Self Report Techniques Flashcards
Questionnaires
A set of written questions used to assess a persons thoughts and/or experiences
Questionnaires (strengths)
Cost effective
Gathers large amounts of data
Can be completed without the presence of a researcher
Data is easy to analyse
Data lends itself to statistical analysis and can be presented in graphs and charts
Questionnaires (weaknesses)
Responses may not be truthful
Social desirability bias and demand characteristics
Response bias
Interview
A face-to-face or telephone encounter, where the interviewer asked a set of questions to assess the interviewees thoughts and experiences
Maybe structured or unstructured
Structured Interview
Has a set of pre-determined questions that are asked in a fixed order
Structured interview (strengths)
Easy to replicate
Reduces interviewer bias
Structured interview (weaknesses)
Interviewers cannot deviate from the topic for further explanation, which limits the richness of data
Interviewees can lie
Social desirability bias
Unstructured Interview
No set questions just a general aim to be discussed
Interviewee is encouraged to expand on their responses
Unstructured Interview (strengths)
More flexibility
Can do follow-up questions for more detail
Structured Interview (weaknesses)
Interviewer bias
Data analysis is not straightforward
Interviewees can lie
Social desirability bias
Semi-Structured Interview
There is a list of questions that have to be asked, but then also time for follow-up questions if appropriate
Social desirability bias
Tendency to respond in a way that makes the participants look good or positive
Acquiescence bias
Tendency to agree with all the items regardless of the content
Response bias
Respondents tend to reply in a similar way (for example all ‘no’ or all ‘yes’)
Interviewer bias
The influence of the interviewer on the interviewee