Rearch Methodologies Flashcards
What is primary research ?
Any type of research that you collect yourself.
What is empirical data ?
Data obtained by observations, measurement or from experience.
What is secondary research ?
A research method that involves using already existing data.
What is quantitative data ?
Data in numeracy form.
What is qualitative data ?
Descriptive data such as data drawn from questionnaires, interviews or focus groups.
What is a sample population ?
A group of individuals targeted for investigation based on their shared characteristics.
What is a sample ?
A group of people that’s taken from a larger population for measurement.
What is sampling bias ?
When some members of a population are more likely to be selected in a sampling than others.
What is a questionnaire ?
A set of questions asked to discover information about a subject.
Who are ‘respondents’ ?
Individuals from a sample who submit a completed questionnaire.
What is an open question ?
Questions that allow people to answer in their own words.
What is a closed question ?
Questions that require people to select a response from a menu of options.
What is a response frame ?
A menu of answer options provided for a closed question.
What are the advantages of questionnaire ?
- They are cost efficient
- They are time efficient
- It is typically easy to reach a larger number of people
- Respondents can be anonymous
- People can complete them in their own time
- The data is typically easy to process
What are the disadvantages of questionnaire ?
- People may misinterpret questions
- People may skip questions
- People may find it difficult to convey emotions
- People with visual impairments/ or learning difficulties may struggle to complete them.
What is a ‘response rates’ ?
The number of people who completed your survey divided by the number of people who make up the total sample group.
What is an interview ?
A meeting in which someone is asked questions.
What is a transcript ?
And exact written record of a conversation.
What is an unstructured interview ?
An interview in which questions are not pre-arranged.
What is a semi-structured interview ?
An interview in which some questions are pre-arranged and some are not.
What is a structured interview ?
An interview in which all questions are pre-arranged.
What are the advantages of using interviews ?
- They can provide in-depth information
- New questions can be asked in response to an answer
- Interviewers can clarify questions
- Interviews can capture emotions and behaviours
What are the disadvantages of interviews ?
- They are not cost effective
- They are not time efficient
- Sample size may be limited because of the cost and time required
What is a focus group ?
A group interview.
What are the advantages of a focus group ?
- They can provide in-depth information
- New questions can be asked in response to answers
- Facilitators can clarify questions
- Facilitators can capture emotions and behaviours
- Participants can co-create responses
What are the disadvantages of a focus group ?
- They have small sample sizes
- They are not cost-effective
- They are not time-efficient
- Difficult to get honest answers about sensitive subjects
What is a case study ?
In depth study of one particular case which could be a site, individual or policy.
What are the advantages of using a case study approach ?
- It can enable a wide range of data to be used together
- It can produce highly detailed qualitative data
What are the disadvantages of using a case study approach ?
- They data is only specific to the particular case studied
- It is not time-efficient
What is an experiment ?
A specifically designed test to assess the validity of a hypothesis.
What is a phenomenon ?
An event of observation in relation to the physical world.
