Chapter 7: Survey Research

household drop-off survey

a paper-and pencil survey that is administered by dropping it off at the respondent's household and, either picking it up later, or having the respondent return it directly.

interval level response format

a response measured on an interval level, where the size of the interval between potential response values is meaningful. most 1-to-5 rating responses can be considered interval level.

to determine whether your respondent is qualified to answer your survey questions, you might

ask a filter or contingency question

when a survey question offers two possible responses, it is considered

dichotomous

3 ways to do an email survey

embedded in the email message and the respondent can reply to complete it, transmitted as an email attachment that the respondent can complete and return via email, or reached by providing a link in the email that directs the respondent to a website survey

true or false: the golden rule as applied to survey research means that you should always offer compensation to your respondents

false

a survey is a data collection tool used to

gather information from a population of interest

a survey is a measurement tool used to

gather information from people by asking questions about one or more topics

a focus group is a structured form of

group interview

survey design - determine

how you will analyze the data

questionnaires

instruments that the respondent completes; they are self-administered

3 types of interval level response formats

likert, semantic differential, cumulative or guttman scale

a survey asks respondents to "check all that apply" regarding a list of common household items they have used. those recorded answers would be considered

multioption or multiple-response variables

group-administered questionnaire

survey that is administered to respondents in a group setting.

the survey method depends on

target population, kind of information being sought, and the availability of resources (budget, time)

when we ask respondents to state their opinion in written form in a survey, we are asking for what type of response format?

unstructured

personal interview

a one-on-one interview between an interviewer and respondent.

nominal response format

response format that has a number beside each choice where the number has no meaning except as a placeholder for that response.

if a survey questions asks about two things in the same item, it is considered

a double barreled question

mail survey

a paper-and pencil survey that is sent to respondents through the mail.

telephone interview

a personal interview that is conducted over the telephone

focus group

a qualitative measurement method where input on one or more focus topics is collected from participants in a small-group setting where the discussion is structured and guided by a facilitator.

multi-option

a question format in which the respondent can pick multiple variables from a list

double-barreled questions

a question in a survey that asks about two issues but only allows the respondent a single answer.

single-option

a question response list from which the respondent can check only one response

response brackets

a question response type that includes groups of answers

interviews

a researcher asks the participants questions, then goes on to complete the instrument based on their answers

web survey

a survey that is administered over a website (either Intranet or Internet).

point-of-experience survey

a survey that is delivered at or immediately after the experience that the respondent is being asked about

dual-media survey

a survey that is distributed simultaneously in two ways.

group interview

administered to respondents in a group setting

email survey

any survey that is distributed to respondents via email.

confounding variable

any variable other than the dependent variable that can affect the outcome

a survey is a systematic way of

asking people to volunteer information regarding their opinions and behaviors

what survey response format would you choose if you wanted to know the types of small electronic appliance the respondent had purchased in the last year?

check the answer

***what is the rationale for experimentation?***

create = groups treat each group exactly the same besides the independent variable measure the dependent variable any difference is due to the independent variable

filter or contingency questions

determines whether respondents are qualified or experienced enough to answer a subsequent one

household drop-off surveys assures a ___ and allows ___

direct personal contact with the respondent; the respondent the time and privacy to respond to the survey on their own

two types of electronic surveys

email and web

true or false: the most important items should always be placed last in a survey so that respondents are sufficiently "warmed up" to the topic

false

true or false: the open-ended comments cards found in many businesses and restaurants are good examples of a structured-response format

false

types of structured questions

fill in the blank check the asnwer multi-option single-option

what kind of survey question helps you determine what the next question should be based on the response?

filter or contingency

which of the following is not a type of survey technique? mail survey group administered questionnaire telephone interview focus group

focus group

an interview looks like a questionnaire but also includes

instructions for the interviewer and space to record observations about how the interview progressed

likert-type response scale

items are assigned interval-level scale values and the responses are gathered using an interval-level response format.

cumulative or guttman scale

items are assigned scale values that allow them to be placed in a cumulative ordering with respect to the construct being scaled.

sampling issues

o what data is available? o can respondents be found? o who is the respondent? o can all members of the population be sampled? o are response rates likely to be a problem? o will incentives for participation help?

survey research is ___ in applied social research

one of the most important areas of measurement

how can you increase the likelihood that the respondent will respond truthfully to a question?

pose the question in terms of a hypothetical respondent

survey design - be specific about the

purpose

writing questions - determine

question content, scope, and purpose

a survey can be administered in two ways:

questionnaires and interviews

social desirability

researchers and respondents can both introduce bias and prejudices into the survey process. the bias that makes us want to look good is called

ordinal response format

respondents are asked to rank the possible answers in order of preference.

open ended question

respondents create their own answer

close ended question

respondents mark an existing answer

writing questions - choose a

response format that you use for collecting information from the respondent

semantic differential

scaling method in which an object is assessed by the respondent on a set of bipolar adjective pairs.

one of the most critical decisions in many social research contexts is

selecting the survey method

response format

the format you use to collect the answer from the respondent

sample

the units you select from the population

true or false: a dichotomous response format includes two possible option for response

true

true or false: most methodologists agree that audio- or video-taping your respondents is not advisable, because most people will be at least a little uncomfortable with being taped and may change their response as a result

true

survey design - focus on

what you need to know

writing questions - figure out how to

word the question

bias issues

• can social desirability be avoided? • can interviewer distortion and subversion be controlled? • can false respondents be avoided?

population issues

• can the population units be identified? • is the population literate? • are there language issues? • will the population cooperate? • what are the geographic restrictions?

content issues

• can the respondents be expected to know about the issue? • will the respondent need to consult records?

administrative issues

• costs • facilities • time • personnel

question issues

• what types of questions can you ask? • will filter questions be needed? • can question sequence be controlled? • will lengthy questions be asked? • will long response scales be used?