Social Research Methods

1. Alan Bryman Social Research Methods Chapter 28: E-research: Internet research methods Slides authored by Tom Owens

2. Web sites and pages as objects of analysis; As a means of data collection. Using the Internet for social research Page 654

3. The Internet as object of analysis • Find websites relating to your research questions • Refine the keywords used to improve search results • Internet use is expanding constantly, so new research approaches are continuously emerging • Content on websites is subject to change, or even to disappearing altogether, so referencing requires great care. Page 665

4. Referring to websites Tips and skills Page 656

5. Online ethnography; Qualitative research using online focus groups; Qualitative research using online personal interviews; Online social surveys. Main methods used for data collection Page 658

6. Using the Internet to collect data has advantages…… It saves time and money It can reach larger numbers of people It does not matter where people are if they have an Internet connection Data can be collected quickly Page 658

7. …and disadvantages The Internet is not accessible to everyone Not everyone is expert in computer use Invitations to participate in research may be treated as ‘spam’ There is a loss of personal touch / lack of rapport Participants can be worried about confidentiality because of worry about computer fraud and hackers Page 658

8. Crucial distinctions in Internet methods of data collection 1. Web-based Or Communication-based (data collected through web pages; or data collected by email etc) 2. Synchronous communication Or Asynchronous communication (occurs in real time, like on-line chatting; or there is a delay between question and response, like with e-mail) Page 658

9. Online ethnography ‘Cyberspace’ as a new site of research Participation, observation and interviews with members of an online community Markham (1998) synchronous online interviews in chat rooms and multi-user domains participants challenged distinction between life online and ‘real life’ - online experiences are real too! Pages 659-661

10. Qualitative research using online focus groups Synchronous focus groups contributions seen and responded to immediately using conferencing software which participants must have installed Asynchronous focus groups use of email distribution lists useful if participants are in different time zones easier for people with less advanced computer skills Page 663

11. Advantages of online interviews over face-to-face interviews Cheaper Access to more dispersed population Participants have time to give considered replies No travel time / costs No need for audio-recording and transcription Helpful for sensitive issues Appeals to shy people More egalitarian Pages 668, 689

12. Disadvantages of online interviews over face-to-face interviews Digital divide: unequal access to online facilities Difficult to establish rapport Questions can be ignored Greater risk of attrition and non-response Less spontaneity of responses Risk of identity deception Cannot read non-verbal cues Pages 668, 669

13. ‘Embedded’ surveys have their questions appearing as part of the e-mail message; ‘attached’ surveys have separate questionnaires available for down-loading. Embedded questionnaires are easier to complete and return to the researcher; Attached questionnaires can be made more attractive in appearance, can be better organized and use more question types; But, ‘embedded’ tends to have a higher rate of response (although the response pattern may not vary between the two types). E-mail surveys Pages 670, 671

14. Web surveys work by inviting respondents to a website link. They can be made to appear much more attractive than other types of survey, in appearance and design. Respondents’ answers can be automatically programmed to download into a database, eliminating the coding chore. The researcher needs to be skilled in the use of HTML or else use one of the many software questionnaire design packages available Surveymonkeyis an example of this kind of software. Web surveys Page 671

15. Denscombe (2006) compared paper and web-based modes of administration of questionnaires given to students at an east Midlands school. The results from each mode were very similar. There is a growing tendency to offer respondents an online opportunity, partly as a mechanism to boost the number of respondents. Combining a paper survey with a web survey Pages 672, 673

16. Not everyone has Internet access Those who do may not be able to handle questionnaires online, in e-mail or web formats Many people have more than one e-mail address Many people use more than one Internet Service Provider (ISP) A household may have one computer but several users Internet-users are a biased sample of the population Few sampling frames exist of the general online population Sampling issues Pages 673, 674

17. Low cost Faster response Attractive formats Mixed administration Unrestricted reach Fewer unanswered questions Better response to open questions Better data accuracy, especially in web surveys Advantages of online surveys compared to postal questionnaire surveys Tips and skills Pages 676, 677

18. Low response rate Restricted to online populations Requires motivation Confidentiality and anonymity issues Multiple replies. Disadvantages of online surveys compared to postal questionnaire surveys Tips and skills Pages 676, 677

19. Ethical considerations in Internet research The Association of Internet Researchers recommends thinking through this issue early on in the research. Different types of Internet message present varying concerns for anonymity, confidentiality, informed consent. Pages 679, 680