Questionnaires Flashcards
What is a Questionnaire?
A list of written questions that is completed by the respondent.
What are close-ended questions?
The researcher providing a suitable list of responses such as yes/no in order to produce quantitative data.
An example of a Questionnaire:
Bowles and Gintis studied 237 NY highschool students through a questionnaire, comparing their personality traits with their grades. They found a correlation between docility, obedience and high scores at school. Quantitative, 1-10 scale.
OR the Census.
What are open-ended questions?
A question where the researcher doesn’t’ provide the respondent with a set answer from which to choose, answering instead “in their own words.” This produces qualitative data.
Advantages of Questionnaires:
- Quick to create, not time-consuming.
- Easy for participants to withdraw.
- Not intrusive, can use socially sensitive topics.
- No deception.
- Cheap.
Disadvantages of Questionnaires:
- Researcher may ask leading questions and impose their own views onto participant.
- Only a high response rate if an incentive is given, often a low response rate.
- People may give socially desirable answers.
- Inflexible.