Chapter 10 Survey Research: Basic Methods of Communication with Respondents

1. Chapter 10 Survey Research:Basic Methods of Communication with Respondents

2. Media Used to Communicate with Respondents-Interactive Media • Human Interactive Media is a personal form of communication in which a message is directed at an individual (or small group) who then has the opportunity to interact with the communicator. • Electronic Interactive Media is communication that allows the research organization and the recipient to interact using digital technology.

3. Media Used to Communicate with Respondents-Noninteractive Media • Self-administered questionnaire

4. Communicating with Respondents • Personal interviews (The gathering of information through face-to-face contact with individuals) • Door-to-door • Shopping mall intercepts • Telephone interviews • Self-administered questionnaires

5. Good Afternoon, my name is _________. I am with _________ survey research company. We are conducting a survey on_________

6. Advantages of Personal Interviews • The opportunity for feedback • Probing complex answers • Probing is the verbal prompts made by a fieldworker when the respondent must be motivated to communicate his/her answer more fully. Probes encourage respondents to enlarge on, clarify, or explain answers. • Length of interview • Complete questionnaires • Item nonresponse is the technical term for an unanswered question on an otherwise complete questionnaire. • Props and visual aids • High participation

7. Disadvantages of Personal Interview • Cost • Anonymity of Respondents • Callbacks • Global Considerations

8. Personal Interview • Personal interview can be • Door-to-door Interview is a personal interview conducted at the respondent’s home or place of business. • Mall Intercept Interview (High Traffic Area Interview, Shopping Center Sampling) is personal interview conducted in shopping malls. Interviewers generally stop and attempt to question shoppers at a central point within or at an entrance to the mall.

9. Door-to-Door Personal Interview • Speed of data collection • Moderate to fast • Geographical flexibility • Limited to moderate • Respondent cooperation • Excellent • Versatility of questioning • Quite versatile

10. Door-to-Door Personal Interview • Questionnaire length • Long • Item nonresponse • Low • Possibility of respondent misunderstanding • Lowest

11. Door-to-Door Personal Interview • Degree of interviewer influence of answer • High • Supervision of interviewers • Moderate • Anonymity of respondent • Low

12. Door-to-Door Personal Interview • Ease of call back or follow-up • Difficult • Cost • Highest • Special features • Visual materials may be shown or demonstrated; extended probing possible

13. Mall Intercept Personal Interview • Speed of data collection • Fast • Geographical flexibility • Confined, urban bias • Respondent cooperation • Moderate to low • Versatility of questioning • Extremely versatile

14. Mall Intercept Personal Interview • Speed of Data Collection • Fast • Geographical Flexibility • Confined, urban bias • Respondent Cooperation • Moderate to low • Versatility of Questioning • Extremely versatile

15. Mall Intercept Personal Interview • Questionnaire length • Moderate to long • Item nonresponse • Medium • Possibility of respondent misunderstanding • Lowest

16. Mall Intercept Personal Interview • Degree of interviewer influence of answers • Highest • Supervision of interviewers • Moderate to high • Anonymity of respondent • Low

17. Mall Intercept Personal Interview • Ease of call back or follow-up • Difficult • Cost • Moderate to high • Special features • Taste test, viewing of TV commercials possible

18. Telephone Interview • Contacting respondents by telephone to gather responses to survey questions.

19. The Strengths and Weaknesses of Telephone Interviews • Speed • Cost • Absence of face-to-face contact • Cooperation • Callbacks • Representative samples • Random digit dialing is a method of obtaining a representative sample in a telephone interview by using a random numbers table to generate telephone numbers. • Lack of visual medium • Limited duration

20. Telephone Surveys • Speed of Data Collection • Very fast • Geographical Flexibility • High • Respondent Cooperation • Good • Versatility of Questioning • Moderate

21. Telephone Surveys • Questionnaire Length • Moderate • Item Nonresponse • Medium • Possibility of Respondent Misunderstanding • Average • Degree of Interviewer Influence of Answer • Moderate

22. Telephone Surveys • Supervision of interviewers • High, especially with central location WATS interviewing • Anonymity of respondent • Moderate • Ease of call back or follow-up • Easy

23. Telephone Surveys • Cost • Low to moderate • Special features • Fieldwork and supervision of data collection are simplified; quite adaptable to computer technology

24. Telephone Surveys Central location interviewing is telephone interview conducted from a central location; it allows effective supervision and control of the quality of the interview. Computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) is a type of telephone interview in which the interviewer reads questions from a computer screen and enters the respondent’s answers directly into a computer. Computerized voice-activated interview is a form of computer-assisted interviewing in which a voice-synthesized module enables the sponsor to register a caller’s single-word response into the computer’s memory.

26. Self-Administered Questionnaires

27. Self-Administered Questionnaires • They are questionnaire, such as mail questionnaire, that is filled in by the respondent by the respondent rather than an interviewer.

28. Natures of Mail Survey • Geographic Flexibility • Cost • Respondent Convenience • Interviewer’s Absence • Standardized Questions • Speedy • Length of Mail Questionnaire • Response Rate • Response rate is the number of questionnaires returned or completed, divided by the total number of eligible people who were contacted or requested to participate in the survey.

29. Mail Surveys • Speed of data collection • Researcher has no control over return of questionnaire; slow • Geographical flexibility • High • Respondent cooperation • Moderate--poorly designed questionnaire will have low response rate

30. Mail Surveys • Versatility of questioning • Highly standardized format • Questionnaire length • Varies depending on incentive • Item nonresponse • High

31. Mail Surveys • Possibility of respondent misunderstanding • Highest--no interviewer present for clarification • Degree of interviewer influence of answer • None--interviewer absent • Supervision of interviewers • Not applicable

32. Mail Surveys • Anonymity of respondent • High • Ease of call back or follow-up • Easy, but takes time • Cost • Lowest

33. How to Increase Response Rates for Mail Surveys • Write a “sales oriented” cover letter • Money helps • - As a token of appreciation • - For a charity • Stimulate respondents’ interest with interesting questions • Follow Up • - Keying questionnaires with codes • Advanced notification • Sponsorship by a well-known and prestigious institution

34. Increasing Response Rates Effective cover letter Money helps Interesting questions Follow-ups Advanced notification Survey sponsorship Keying questionnaires

35. E-Mail Questionnaire Surveys • Speed of data collection • Instantaneous • Geographic flexibility • worldwide • Cheaper distribution and processing costs

36. E-Mail Questionnaire Surveys • Flexible, but • Extensive differences in the capabilities of respondents’ computers and e-mail software limit the types of questions and the layout • E-mails are not secure and “eavesdropping” can possibly occur • Respondent cooperation • Varies depending if e-mail is seen as “spam”

37. Internet Surveys A self-administered questionnaire posted on a Web site. Respondents provide answers to questions displayed online by highlighting a phrase, clicking an icon, or keying in an answer.

39. Internet Surveys • Speed of data collection • Instantaneous • Cost effective • Geographic flexibility • worldwide • Visual and interactive

40. Internet Surveys • Respondent cooperation • Varies depending on web site • Varies depending on type of sample • When user does not opt-in or expect a voluntary survey cooperation is low. • Self-selection problems in web site visitation surveys - participants tend to be more deeply involved than the average person.

41. Internet Surveys • Versatility of questioning Extremely versatile • Questionnaire length • Individualized base on respondent answers • Longer questionnaires with panel samples • Item nonresponse • Software can assure none

42. Internet Surveys Representative samples The quality of internet samples may vary substantially. A sample of those who visit a web page and voluntarily fill out a questionnaires can have self-selection error.

43. Internet Surveys 1) not all individuals in the general public have internet access 2) many respondents lack powerful computers with high-speed connections to the internet 3) many respondents computer skills will be relatively unsophisticated.

44. Internet Surveys • Possibility for respondent misunderstanding • High • Interviewer influence of answers • None • Supervision of interviewers not required

45. Internet Surveys • Anonymity of Respondent • Respondent can be anonymous or known • Ease of Callback or Follow-up • difficult unless e-mail address is known • Special Features • allows graphics and streaming media

46. Welcome Screen Welcome Screen like a cover letter It contains the name of the research company and how to contact the organization if there is a problem or concern. "If you have any concerns or questions about this survey, or if you experience any technical difficulties, please contact (NAME OF RESEARCH ORGANIZATION).

47. Welcome Screen should ask for password and give instructions Please enter your personal password from your invitation.Then, press the "enter" key to begin the survey or simply click on the right arrow at the bottom of the page to begin the survey (after you have read the remaining instructions): During the survey, please do not use your browser's FORWARD and BACK buttons. Use the arrows on the lower right to move backward and forward through the survey.

48. There is no best form of survey; each has advantages and disadvantages.

49. Selected Questions to Determine the Appropriate Technique Is the assistance of an interviewer necessary? Are respondents interested in the issues being investigated? Will cooperation be easily attained?

50. Selected Questions to Determine the Appropriate Technique How quickly is the information needed? Will the study require a long and complex questionnaire? How large is the budget?