Chapter 6

Question 1

What are the methods of obtaining primary data?

Answer 1

1. observation
2. communication

Question 2

What is observation?

Answer 2

 Does not involve questioning
respondents
 Involves recording respondent’s
actions
 Setting is important (natural vs.
contrived)
 Advantages: objective, accurate

Question 3

What is communication?

Answer 3

 Involves questioning respondents
 Involves respondents completing a
questionnaire
 Advantages: versatility, speed, cost

Question 4

What is structured communication?

Answer 4

▪ Degree of standardization used with
the data collection instrument
▪ Fixed-alternative or close-ended
questions have structured questions
and response options

Question 5

What is unstructured Communication?

Answer 5

Open-ended questions have
structured questions with unstructured
response options

Question 6

What is the difference between structured communication and unstructured communication?

Answer 6

structured is mutliple choice answers, unstructured is short answer

Question 7

What are the advantages of structured data?

Answer 7

▪ Simple to administer
▪ Analysis of data is easy
▪ Limits interpretation bias
▪ Saves time and money
▪ Improve consistency of responses

Question 8

What are the disadvantages of structured data?

Answer 8

Can encourage misleading answers

Question 9

What are the advantages of unstructured data?

Answer 9

▪ Permits an unlimited range of answers
▪ Useful for exploratory research

Question 10

What are the disadvantages of unstructured data?

Answer 10

▪ Requires more time and effort to respond
to the questions
▪ Answers may differ in level of details or
scope
▪ Analysis may be difficult, costly and time
consuming
▪ High interpretation bias

Question 11

What is disguised communication?

Answer 11

▪ Attempts to hide the purpose or
sponsor of the study
▪ Used to help create a more natural
environment in which to collect
data

Question 12

What is undisguised communication?

Answer 12

▪ Subjects are aware of the purpose
of the study
▪ Study is free of any form of
deception

Question 13

When is disguised communication necessary?

Answer 13

-When knowledge of the sponsor or of real purpose of the survey is likely to cause
respondents to modify their answers
- When the use of disguise creates a more natural environment for data collection

Question 14

What are the ethics of disguise?

Answer 14

▪ Deception can make researchers and participants uncomfortable
▪ Debriefing: providing participants with appropriate information about the purpose
of the research after data collection

Question 15

What are the methods of administering the questionnaire?

Answer 15

1. personal interviews
2. telephone interviews
3. mail questionaires
4. internet-based questionaires

Question 16

What aspects should be considered when administring the questionaire?

Answer 16

1. Sampling Control
2. Information Control
3. Administrative Control

Question 17

what is sampling control?

Answer 17

ability to identify and reach a representative sample from the
population

Question 18

what is information control?

Answer 18

• number and type of questions that the researcher can ask
• the level of bias in the responses

Question 19

What is adminsitrative control?

Answer 19

• time and money concerns

Question 20

What are personal interviews?

Answer 20

direct face to face conversations between the interviewer and the respondant

Question 21

What is sampling control in personal interviews?

Answer 21

▪ More difficult to identify a random sample compared to other
methods
▪ Response rates tend to be high

Question 22

What is information control in personal interviews?

Answer 22

▪ High level of feedback and ability to rephrase the questions
▪ Rapport and trust
▪ Adaptability and Sequence of questions
▪ More human mistakes and bias
▪ Fear of interview evaluation

Question 23

What is adminsrative control in personal interviews?

Answer 23

▪ Slow speed and high cost
▪ Well-trained interviewers

Question 24

What are telephone interviews

Answer 24

Telephone conversation between an interviewer and a respondent

Question 25

What is sampling control in telephone interviews?

Answer 25

▪ Random lists of consumers can be purchased from specialized companies ▪ Using phone-book sampling may be problematic ▪ Random-digit dialing (RDD): technique in which telephone numbers to be called are randomly generated

Question 26

What is infomration control in telephone interviews?

Answer 26

▪ Simple questions ▪ Flexibility in organizing the questions with computer-assisted interviewing ▪ Allows clarifying questions ▪ Limited amount of information can be gathered: Short interviews (5 to 10 minutes)

Question 27

What is administrative control in telephone interviews?

Answer 27

▪ Data collection is typically fast (days), and cost is relatively low ▪ Quality control (recorded conversations) ▪ Required trained personnel

Question 28

What is automated phone surveys?

Answer 28

Aka automated survey calls ▪ This form of survey allows the collection of information from individuals by phone without human interaction

Question 29

What are mail questionnaires?

Answer 29

A questionnaire administered by mail to designated respondents with an accompanying cover letter

Question 30

What is sampling control in mail questionnaires?

Answer 30

▪ Mailing lists can be purchased from specialized firms ▪ Little control in getting a response due to low social pressure to take part in the research ▪ Little control over who completes the survey

Question 31

What is information control in mail questionnaires?

Answer 31

▪ No interviewer bias ▪ Anonymity encourages candid responses ▪ Questions cannot be clarified ▪ May require more effort from participants (e.g.; open-ended questions)

Question 32

What is administrative control in mail questionaires?

Answer 32

▪ Low cost ▪ Low speed

Question 33

What are internet based questionnaires?

Answer 33

A questionnaire that relies on the Internet for completion

Question 34

What is sampling control for internet based questionaires?

Answer 34

▪ Lists of emails are available from numerous sources; online panels ▪ Problem with “professional” panelists ▪ Low response rate

Question 35

What is information control in internet based questionaires?

Answer 35

▪ Allow the use of pictures, audiovisuals and graphics ▪ Immediate capture of detailed data ▪ Reduces researcher bias ▪ No ability to probe or explain questions ▪ High flexibility in question sequencing ▪ Better responses to open-ended questions compared to other methods

Question 36

What is administrative control in internet based questionaires?

Answer 36

▪ Inexpensive and provide quick turnaround