Write revision cards for the following topics: n Advantages & disadvantages of questionnaires n Advantages & disadvantages of using structured interview to administer questionnaire n Definition + advantages & disadvantages of structured interviews n Definition + advantages & disadvantages of semi- structured interviews n Definition + advantages & disadvantages of unstructured interviews

Questionnaires & Structured Interviews

Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires n Self Completion n Where the respondent answers at leisure and posts back or has it collected

Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires Advantages n Inexpensive – no interviewer to pay n Large samples can be covered n Fast and efficient analysis can be made n Answers can be quantified n Postal q’res allow a greater geographical area to be studied n No interviewer bias n Fill in at leisure

Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires Disadvantages n Low response n Often well below 50% for postal q’res n Therefore not representative n Respondents might not understand the q’s and there is no one to ask n Answers may be incomplete, illegible or incomprehensible n Closed q’s can limit what respondents want to say

Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires n Structured Interviews n Here the interviewer goes through the questions and records responses

Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires Advantages n Response rate is good n Interviewers can help to explain things n This can result in more information n Respondents who can’t read or write can be included

Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires Disadvantages n More expensive – training and paying interviewers n Cost increases if the sample is spread over a large area n Interviewer bias can affect responses

Interviews

Structured interviews n Simply questionnaires read out by an interviewer n The same q’s are read to everyone in the same order

Semi-structured interviews n The questions are in order but the interviewer has the right to ask the respondent to elaborate on answers

Unstructured interviews n These are more like a conversation n Rather than set questions there are a list of topics to cover n Q’s are open and the respondent has space to answer as fully as they want

Group interviews n The interviewer usually meets 8-10 people at one go n Focus groups are a type of group interview where the group discusses various pre-set issues

Structured interviews - advantages n Many are the same as questionnaires n Good for n :facts n :Comparable data n :quantitative data n less interviewer bias than ones below

Structured interviews - disadvantages n Limit answers n Can’t elaborate

Semi-Structured interviews - advantages n Shares ads of structured interviews n Plus interviewer can probe for more info n Adds depth to interview

Semi-Structured interviews -disadvantages n Loss of standardisation & comparability n Probes make each interview slightly different n More chance of interviewer bias than above

Group interviews - advantages n Focus groups are becoming more popular n Can produce rich qualitative data

Group interviews - disadvantages n Individuals can be influenced by the group n Individuals may feel that they haven’t had a chance to give their own view

Unstructured Interviews - advantages n Sensitive issues can be researched n Interviewee is put at ease n Interviewee can open up more n Not restricted to pre set answers n Answers can be developed further n Interviewer can ask further questions

Unstructured Interviews - advantages n Gives rich indepth data n Seen as more valid n Good for opinions, values and attitudes n Skilled interviewers can help explain and draw out more info than other types of interview

Unstructured Interviews - disadvantages n Interviewer bias is more of a problem n Age, gender, ethnicity etc of interviewer may affect reponses n Social desirability – interviewees want to present themselves in a certain way n Truth – some tell lies intentionally

Unstructured Interviews - disadvantages n Some genuinely forget details n Validity can be questioned n Comparability is difficult with the qualitative data produced n Difficult to code and quantify data n Difficult to see correlations