1. Collecting primary data using questionnaires
Lecture 12
Professional Development and Research
Lecturer: R. Milyankova

2. Collecting primary data using questionnaires
Objectives of this session:
To understand the advantages and disadvantages of questionnaires as a data collection method
To be aware of range of self-administered and interviewer-administered questionnaires
To be aware of possible need to combine techniques within a research project
To be able to design, pilot and administer a questionnaire to answer research questions and to meet objectives
To be able to apply the knowledge, skills and understanding gained to your own research project

3. Questionnaire – a definition
General definition:
All techniques of data collection in which each person is asked to respond to the same set of questions in a predetermined order
(de Vaus, 2002)
It includes structured interviews and telephone questionnaires as well as questionnaires in which questions are answered without the interviewer to be presented

4. Response rate, validity and reliability can be maximized by:
Careful design of individual questions
Clear layout of the questionnaire form
Clear explanation of the purpose of the questionnaire
Pilot testing
Carefully planned and executed administration

5. When to use questionnaires?
Not good for exploratory research that requires large number of open questions
Good for descriptive research – attitude and opinion questions or qs of organizational practices, describing the variability of different phenomena
Explanatory or analytical research – enables to examine relationship between variables in a particular cause-effect relationships

6. Types of questionnaires
On-line
Postal
Delivery and collection
Self-administered
Telephone
Structured Interview
Interviewer administered
Questionnaires

7. The choice of questionnaire
Influenced by factors related to the:
characteristics of the respondents from whom you wish to collect data
importance of reaching a particular person as a respondent
importance of answers not being contaminated or distorted
size of sample you require for your analysis, taking into account the response rate
types of questions you need to ask to collect your data
number of questions you need to ask
Contamination of results – uninformed response (guess at the answer)
Longer questionnaires are better presented by structured interviews

8. The choice of questionnaire depends on:
Time available to complete the data collection
Financial implications of data collection and entry
Availability of interviewers and field workers to assist
Ease of automating data entry
CAPI – computer aided personal interviewing
CATI – computer aided telephone interviewing

9. What data need to be collected?
If explanatory research:
Relationships between variables?
Which variables are dependent? (Change in response to changes in other variables)
Which variables are independent? (cause changes in independent variables)
Which variables are extraneous? (may also cause changes in dependent variables)

10. Types of variables Attitude (opinion) Belief Behaviour Attribute
how respondents feel about something
Belief
what respondents think or believe is true or false
Behaviour
what respondents do
Attribute
characteristics of respondents

11. Types of variable Attitude
How do you feel about the following statement? ‘Financial advisors should place their clients’ interest before their own’.
(please tick the appropriate box)
strongly agree
mildly agree
neither agree or disagree
mildly disagree
strongly disagree

12. Types of variable Belief
In general, do financial advisors place their clients’ interests before their own?
(please tick the appropriate box)
always yes
usually yes
sometimes yes
seldom yes
never yes

13. Types of variable Behaviour
How often do you place your clients’ interests before your own?
(please tick the appropriate box)
80-100% of my time
60-79% of my time
40-59% of my time
20-39% of my time
0-19% of my time

14. Types of variable Attribute How old are you?
(please tick the appropriate box)
less than 30 years
30 to less than 40 years
40 to less than 50 years
50 to less than 60 years
60 years or over

15. How to ensure that the data collected will enable the research questions to be answered?
Decide whether the main outcome of your research is descriptive or explanatory
Subdivide each research question or objective into more specific investigative questions about which you need to gather data
Repeat the second stage if you feel that the investigative questions are not sufficiently precise
Identify the variables about which you need to collect data to answer each investigative question
Establish how to measure the data for each variable

16. Data requirements table:
How to ensure that the data collected will enable the research questions to be answered?
Data requirements table:
Research question / objective:
Type of research:
Investigative questions
Do employees feel that they should be able to smoke in their office if they want to as a right (opinion)
Variables required
Opinion of employees to smoke in their office as a right
Detail in which data measured
Should be allowed, should not be allowed, no strong feelings
Check included in questionnaire

17. Designing the questionnaire
The validity and reliability depend on:
the design of your questions
the structure of your questionnaire
the rigor of your pilot testing

18. Stages if a question is to be valid and reliable
Researcher is clear about the information required and designs a question
Researcher decodes the answer in the way the respondent intended
Respondent decodes the question in the way the researcher intended
Respondent answers the question
Foddy (1994)

19. Designing individual questions
Adopt questions used in other questionnaires
Adapt questions used in other questionnaires
Develop your own questions
3 Scan a multitude of information and decide what is important.
1 Manage time effectively
2 Manage resources effectively.
4 Decide how to manage multiple tasks.
5 Organize the work when directions are not specific.
Rating Sheet

20. Types Of Questions Open = open-ended Closed = forced-choice
List – list of items to be selected
Category – only one response may be selected
Ranking – to place information in order
Scale or rating – rating device is used
Quantity – response gives the amount
Grid - responses to two or more questions can be recorded using the sane matrix

21. Types Of Questions
A. Unstructured / Open
B. Structured / Closed

22. Open Questions Please list up to three things you like about your job:
1. …………………………………
2. …………………………………
3. …………………………………

23. Structured Questions I. List questions X X
Please tick the box in the provided column for services you provided as a home care assistant for this client in the past month:
Service Provided
cleaning rooms
shopping
bed making
laundry
other (please describe) …………………... X

24. Structured Questions II. Category questions X
How often do you visit this shopping centre?
First visit 2 or more times a week
Once a week Less than once a week to fortnightly
Less than fortnightly Less often
to once a month X

25. Structured Questions III. Ranking and scale questions
Dichotomous scale
____Yes
____No
Male
Female

26. Structured Questions Ordinal scale
Rank the candidates in order of preference from
best to worst...
___ Bob Dole
___ Bill Clinton
___ Newt Gingrich
___ Al Gore
___ George Bush

27. Structured Questions Interval scale Likert Response Scale
strongly disagree neutral agree strongly
disagree agree

28. Structured Questions Interval scale Semantic Differential etc.
very some- neither some- very
much what what much
interesting boring
simple complex
uncaring caring
useful useless
etc.

29. Structured Questions Interval scale Guttman (Cumulative) Scale
___Are you willing to permit immigrants to live in your country?
___Are you willing to permit immigrants to live in your community?
___Are you willing to permit immigrants to live in your neighborhood?
___Would you be willing to have an immigrant live next door to you?
___Would you let your child marry an immigrant?

30. What is your year of birth?
Structured Questions
IV. Quantity questions
What is your year of birth? 1 9
V. Grid questions

31. Filter or Contingency Questions
V. Grid questions
Have you ever smoked marijuana?
yes no

32. Filter or Contingency Questions
Have you ever smoked marijuana?
yes no
If yes, about how many times have you smoked marijuana?
Once
2 to 5 times
6 to 10 times
11 to 20 times
more than 20 times

33. Filter or Contingency Questions
try to avoid having more than three levels (two jumps) for any question
if only two levels, use graphic to jump (e.g., arrow and box)
if possible, jump to a new page