questionnaires

Question 1

what are questionnaires

Answer 1

• a method of asking participants a list of questions via online, post etc.

Question 2

what are closed and open questionnaires

Answer 2

closed questionnaires - respondents are invited to choose from a selection of listed possible answers
open questionnaires - respondents are invited to answer in their own words ( I think…..because…)

Question 3

PET - questionnaires - practical factors

Answer 3

strengths : can be distributed to a large geographical area / sample is likely to ACCESS the participants required for the research which increases the REPRESENTATIVENESS of the research as it reflects the characteristics of the target population.
weaknesses : postal questionnaires are costly due to mailing cost - cost of living crisis researchers don’t have enough funding for stamps.

Question 4

PET - questionnaires - ethical factors

Answer 4

strengths : due to questionnaires being self completion, INFORMED CONSENT is given which can increase VALIDITY as the participants feel comfortable answering questions meaning they are more likely to be honest and give a true insight into the topic being researched.
weaknesses : if the topic is a sensitive nature some respondents may feel some form of emotional HARM and could potentially lie to give socially desirable responses. this can impact VALIDITY as it does not give a true insight. - Scottish gov gave 14-16 year olds a questionnaires about sexual activity, critics claimed the questions were to sexually explicitly for their age

Question 5

PET - questionnaires - theoretical factors

Answer 5

strengths - standardised questions and quick quantitate data means this method REPLICABLE and therefore more RELIABLE meaning POSITIVISTS would like this method.
weaknesses - due to the standardised nature of questions the respondent may select the nearest answer that describes their situation which could be relevant. the respondents cannot explain meanings behind their answers leading to INTERPRETIVISTS not liking this method as it is low in VALIDITY.

Question 6

what are demand characteristics and social desirability ?

Answer 6

• when the participants/interviewer attempts to interpret the researchers motives or give them answers they THINK are correct-lowers the validity of the data
• i.e. how much money have u given to charity? - interviewee may exaggerate their answer to sound moral