Lecture 5

Data Collection Method

 Sources of Data
• Primary Sources
– Individuals provide information when interviewed,
administered questionnaires, or observed.
– Group depth interviews, or focus group.
• Secondary Sources
– Information gathered by someone other than the
researcher conducting current study.
– Sources include book, periodicals, government
publication, census data, statistical abstracts, media,
annual report, database.
 Data Collection Methods

Data can be collected in a variety of ways, in a

different settings-field or lab, and from
different sources.
 Data Collection Methods Cont…
• Interviews
– face-to-face interviews
– telephone interviews
– Computer-assisted interviews
– Group interview: focus group, panel, and Delphi method
• Systematic observation
• Questionnaire survey
– postal questionnaire survey
– e-mail questionnaire survey
• Lab experiment
• Text analysis
• Statistical data (secondary analysis)
 Interviews
Definition:
“an interview is a verbal interchange, often face to face,
though telephone may be used, in which an interviewer
tries to elicit information beliefs or opinion from another
person.”
(Burns, 1997: 329)

• Interview respondents to get information on the issues of

interest.
• Usually used during exploratory stages or research.
• Main method used in qualitative research.
• Can be conducted face to face, by telephone or online.
 Interviews Cont…
2 types of interviews:
1. Structured
• Conducted when it is known at the outset what
information is needed.
• Ask a predetermined set of questions-specified in
interview schedule.
• Interview schedule/protocol-is a written list of
questions, open ended or closed, prepared by an
interviewer in a person-to-person interaction.
 Interviews Cont…
2. Unstructured
• Interviewer does not enter the interview setting with a
planned sequence of questions
• Objective is to bring some preliminary issues to the
surface so that the researcher can determine what
variables need further in-depth investigation.
• In quantitative-develop response categorizations from
responses which are then coded and quantified.
• In qualitative-responses are used as descriptors, often
in verbatim form.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Interview

• Advantages:
– The interview is more appropriate for complex
situations.
– It is useful for collecting in depth information
– Information can be supplemented (eg. supplement
with observation and non verbal reactions)
– Questions can be explained.
– Has a wider application (almost any type of
population: children, handicapped, old, illiterate)
Advantages and Disadvantages of Interview
cont…
• Disadvantages
– Time consuming and expensive
– Quality of data depends upon the quality of the
interaction
– Quality of data depends upon the quality of the
interviewer. (experience, skill and commitment)
– Interviewer may introduce his/her bias.
 Group Interview
• Focus group
– Typically 8-10 people with a moderator leading
discussion for about 2 hours on a particular topic,
concept, or product.
– Members chosen based on their expertise
– Aimed at obtaining respondents’ impressions,
interpretations, and opinions.
– Moderator play a vital role in steering the discussion to
draws out information
– Advantage is relatively inexpensive and can provide
fairly dependable data within a short time frame.
 Group Interview Cont…
• Focus group –cont…
– Role of moderator
• Moderator introduces the topic, observes, and takes
notes and/or tapes the discussions.
• Never become the integral part but just steers the group
persuasively to obtain relevant information.
– Data obtained through focus group
• Less expensive and allow for quick analysis.
• Content analysis of data provide only qualitative
information.
• The respondents opinions cannot be truly
representatives.
 Group Interview Cont…
• Focus group –cont…
– Video conferencing
• Can be done especially if the group members are
geographically dispersed. Can capture nonverbal cues
and gestured of a particular member.
– Focus groups are used for:
• Exploratory studies.
• Making generalizations based on the information
generated by them.
• Conducting sample surveys.
 Group Interview Cont…
• Panels
Is another source of primary data however
meet more than once. Two types of panels:
– Static panels
• Same members serve on the panel over extended
periods of time.
– Dynamic panels
• Panels members change from time to time as various
phases of the study in progress.
 Group Interview Cont…
– Delphi technique
• Use cautiously selected panel of experts in a systematic,
interactive manner.
• Answer questionnaires in 2 or more rounds
• The contributions of the experts are collected,
summarized and fed back to in the form of second round
questionnaire.
• This iterative process eventually lead to a consensus.
• Identity of the panels are usually not revealed to prevent
some expert from dominating others, allow experts to
unreservedly express their opinions, encourage experts to
admit mistakes.
 Observations
• Gather data without asking questions of
respondents.
• Observed in their natural work environment or lab
setting.
• Participants activities and behaviours or other items
of interest can be noted and recorded.
• Eg., participants movements, work habits, the
statements made and meeting conducted by them,
their facial expressions of joy, anger and other
emotions, and body language.
 Observations Cont…
2 types of observations:
• Nonparticipant –observer
– Collecting data without becoming an integral part of the
organizational system.
– Eg. Sit at the corner of an office and watch and record how
the manger spends her time over a period of several days.
• Participant- observer
– Researcher becomes a part of the work team
– Eg. A researcher may join the organization as an employee
and observe the dynamics in groups while being a part of
the work organization and the relevant work groups.
 Observations Cont…
• Structured observational studies
– Has a predetermined set of categories of activities or
phenomena to be studies.
– Format can be specifically designed and tailored to each study
to suit the goal of that research.
– Eg. Duration and frequency of event can be recorded.
• Unstructured observational studies
– Possible that the observer has no definite ideas regarding the
particular aspect that need focus.
– Observer may record practically everything that is observed.
– Set some propositions as a guide, patterns can be traced, and
inductive discovery can then pave the way for subsequent
theory building and hypothesis testing.
 Advantages and Disadvantages of
Observational Studies
• Advantages
– Data obtain are more reliable
– Easier to note the effects of environment influences of specific
outcome.
– Easier to observe certain group of individuals, eg. very young
children or extremely busy manager.
• Disadvantages
– Necessary for the observer to be present often for prolonged
period (unless use a camera)
– Data collection is slow, tedious, and expensive.
– Subject become fatigue
– Cognitive thoughts cannot be captured.
– Observers have to be trained in what and how to observe and how
to avoid bias.
 Hawthorne Effect
• When a change in behavior of persons or
groups is attributed to their being observed.
• The use of observation in such a situation may
introduce distortion: what is observed may
not represent their normal behavior.
 Survey Research
• Respondents
– People who verbally answer an interviewer’s
questions or provide answers to written questions.
• Sample Survey
– A survey that emphasizes contacting respondents
who are a representative sample of the target
population.
 Using Surveys
• Survey Objectives
– Surveys attempt to describe what is happening,
what people believe, what they are like, or to
learn the reasons for a particular business activity.
– Survey research is descriptive research:
• Identifying characteristics of target markets
• Measuring consumer attitudes
• Identifying information regarding activities that could
make the company more “green”
– Surveys can be both quantitative and qualitative.
 Advantages of Surveys
• Advantages of Surveys
– Gathering information via surveys is:
• Quick
• Inexpensive
• Efficient
• Accurate
 Errors in Survey Research
• Random Sampling Error
– A statistical fluctuation that occurs because of chance
variation in the elements selected for a sample.
• Systematic Error
– Error resulting from some imperfect aspect of the research
design that causes respondent error or from a mistake in
the execution of the research.
• Sample Bias
– A persistent tendency for the results of a sample to deviate
in one direction from the true value of the population
parameter.
EXHIBIT 9.1 Categories of Survey Errors

9–24
 Respondent Error
• Respondent Error
– A category of sample bias resulting from some
respondent action or inaction such as non-
response or response bias.
• Non-response Error
– The statistical differences between a survey that
includes only those who responded and a perfect
survey that would also include those who failed to
respond.
 Respondent Error
• Non-respondents
– People who are not contacted or who refuse to
cooperate in the research.
• No contacts: people who are not at home or who are
otherwise inaccessible on the first and second contact.
• Refusals: People who are unwilling to participate in a
research project.
• Self-Selection Bias
– A bias that occurs because people who feel strongly
about a subject are more likely to respond to survey
questions than people who feel indifferent about it.
 Response Bias
• Deliberate Falsification
– Occasionally people deliberately give false
answers.
• Misrepresent answers to appear intelligent
• Conceal personal information
• Avoid embarrassment
– Average-person hypothesis:
• Individuals may prefer to be viewed as average, so they
alter their responses to conform more closely to their
perception of the average person.
 Response Bias
• Unconscious Misrepresentation
– When a respondent is consciously trying to be truthful
and cooperative, response bias can arise from the
question format, the question content, or some other
stimulus that affects their response to a question.
– Sources of misrepresentation:
• Misunderstanding the question
• Unable to recall details
• Unprepared response to an unexpected question
• Inability to translate feelings into words
• After-event underreporting
 Types of Response Bias
• Acquiescence Bias
– A tendency to agree with all or most questions.
• Extremity Bias
– The tendency of some Individuals to use extremes when
responding to questions.
• Interviewer Bias
– The presence of the interviewer influences respondents’
answers.
• Social Desirability Bias
– Bias in responses caused by respondents’ desire, either
conscious or unconscious, to gain prestige or appear in a
different social role.
 Administrative Error
• An error caused by the improper administration or
execution of the research task.
– Data-processing error: incorrect data entry, incorrect
computer programming, or other procedural errors
during data analysis.
– Sample selection error: improper sample design or
sampling procedure execution.
– Interviewer error: mistakes made by interviewers failing
to record survey responses correctly.
– Interviewer cheating: filling in fake answers or falsifying
questionnaires by an interviewer.
 Classifying Survey Research Methods
1. Structured/Unstructured Questionnaires
– Structured question: imposes a limit on the number of
allowable responses.
– Unstructured question: does not restrict respondents’
answers.
2. Disguised/Undisguised Questionnaires
– Undisguised questions: assume the respondent is
willing to answer.
– Disguised questions: assume the purpose of the study
must be hidden from the respondent.
 Classifying Survey Research Methods
Cont…

3. Temporal Classification
a. Cross-sectional study: various segments of a
population are sampled and data are collected at
a single moment in time.
Classifying Survey Research Methods
Cont…
b. Longitudinal study: A survey of respondents at
different times, thus allowing analysis of
response continuity and changes over time.
• Tracking study: uses successive samples to compare
trends and identify changes in variables such as
consumer satisfaction, brand image, or advertising
awareness.
• Consumer panel: a survey of the same sample of
individuals or households to record (in a diary) their
attitudes, behavior, or purchasing habits over time.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaire
• Advantages:
– It is less expensive
– Offers greater anonymity
• Disadvantages:
– Application is limited
– Response rate is low
– There is a self selecting bias
– Opportunity to clarity issues is lacking
– Spontaneous responses are not allowaed for
– The response to a question may be influenced by the other
questions
– It is possible to consult others
– A response cannot be supplemented with other information.
 Experimental Design
• Cause-and-effect relationship
– Examine possible cause- and-effect relationships
among variables

• Correlational studies
– Examine the relationships among variables
without necessary trying to establish if one
variable causes another.
 Conditions for cause-and-effect
1. The IV and DV should covary.
2. The IV (the presumed causal factor) should
precede the DV.
3. No other factor should be a possible cause of
the change in the DV.
4. A logical explanation ( a theory) is needed
about why the IV affects the DV.
 Conditions for cause-and-effect cont…
• The third condition implies that to establish causal
relationships between two variables in an
organizational setting, several variables that might
covary with the dependent variable have to be
controlled.
• Thus, variable X alone causes the DV Y.
• However, it is not always possible to control all
covariates while manipulating the causal factor in
organizational settings where events occur naturally
compared to artificial setting (lab setting).
Categories of Experimental Design
• Lab experiment
– Done in artificial or contrived setting.
• Field experiment
– Done in the natural environment in which
activities regularly take place.
 Lab Experiment
• Best of cause-and-effect type of experiment.
• In this environment, the relationship between
IV and DV of interest is to be clearly
established then all other variables that might
contaminate or confound the relationship
have to be tightly controlled.
• It is also necessary to manipulated the IV so
that the extent of its causal effects can be
established.
 Lab Experiment Cont…
• Control
– Controlled the contaminating factor.
– When postulating cause-and-effect between two
variables X and Y, it is possible some other factor (say A)
might also influence the DV Y.
– Example:
• To see whether training (IV) cause the employee to function
more effectively in creating web pages (DV).
• However, this relationship cannot be proved since previous
experience of the employee with the web is a contaminating
factor.
• Therefore, the employee previous experience has to be
controlled, for instance by excluding the employees who have
had some experience with the web.
 Lab Experiment Cont…
• Manipulation of the IV
– Create different levels of IV to assess the impact
on the DV.
– Example:
• Exposing different groups to different degrees of
changes in lighting (IV) which is also known as
treatment.
• The result of treatment is known as effects.
 Lab Experiment Cont…
• Controlling the contaminating exogenous or “nuisance”
variables:
– Matching group
• One way to control the contaminating variables is to match the various
groups by picking the confounding characteristics and deliberately
spreading them across the groups.
• Example:
• Let say the confounding characteristics are gender, age and
experience.
• If there are 20 women among 60 members, assign 5 women for each
group (5 women and 10 men), so the effect of gender will be
distributed across the four groups.
• Get a similar mix of individuals in terms of gender, age and experience.
• Since the suspected contaminating factors are matched across the
groups, we may say that variable X alone causes variable Y.
 Lab Experiment Cont…
– Randomization
• Another way to control contaminating variables is to
choose or assign members randomly
• Every member will have equal chance of being assigned or
chosen for the groups.
• By randomly assigning the members to the groups, we are
distributing the confounding variables among the groups
equally.
• Thus, the controlled variables (gender, age, and
experience) will have equal probability of being disributed
among the groups.
 Lab Experiment Cont…
• Validity
– Refers to the confident we place in the cause-and-
effect relationship
– In a lab experiments where cause-and-effect
relationships are substantiated, internally validity
can be said to be high.
 Other Type of Primary Sources of Data
Collection
• Unobtrusive measures
– Originate from a primary source that does not
involve people.
 Eg. 1- Wear and tear of journals in the library
indicate their popularity, frequency of use.
 Eg. 2 – Number of different brands of soft drinks
cans found in trash bags provide measures of their
consumption levels
 Eg. 3- Signature on checks exposed to ultraviolet
rays indicate the extent of forgery and fraud.
 Group discussion
You are interested to discover what and how
components of social relation can contribute to the
value or the outcomes produced which is expected
to maximize the potential of gifted children.
1. Decide on the objectives/aims of the study.
2. Design the methodology section of this study such
as qualitative or quantitative approach, method of
data collection, the respondents or participants of
the study, and the limitation of the approach that
you tend to use.