Collection of Data
Collection of Data
A survey is a research method used for collecting data from a predefined group of
respondents to gain information and insights into various topics of interest. … The process
involves asking people for information through a questionnaire, which can be either online
or offline.
Categories
Questionnaires are usually paper-and-pencil instruments that the respondent
completes.
Interviews are completed by the interviewer based on the respondent says. … Your
hotel room has a survey on the desk.
The success of a survey starts with an intense, detailed and comprehensive planning. Before
you conduct a survey, you need to begin with brainstorming about the purpose of the
survey, the goals and objectives, the creation of questions, and other important details
included in utilizing the survey method.
Defining Goals
Survey goals encompass the very purpose of conducting a survey. Having these goals, you will
be able to create the right questions for the right participants. Survey goals will direct you to
the type of survey you have to use and the type of survey administration you have to do. The
survey goals also provide hints on the appropriate sample size of your survey, as well as the
inclusion and exclusion criteria in terms of answering the question: “To whom should I
administer the survey?”
Participant Selection
Based on the survey goals or the purpose of conducting the survey, choose the participants that
will be able to effectively represent the general population. In this step of the planning phase,
you should be able to determine the inclusion and exclusion criteria so only the right people can
be included in the target group. For instance, if you want to do a survey about teen mothers, you
should eliminate women who bore children at the age of 20 and above.
Schedule Setting
Conduct the survey in a time-bounded fashion by means of planning out a schedule. First, start
with setting a date for the creating of questions. Then, set a time frame for the standardization
and/or revision of the survey. After this, mark your calendar for the period of administering the
surveys to the participants. Next, schedule the date for tallying, summarizing and analyzing the
results of the survey.
Budget Planning
When planning a survey successfully, budget allocation should be settled. When preparing for
the budget, consider first the number of people that will participate in the survey. This will give
you a good estimate of how much money is needed for the reproduction of the survey.
In terms of the questions, using a standardized survey for the study may or may not require
money. This depends on whether the creator of the survey allows the free use of the
questionnaire or obliges payment for it. On the other hand, creating your own survey and having
it standardized or verified may require payments.
Another thing that needs to be considered in planning for the budget includes the time period of
conducting the survey. If you are to have a survey of a very large target group, you must set
aside a budget for the compensation of people who will help you administer the survey
How to Conduct a Survey
There are a variety of ways through which a survey can be conducted. Each method of
conducting surveys present their own advantages and disadvantages which are to be considered
and weighed carefully before the actual execution of administering the survey. In addition to the
method of administration, there are other factors that may influence the response rates and results
of the survey.
Methods of Administering Survey
1. Personal Approach
Pros: Questions on the survey that are asked directly to the respondent by the researcher usually
produces good response rates if visual materials are required during the survey. This also
provides a great opportunity for the researcher to observe the participants.
Cons: There’s a higher chance of bias due to the interaction between the respondent and the
interviewer. The principle of anonymity is also lost. It is neither ideal if the participants are
located in different geographical areas.
2 . Telephone Survey
Pros: This method can be used for asking consequential questions. It provides anonymity better
than face-to-face interviews.
Cons: Telephone surveys are not ideal for data gathering which requires the participants to see a
visual material. In addition, telephone calls for survey purposes are not appropriate if long
questions are to be asked.
Design of experiments (DOE) is defined as a branch of applied statistics that deals with planning,
conducting, analyzing, and interpreting controlled tests to evaluate the factors that control the
value of a parameter or group of parameters. DOE is a powerful data collection and analysis
tool that can be used in a variety of experimental situations.
It allows for multiple input factors to be manipulated, determining their effect on a desired output
(response). By manipulating multiple inputs at the same time, DOE can identify important
interactions that may be missed when experimenting with one factor at a time. All possible
combinations can be investigated (full factorial) or only a portion of the possible combinations
(fractional factorial).
Many of the current statistical approaches to designed experiments originate from the work of R.
A. Fisher in the early part of the 20th century. Fisher demonstrated how taking the time to
seriously consider the design and execution of an experiment before trying it helped avoid
frequently encountered problems in analysis. Key concepts in creating a designed experiment
include blocking, randomization, and replication.
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REFERENCES:
https://byjus.com/maths/data-collection-methods/
https://motivationjob.com/advices-skills/what-is-the-main-purpose-of-a-survey/
https://explorable.com/planning-a-survey?gid=1576
https://asq.org/quality-resources/design-of-experiments
https://online.stat.psu.edu/stat503/lesson/1/1.3