Chapter 3 - Secondary Data and Qualitative Research

Which of the following is not a characteristic of a focus group discussion guide?

It is a questionnaire which respondents fill out during the focus group.

Describe a research situation where it would be helpful to use both primary and secondary data.

It is recommended that researchers should examine secondary data before deciding to use primary data. The combination of secondary and primary data is always the superior approach. Rather than engaging in primary data collection alone without consulting secondary data.

Because each technique has its advantages and limitations, researchers often combine two or three techniques in one study to capitalize on the benefits of each technique.

True

Compared to individual questioning, focus groups is an exchange of ideas and arguments that provides for a richer source of data to the researcher.

True

Focus groups are a useful methodology for extracting valuable information from consumers.

True

For any given marketing research study, it would be helpful to start exploring secondary data before moving to primary data collection.

True

Video and audio recording equipment are used to record the focus group discussion.

True

When engaging in any research study, it is always advisable to explore secondary data prior to pursuing the collection of primary data.

True

McCann-Erickson advertising agency wanted to understand why a specific segment of the market, low income women from southern US states, preferred to use a spray insecticide rather than a disk insecticide. They used three types of qualitative research:

in-depth personal interviews, story-telling, and consumer drawings

Qualitative methods use

in-depth studies of small groups of people to guide and support the construction of hypotheses

Secondary data refers to

information that has been collected in the past either by the researcher or others and that might help to solve the problem under investigation.

One way to deal with this relative subjectivity in qualitative research is through the use of

intercoder reliability.

A common classification of secondary data sources is:

internal and external data.

Any information that originates within the firm or the organization is considered

internal secondary data

For the purposes of understanding consumer attitudes towards banking services, First National Bank examines reports published by the bank during the previous year. Which type of data is First National Bank utilizing?

internal secondary data

The moderator of a focus group needs listening skills to

interpret verbal and non-verbal communication, and identify what is important to the research

Quantitative research questions use

limited probing

Group dynamics is based on the notion that

more ideas will be generated when people are in a group setting as compared to an individual setting.

Intercoder reliability is a system that uses

multiple independent individuals (coders) to interpret the data using the same coding scheme

Compensation encourages people to

participate in the study.

Researchers must be aware of and try to avoid "professional respondents" who are

people who make it a job to participate in focus groups for the compensation

Secondary data might be reliable but might not be sufficient and may need to be complemented with

primary data

What do researchers have to look out for when conducting online focus groups?

privacy laws, foreign environment, cultures,

If the goal of a research project is to discover the attitudes, feelings, and motivations of a heavy user of a product, then which of the following would be the preferred type of research?

qualitative research

The first step in conducting a focus group is to

recruit participants within the population of interest and invite them to the research facility.

Researchers need to keep in mind that secondary data might not always be

reliable

Focus group participants can be recruited from

researcher databases and from locations where they tend to naturally gather

Qualitative Research Methods are designed to

reveal a target audience's range of behavior and the perceptions that drive it with reference to specific topics or issues.

As an expert in marketing research, you have been invited to conduct a focus group for the Stuart Company to gather information about medical clinics. One of the participants comments that doctors always share their patients' private information with insurance companies. As a moderator, which of the following responses do you think is most appropriate?

"What makes you think that they do?"

What are some of the advantages and limitations of conducting focus groups online?

Advantages: time saving, cost-saving, researchers are not limited to geographic location, Disadvantages: countries have different cultures and privacy laws that the researcher should take into consideration. The ability to gather information about potential participants from a database, emails or company lists, may be limited.

What type of research situation would mean that it is absolutely necessary to conduct qualitative research?

Any research that aims to explore the feelings, motivations and emotions of participants towards a particular topic or product. Studies that have a need for deep customer insight.

Secondary data and primary data can be used interchangeably.

False

Which of the following is a major limitation of qualitative research?

Findings are generally based on the experience and background of the researcher, which introduces a level of subjectivity in the study.

What are some of the important characteristics of a focus group moderator?

Focus group moderators should have the following skills: time management, relationship, group management, listening skills and objectivity and neutrality. The moderator should avoid biasing the group participants.

Quantitative research is

Objective as different researchers will find the same statistical results

Qualitative research analysis is

Subject to researcher interpretation. The method of intercoder reliability can be used to minimize subjectivity.

The moderator of a focus group needs time management skills to

get the maximum information useful to the research

Focus group discussion guide is prepared with the client and includes

a checklist of the points to be addressed during the discussion

Which of the following is a characteristic of qualitative research?

ability to probe participants

The moderator of a focus group needs group management skills to

allocate speaking time equally among participants.

Which of the following is generally not part of qualitative research?

analytical models

In-depth personal interviews allow for the

collection of much more detailed information from a single individual.

The outcomes of the focus group rely on

group dynamics

Since secondary data consists of existing information, it can be a __________way of collecting information compared to primary data

cost-effective

What are the benefits of using technology for online focus groups?

cost-saving, time saving, researchers are no longer limited by geographical location,

Consumer drawings are a type of qualitative research methodology that asks participants to

draw what they are feeling about an object or a situation

The moderator of a focus group needs relationship skills to

establish good rapport with participants and make sure that they feel comfortable sharing their opinions in a non-threatening environment.

Qualitative research questions use

extensive probing

All types of information that originates outside the organization such as external databases is considered

external secondary data

Sometimes researchers can and should think "outside the box" to be able to

generate information that is useful for managerial decision-making.

What are the limitations of qualitative research?

samples used in most studies are not representative of the population, samples tend to be relatively small, the technique relies heavily on open-ended discussion and personal interaction, subjectivity - findings are generally based on the experience and background of the researcher or the team leading the research

Social media data is also increasingly being used as an accessible source of

secondary data

Primary data is data collected for the purpose of

solving the problem under investigation.

Quantitative research relies on

statistical and mathematical analyses of data collected using measurement scales.

The moderator of a focus group needs to be objective and neutral in order to

subconsciously prevent the participants from sharing additional information

Primary data is data collected through

surveys, observation, experiments, focus groups, or any other means.

Story-telling is a type of qualitative research methodology that asks participants to

tell stories about their experiences

A sampling frame is

the list of population units from which the sample is selected.

Group think is common in focus group research and refers to

the phenomenon where a group makes subpar decisions in the interests of maintaining group cohesion and conformity

The main advantage of the in-depth personal interview compared to the focus group is

the richness of information collected via interview and participants feel more comfortable sharing their opinions and feelings

The main disadvantage of the in-depth personal interview is

the time the researcher must spend to conduct the interviews.

The advantages of using secondary data include:

time and cost saving, helps with the development of primary data collection, provides information on potential problems or difficulties associated with primary data collection, and can be used as the sampling frame.

The moderator of a focus group should have the following skills:

time management, relationship, listening, group management, objectivity and neutrality

Qualitative research sample size is

usually small

Quantitative research sample size is

varies and generally larger than qualitative research