Abstract

Collecting high-quality survey data is crucial to understanding labour market processes, job seeking behavior, and the take-up of labour market programmes and benefit schemes. However, there is a concern that repeated exposure to labour market surveys may influence respondents to change their behavior and/or their reporting of behavior. This phenomenon, known as panel conditioning, can produce survey data that is not representative of the broader population and may produce misleading statistical results. Although panel conditioning has been studied in panel surveys with annual or biannual data collection cycles, little is known about its effects in high-frequency (monthly or bimonthly) surveys. We address this research gap using administrative data linked to a high-frequency labour market panel, the OPAL study. An instrumental variable analysis is proposed to estimate the causal effect of panel participation on actual and reported labor market behavior.