Survey Research Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven Objectives Understand the reasons for the popularity of survey research Learn about types of surveys Understand the advantages and disadvantages of online surveys Learn about Internet samples and ways online surveys can be conducted Recognize the special issues that arise in designing online questionnaires Gain insight into the factors that determine the choice of particular survey methods Learn about the types of errors in survey research Chapter Seven

The Popularity of Survey Research WhyHowWho Chapter Seven

Door-to-Door Interviews: PROS: Direct customer contact, can demonstrate products, response rates good CONS: Expensive, bad image, liability, safety issues Executive Interviews: PROS: Talking with decision-maker is valuable, can have complicated questioning CONS: Hard to get decision-maker, limited sample size Mall-Intercept Interviews: PROS: Direct customer contact, can test products, human interaction CONS: Expensive, not always representative of the population, busy environment Types of Surveys Chapter Seven

Central-Location Telephone Interviews: PROS: Good segmentation, can verify respondent as the right person, customization of questionnaire CONS: Cost, response rates slipping, need to have short surveys Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviews (CATI): PROS: Data can be directly entered into computer, can have complicated skip patterns, data entry errors rare CONS: Computer glitches, need interviewer training, expensive equipment Types of Surveys Chapter Seven

Self-Administered Questionnaires: PROS: Respondents can take their time, good response rates CONS: Respondents often take a long time, researcher can overcomplicate the survey since respondents have more time Mail Surveys: PROS: Not too expensive, can get targeted mailing lists, longer questionnaires CONS: Low response rates, mailing list often out of date, not sure who completed the survey, manual data entry common Types of Surveys Chapter Seven

Cross-Sectional Surveys: Are one-time snapshots of a population Use the same survey and different sample Longitudinal Surveys: Identify market trends Use the same survey and same sample Use tracking panels and groups Cross-Sectional Surveys: Are one-time snapshots of a population Use the same survey and different sample Longitudinal Surveys: Identify market trends Use the same survey and same sample Use tracking panels and groups Types of Surveys Chapter Seven

Rapid deployment Reduced costs Personalization High response rate Ability to contact hard-to-reach consumers Simplified /enhanced panel management Information security, both real and perceived Often not representative of the general population Connecting speeds can slow down some survey applications Anyone can take the survey if not password protected Difficult to find good sample frames May be hard to track who / who did not respond Survey Research on the Internet Chapter Seven ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

Web survey system Survey design and web hosting sites Methods of Conducting Online Surveys Chapter Seven

Screened Internet samples Recruited Internet samples Recruited panels Renting Internet panels Random website intercepts Data capture of visitors Internet Samples Chapter Seven

Sampling precision Budget Requirements for respondent reactions Quality of data desired / required Desired questionnaire length Incidence rates Questionnaire structure Time available to complete the survey Determination of the Survey Method Chapter Seven

Sampling Error Systematic Error - Sample design error - Frame error - Population specification error - Selection error - Measurement error - Surrogate information error - Interviewer error - Measurement instrument bias - Processing error - Non-response bias - Response bias Types of Errors in Survey Research Chapter Seven