Identifying Occasion-Level Predictors of Momentary Compliance in Ambulatory Assessment: A Retrospective Reporting Approach

Ambulatory assessment (AA) studies require participants to complete brief questionnaires multiple times per day, yet nonresponse to prompts remains common. Understanding the conditions under which nonresponse occurs is critical for improving data quality. Rather than inferring reasons for nonresponse based on the last completed prompt, the present study employed retrospective assessments of missed prompts to identify occasion-level predictors of momentary compliance. We conducted a 2-week AA study with four prompts per day, yielding 8,474 measurement occasions from 205 participants. Multilevel logistic regression models were used to predict momentary compliance using psychological, contextual, temporal, and prior compliance variables. Compliance was most likely when participants experienced “typical” levels of stress, time pressure, and mood. Participants were more compliant when at home (vs. elsewhere) and when alone (vs. with others). Compliance was also higher on work days (vs. nonwork days). These findings offer practical implications for AA study design and prompt scheduling.