Survey As A Research Method: Difference between revisions
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== Introduction == | == Introduction == | ||
Survey is a common research method used in health and social care services. Survey research is a form of inquiry that rests on the assumption that meaningful information can be obtained by asking the parties of interest what they know, what they believe, and how they behave.<ref>Carter R, Lubinsky J. Rehabilitation Research-E-Book: Principles and Applications. Elsevier Health Sciences; 2015 Jun 30.</ref> | Survey is a common research method used in health and social care services. Survey research is a form of inquiry that rests on the assumption that meaningful information can be obtained by asking the parties of interest what they know, what they believe, and how they behave.<ref name=":4">Carter R, Lubinsky J. Rehabilitation Research-E-Book: Principles and Applications. Elsevier Health Sciences; 2015 Jun 30.</ref> | ||
In survey research, the data usually collected by using standardised form whether by interview or questionnaire. Surveys are designed to give a snapshot of how things are at specific time or condition without any control or manipulation of participants or variables <ref>Kelley, K., Clark, B., Brown, V. & Sitzia, J. 2003, ''Good practice in the conduct and reporting of survey research'', Oxford :.</ref>. | In survey research, the data usually collected by using standardised form whether by interview or questionnaire. Surveys are designed to give a snapshot of how things are at specific time or condition without any control or manipulation of participants or variables <ref>Kelley, K., Clark, B., Brown, V. & Sitzia, J. 2003, ''Good practice in the conduct and reporting of survey research'', Oxford :.</ref>. | ||
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* '''Execution of Survey:''' This process starts by stage starts by '''piloting questionnaire''' to test both survey instrument and procedures.After that the survey could be conducted and data collection starts. | * '''Execution of Survey:''' This process starts by stage starts by '''piloting questionnaire''' to test both survey instrument and procedures.After that the survey could be conducted and data collection starts. | ||
* '''Data analysis and Reporting survey results:''' at that stage data analysis and effective presentation of results are important elements in a successful survey.<ref name=":1" /> | * '''Data analysis and Reporting survey results:''' at that stage data analysis and effective presentation of results are important elements in a successful survey.<ref name=":1" /> | ||
* | |||
== | == Methods of collecting Survey Data == | ||
Following are the three ways of collecting survey data<ref name=":4" /> | |||
# Personal Interviews | |||
# Telephone Interviews | |||
# Written Questionnaires | |||
==== '''Advantages of internet based survey:''' ==== | ==== '''Advantages of internet based survey:''' ==== | ||
Revision as of 07:00, 25 March 2018
Introduction[edit | edit source]
Survey is a common research method used in health and social care services. Survey research is a form of inquiry that rests on the assumption that meaningful information can be obtained by asking the parties of interest what they know, what they believe, and how they behave.[1]
In survey research, the data usually collected by using standardised form whether by interview or questionnaire. Surveys are designed to give a snapshot of how things are at specific time or condition without any control or manipulation of participants or variables [2].
Surveys are widely considered as a quantitative method which well situated to provide a factual and descriptive information, in contrast to qualitative methods that give a deeper understanding of participant views by using focus groups or unstructured interviews[3].
Definition:[edit | edit source]
A survey is defined as a “system for collecting information from or about people to describe, compare, or explain their knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour.” [4]
The Process of survey research:[edit | edit source]
The Survey system comprises seven activities.[4]
- Setting objectives for information collection
- Designing the study
- Preparing a reliable and valid survey instrument
- Administering the survey
- Managing survey data
- Analyzing survey data
- Reporting the results.
- Survey Design : There are different types of survey designs ( face to face or telephone interview- mailed surveys using postal or electronic media[5]. Choosing appropriate design for any research survey depends on sampling plan and sampling procedures[5].
- Sample selection: Depends on target population size, its homogeneity and sampling media .
- Sample size calculation: Depends on 5 factors:
- Statistical power
- ability of researcher to access target population .
- Degree of precision required( to measure precision by level of significance type 1 error or confidence interval)''
- Degree of population stratification .
- Selection of analysis unit [6][7].
- Survey Tool Development: survey should be worded carefully according to study aims and objectives using different styles of questions (open and closed-ended questions).Psychometrics is a branch of survey research that enables researchers to determine validity and reliability of questionnaire.[8]
- Execution of Survey: This process starts by stage starts by piloting questionnaire to test both survey instrument and procedures.After that the survey could be conducted and data collection starts.
- Data analysis and Reporting survey results: at that stage data analysis and effective presentation of results are important elements in a successful survey.[6]
Methods of collecting Survey Data[edit | edit source]
Following are the three ways of collecting survey data[1]
- Personal Interviews
- Telephone Interviews
- Written Questionnaires
Advantages of internet based survey:[edit | edit source]
- Less cost .
- Easy access to thousands of social and vocational groups.
- Time saving.( In process of data collection and analysis).[9]
Disadvantages of internet based survey:[edit | edit source]
- Sampling problems ( like generating a sampling frame )
- Selection bias ( which may affect generalisation of study findings ).
- Access issues ( some of virtual community users could consider research invitations as a rude behaviour or email may be considered as a spam[9] [10].
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Carter R, Lubinsky J. Rehabilitation Research-E-Book: Principles and Applications. Elsevier Health Sciences; 2015 Jun 30.
- ↑ Kelley, K., Clark, B., Brown, V. & Sitzia, J. 2003, Good practice in the conduct and reporting of survey research, Oxford :.
- ↑ De Vaus, D.A. 2002, Surveys in social research, Psychology Press.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Fink A. The survey handbook. Sage; 2003.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Dillman, D.A., Smyth, J.D. and Christian, L.M., 2014. Internet, phone, mail, and mixed-mode surveys: the tailored design method. John Wiley & Sons.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Glasow, P.A., 2005. Fundamentals of survey research methodology. Retrieved January, 18, p.2013.
- ↑ Barlett, J.E., Kotrlik, J.W. and Higgins, C.C., 2001. Organizational research: Determining appropriate sample size in survey research. Information technology, learning, and performance journal, 19(1), p.43.
- ↑ Litwin, M.S. and Fink, A., 1995. How to measure survey reliability and validity (Vol. 7). Sage.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Wright, K.B., 2005. Researching Internet-based populations: Advantages and disadvantages of online survey research, online questionnaire authoring software packages, and web survey services. Journal of computer-mediated communication, 10(3), p.JCMC1034.
- ↑ Andrews, D., Nonnecke, B. and Preece, J., 2003. Electronic survey methodology: A case study in reaching hard-to-involve Internet users. International journal of human-computer interaction, 16(2), pp.185-210.
