/methodology/approach: I repurpose the data of a recent survey among Catalonian consumers. Importantly, the survey did not require respondents to be the primary grocery shopper of their household. I first calculate the penetration rate of e-grocery services for the sample as is (something, to be clear, the original article does not do). Based on a novel proxy, I then filter out the non-primary shoppers and recalculate the penetration rate. I also compute, and recompute, correlations between key constructs.
Findings: After the proposed correction, the penetration rate of e-grocery services is 7.3‑10.3 percentage points higher. As for the factors influencing adoption, I find that correlation coefficients can be up to six times higher.
Research limitations/implications: Albeit an improvement over extant research, the primary grocery shopper proxy remains a proxy. Also, the approach still requires some of the same assumptions found in earlier articles, namely that all households have a primary shopper, and that many non‑primary shoppers will respond to the survey as individuals – rather than as a member of their household.
Practical implications: The takeaway for researchers is that one should explicitly take into account the household nature of grocery shopping. Concretely, consumer surveys should either target individuals responsible for a substantial part of the household’s grocery purchases or explicitly ask respondents to answer on behalf of their household.
Originality/value: Compared to extant research, the method used in this note requires less bold assumptions and produces more precise estimates of the bias involved. It may also provide a way to recalculate, and thus salvage, estimates proffered by earlier studies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-38cc8dfb8508457eb56356dbbefe14e8 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1697-9818 |
| language | Catalan |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | OmniaScience |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Intangible Capital |
| spelling | doaj-art-38cc8dfb8508457eb56356dbbefe14e82025-08-20T02:56:39ZcatOmniaScienceIntangible Capital1697-98182025-05-0121219320010.3926/ic.3154584Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the markLeo Van Hove0Vrije Universiteit BrusselPurpose: The goal of the present methodological note is to show that surveys which are not targeted at primary grocery shoppers risk substantially underestimating the uptake of e-grocery services. Research based on such data is also liable to mismeasure the impact of explanatory variables. Design/methodology/approach: I repurpose the data of a recent survey among Catalonian consumers. Importantly, the survey did not require respondents to be the primary grocery shopper of their household. I first calculate the penetration rate of e-grocery services for the sample as is (something, to be clear, the original article does not do). Based on a novel proxy, I then filter out the non-primary shoppers and recalculate the penetration rate. I also compute, and recompute, correlations between key constructs. Findings: After the proposed correction, the penetration rate of e-grocery services is 7.3‑10.3 percentage points higher. As for the factors influencing adoption, I find that correlation coefficients can be up to six times higher. Research limitations/implications: Albeit an improvement over extant research, the primary grocery shopper proxy remains a proxy. Also, the approach still requires some of the same assumptions found in earlier articles, namely that all households have a primary shopper, and that many non‑primary shoppers will respond to the survey as individuals – rather than as a member of their household. Practical implications: The takeaway for researchers is that one should explicitly take into account the household nature of grocery shopping. Concretely, consumer surveys should either target individuals responsible for a substantial part of the household’s grocery purchases or explicitly ask respondents to answer on behalf of their household. Originality/value: Compared to extant research, the method used in this note requires less bold assumptions and produces more precise estimates of the bias involved. It may also provide a way to recalculate, and thus salvage, estimates proffered by earlier studies.https://www.intangiblecapital.org/index.php/ic/article/view/3154online grocery shopping, catalonia, household division of labour, survey research, sampling strategy |
| spellingShingle | Leo Van Hove Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the mark Intangible Capital online grocery shopping, catalonia, household division of labour, survey research, sampling strategy |
| title | Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the mark |
| title_full | Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the mark |
| title_fullStr | Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the mark |
| title_full_unstemmed | Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the mark |
| title_short | Online grocery shopping in Catalonia: How non-targeted surveys can miss the mark |
| title_sort | online grocery shopping in catalonia how non targeted surveys can miss the mark |
| topic | online grocery shopping, catalonia, household division of labour, survey research, sampling strategy |
| url | https://www.intangiblecapital.org/index.php/ic/article/view/3154 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT leovanhove onlinegroceryshoppingincataloniahownontargetedsurveyscanmissthemark |