The Questionnaire method This is the simplest and most often used method of primary data collection There is a pre-determined set of questions in a sequential format Is designed to suit the respondent’s understanding and language command Can be conducted to collect useful data from a large population in a short duration of time

Criteria for questionnaire design The spelt out research objectives need to be converted into specific questions It must be designed to engage the respondent and encourage meaningful response The questions should be designed in simple language and be self-explanatory

Types of questionnaire Formalized & unconcealed questionnaire: self-explanatory with most response categories predefined Out of the following options, where do you invest (tick all that apply) Precious metals , real estate , stocks , Government instruments , mutual funds------any other Who carries out your investments? Myself , agent , relative , friend , any other What is your source of information for these decisions? Newspaper , investment magazines , company records etc , Trading portals , agent

Types of questionnaire Most response categories are predefined, but latent cause of behavior are derived from indirect questions Please indicate level of your agreement for the following statements. SA - Strongly Agree; A-Agree; N-Neutral; SD- Strongly Disagree; D-Disagree

SLIDE 8-6 Types of questionnaire undisguised (Direct) and most response categories are not predefined Why do you think Maggi noodles are liked by young children? How do you generally decide on where you are going to invest your money? Give three reasons why you believe that the 2010 Commonwealth Games in India are going to help the country?

Types of questionnaire method of administration Self-administered questionnaire: respondents fills in the questionnaire him/her self Schedule: the investigator/researcher reads out the questions and records the respondents’ answers.

SLIDE 8-9 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY CONCEPTS AND CASES DR DEEPAK CHAWLA DR NEENA SONDHI Criteria for questionnaire selection Population characteristics Population spread Study area

Converting the research objectives into information areas

Questionnaire Design Process Step 1-Specify the information needed Review the component of the problem Research Question Hypothesis Information Needed Researcher should have a clear idea of the population

Step 2:Questionnaire Administration method/Type of Interviewing Personal Schedule Personal Administered Questionnaire Telephone Questionnaire Electronic questionnaire (Computer Assisted questionnair questionnaire) Design of questionnaire and type of interviewing method is highly related For example ranking 10 stores is too complex a task to be administered over phone.

SLIDE 8-13 Mode of administration: Schedule

SLIDE 8-14 Mode of administration: telephone

SLIDE 8-15 Mode of administration: mail

Content of the Questionnaire How essential is to ask the questions Neutral Question farming for you is : Noble profession Ancestral profession Profession like any other Profession that is not attractive Any other One Question or multiple question

SLIDE 8-17 Content of the questionnaire Several questions or single question “Why do you like the serial (the one you ranked/prefer watching most)?” (Incorrect) "What do you like about ?" “Who all in your household watches the serial? and "How did you first happen to hear about the serial?" (Correct)

Another case of multiple questions embedded in a single question is Why do you shop at Big Bazaar (incorrect) Why question has two aspect Attributes of the product Influence leading to knowledge of it What do you like about Big Bazaar as compared to other stores? How do you first happen to shop at Big Bazaar Motivating the Respondent to answer Overcoming Inability to answer? Is the respondent informed A husband may not be informed about the monthly expenses for groceries or vice versa. Don’t Know option Or Filter question that measures familiarity and product use.

Can the respondent remember? What is the brand name of the shirt you were wearing two weeks ago? How many liters of soft drinks did you consume during the last four weeks? How often do you consume soft drink in a typical week? Less than once a week 1-3 times per week 4-6 times per week 7 or more times per week What brands of soft drink do you remember being advertised last night on TV? Which of these brands were advertised last night on TV?

Can the respondent Articulate Respondent may be unable to articulate certain type of response Describe a river rafting experience Exciting Good Interesting Expensive Dangerous If you give them alternative description of the experience they will be able to indicate. Aids are required like map, pictures, description to articulate the response. Legitimate Purpose Respondents will be unwilling to share info. Not serving legitimate purpose (For e.g.. Why cereal company want to know about the age, education and income.)

Public versus Private (Sensitive Information) A recent poll conducted by Gallup (Gallup.com) sought to obtain information on whether the personal information about political candidate or ordinary citizen should be disclosed in public. The question was prefaced with the following statement. “The question of where to draw line on the matter of privacy has been much debated, with some saying that the standard should be different for candidate for important public office than for ordinary citizens” This statement is increasing the willingness to respond.

Do’s for increasing the willingness of Respondent Place sensitive topic at the end of questionnaire, rapport with the respondent, legitimacy of the project and the respondent will be more willing to share information. Ask the question using third person technique.

Choosing Question Structure Unstructured/Open ended/free response What is your occupation Who is your favorite political figure Advantage Less biasing influence. Rich insight to the researcher Are useful in ……………………….. Research. Disadvantage Interviewer Bias is high ( Main point) Coding is difficult and time consuming

Choosing Question Wording Define the issue Which Brand of shampoo do you use Which brand of shampoo do you personally used at home during last one month ? In case of more than one, please list all the brands that apply? Use Ordinary words Do you think distribution of soft drink is adequate? Do you think soft drinks are readily available when you want to buy them? Use unambiguous words In a typical month,How often do you shop at departmental store? Neveroccasionally Some timesoftenregularly Less than more than that Avoid leading or Biasing question Do you think patriotic Indians should buy imported automobiles when they would put Indian labor out of work? Do you think Indians should buy imported automobile?

Determining the order of question Types of Information Basic Information: Directly relates to the research problem Classification Information: consisting of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, is used to classify the respondents and understand the results. Identification Information: includes name, address, address and telephone number. As a general guidelines, basic information should be obtained first, followed by classification and finally identification information. Funnel Approach: strategy for ordering questions in a questionnaire in which the sequence starts with general questions that are followed by progressively specific questions in order to prevent specific questions from biasing general questions. Pretesting the questionnaire