social surveys - mailed questionnaires

Question 1

what are mailed questionnaires

Answer 1

type of written or self-completion research method which is sent out via the post or email

Question 2

how do mailed questionnaires work

Answer 2

respondent fills it out then sends back in the pre paid envelope or electronically

Question 3

what is an example of mailed questionnaires

Answer 3

conor and dewson - delivered postal questionnaires on factors influencing the decision of working class students to go to university - sample size approx 4000

Question 4

t - advantage - areas
example

Answer 4

can cover large geographical areas
e. sociologist interested in student attitudes could gain views from a wide spread of schools across the whole country

Question 5

t - advantage - objective

Answer 5

. researcher detached and objective
. therefore bias is minimal
. reliability increased

Question 6

e - advantage - obligations

Answer 6

. pose fewer ethical problems
. respondents arent required to answer questions on sensitive topics

Question 7

t - advantage - response rates schools
example

Answer 7

e. high response rates in schools due to head teachers giving consent so allocate time in day for them to be completed
e. teachers and students are used to answering questionnaires issued by school
. increases representativeness and reliability

Question 8

t - advantage - anonymity
example

Answer 8

. allow for anonymity and detachment
e. students may be willing to fill in questionnaires on bullying as their anonymity offers protection

Question 9

p - advantage - time and cost
example

Answer 9

quick and cheap compared to other research methods
. costs reduced compared to other research methods as interviewers arent required so dont need to pay anyone
e. rutter able to gather a range of data eg on achievement and class size in 12 london schools very quickly

Question 10

t - disadvantage - response rates
example + solving problem

Answer 10

. can receive low response rates (25% to 50%)
e. if questionnaires are too long teachers may be unwilling to complete them due to be overworked often, parents of w/c students less likely to return questionnaires than m/c
. destroys representativeness and reliability
. could be solved by sending follow up questionnaires and questionnaires that are hand-collected but adds to cost and time

Question 11

t - no interviewer - disadvantage
example

Answer 11

. no one there to explain the questions or instructions for completion
. can result in questionnaires being incomplete or spoiled
. reduces validity
e. may be problem for researching parental attitudes to education as they may be illiterate or not have english as first lang

Question 12

t/p - disadvantage

Answer 12

p. cannot be sure questionnaire was delivered to respondent or received, or if questionnaire was completed by person it was addressed to
t. reduces validity