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© 1990 Oxford University Press

research-article

The Impact of Differential Recall on the Results of Case-Control Studies

CAROLYN D DREWS* and SANDER GREELAND{dagger}

* Department of Ophthalmology and Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Emory University 1327 Clifton Rd, NE Atlanta, GA 30322, US
{dagger}Department of Epidemiology, UCLA School of Public Health. Los Angeles CA 90024–1772, USA

Many authors have expressed concern that case-control differences in the accuracy of information reported in interviews may create spurious associations in epidemiological investigations. Nevertheless, the impact of differential mis-classification on observed associations has not been systematically examined. This paper presents algebraic and graphical analyses of the effect of case-control differences in reporting accuracy on estimates of association and on test size. These analyses suggest that under certain circumstances, even large differences in accuracy may have a minor impact on the results of a study. Study results may be particularly resistant to differences in the sensitivity of recall when the prevalence of exposure is low. The results also illustrate how researchers may evaluate the potential impact of differential misclassification on the validity of their own investigations.

Received 1 May 1990


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