Abstract
As has proven to be a reoccurring phenomenon within survey research, more than a third (Reuband 1987) of all interviews are conducted in the presence of others. Third party presences during interviews may have an effect on the interviewee’s response behavior and could potentially influence survey results, thus representing a form of response error in survey data. Therefore, this paper aims to examine the relationship between third party presence and survey responses. More specifically, it will contribute to the discussion surrounding third party influences on interview data by exploring the effects of spouse presence during interviews on response behavior regarding questions on life satisfaction. The context of this study will be narrowed down to Germany by using the German General Social Survey (ALLBUS) as a data base and looking specifically at its sample of married individuals. Here, the comparison of response behavior will be drawn between life satisfaction scores of married interview respondents with spouses present and those without their spouses present during the interview. Taking the limits of the data set into account, such as the lack of keeping track of the length of spouse presence occurrence, the effect of spouse presence on life satisfaction responses will be examined.