Survey research

descriptive research type

1. Survey Research Presented By: PH.D Scholar Muhammad Saeed

2. Definitions of Research According to L.R.Gey (2011,p.05), research is defined as “the formal, systematic application of the scientific method to the study of problems” John W. Creswell (2012), has defined research as “ research is a process of steps used to collect and analyze information to increase our understanding of a topic or issue” J.W.Best : Research is an intellectual activity which brings to light new knowledge or correct previous errors and misconceptions and adds in an orderly way to the existing corpus of knowledge.

3. Classification of Research By Purpose Basic Research. Applied Research. Applied research further divided in to Action research Research and development Evaluation research

4. Continue…… Classification of research by method Qualitative approach Narrative research Ethnography Case study Historical Research

5. Continue….. Quantitative(Descriptive) approach Experimental research Correlation research Causal comparative Single subject research Survey research

6. What is a survey? According to L.R Gey (2011), “ A survey is an instrument to collect data that describes one or more characteristics of a specific population”. Types of Survey 1. Sample Survey. Researchers get information about a population based on representative sample drawn from that population. 2. Census Survey. In this survey researchers attempt to acquire information from every member of a population.

7. Survey Research Definitions “Survey research involves collecting data to test hypotheses or to answer questions about people’s opinions on some topic or issue”(L.R.Gey,p.184). “Survey designs are the procedures in quantitative research in which investigators administrator a survey to a sample or to entire population of people to describe the attitudes, opinions, behaviors, or characteristics of the population”(J.W.Cresswell,p.376).

8. Continue… J.W. Best (2016,p.121) says, “The survey is an important type of study. It must not be confused with the mere clerical routine of gathering and tabulating figures. It involves a clearly defined problem and definite objectives. It requires expert and imaginative planning, careful analysis and interpretation of the data gathered, and logical and skillful reporting of the findings”.

9. Why do we conduct Survey Research? This research is very important because, major purpose of this research is to describe the characteristics of a population. It is important because information is collected from a sample rather than from the every member of the population. It has following advantages. Time saving. Solid result. Development of new knowledge. Individual’s interest. Unbiased. Awareness of problems. Development of new theories.

10. Designs of Survey Research Survey research generally come in one of the following two designs. 1.Cross-Sectional Surveys. 2.Longitudinal Surveys .

11. Cross-Sectional Surveys A cross-sectional survey is one in which data are collected from selected individuals at a single point in time. A snapshot of current behaviors, attitudes and beliefs in population. It Provides data relatively quickly. It is not effective if the researcher’s goal is to understand development over time.

12. Longitudinal Survey In a longitudinal survey study , data are collected at two or more times. It is extremely useful for studying a dynamics of a topic. It requires an extended commitment by the researcher and the participants. Longitudinal studies can be categorized in to following four types 1 A trend survey. 2 A cohort survey. 3 A panel survey. 4 A follow up survey.

13. Continue.... 1 A trend survey. It examines changes over times in a particular population defined by some particular trait. 2 A cohort survey. It involves one population selected at a particular time period. 3 A panel survey. It involves a sample in which the same individuals are studies over time. 4 A follow up survey. It addresses change in previously studied population.

14. Conducting a Survey Research .Whether a survey design is cross-sectional or longitudinal, it engage in the following process. 1. Sampling from a population. 2. Collecting data through questionnaires or interviews.

15. Sampling from the population Population. The group of people having one characteristic that distinguishes them from other group (John W. Creswell,p.381). Target Population. It is the actual list of sampling units from which the sample is selected(John W. Creswell,p.381). Sampling. It is a group of participants in a study selected from the target population (John W. Creswell,p.381).

16. Conducting a Questionnaire Study What is a questionnaire? According to L.R.Gey (2011,p.186), “A questionnaire is a written collection of surveys questions to be answered by a selected group of participants” A good questionnaire requires both skill and time. It should be easy, attractive and brief. The content and the format of the questionnaire should be comprehensive.

17. Types of Questionnaire Most commonly, surveys consist of following ways. 1. Structured items( also called close-ended/multiple choice items) format. It requires a respondent to chose among the provided options. Some times rating scale is also added with the questions.

18. Types… 2. Unstructured/Open-Ended items format. In this format the respondent has complete freedom of response. Respondent answer the question with his own choice. Answer can be consist of one word, one sentence or one paragraph.

19. Pilot Testing of Questionnaire Before distributing the questionnaire to participants, try it out a pilot study . It provides information about deficiencies and suggestions for improvement. All feedback provided should be carefully studied and considered.

20. Mailed Questionnaire It is a form of data collection in survey research in which the investigator mail a questionnaire to the members of the sample. It is a convenient way to reach a geographically dispersed sample of a population.

21. Web-Based Questionnaire A web –based questionnaire is a survey instrument for collecting data that is available on computer. For this purpose several software programs are available for designing, gathering and analyzing survey data.

22. Interviews An interview is a purposeful interaction in which one person obtain information from another( L.R.Gey,p.386). It is very important technique when a researcher cannot get the data through observation.

23. Types of Interview Structured . Tight control over the questions and answers. Unstructured. Interviewee is free to share his/her ideas. Sami-Structured. A tightly controlled yet a bit flexible. One to One. Group interview Focus group Face to Face or through other electronic sources.

24. Preparing a Cover Letter A major component of a mailed questionnaire consist of a cover letter inviting the participant to take part in the study and to complete the instrument ( John W. Cresswell,p.2012). The letter should explain. Purpose of the study. Significance of the study. Importance of the participant.

25. Non-response In almost all surveys, some members of the sample will not respond. This is referred to as non-response. A good researcher fully tries to minimize the percentage of non-response items.

26. Tabulating Questionnaire Responses Its easiest way is to have participants mark responses data on a scan-able answer sheet. If scan-able sheet are not an option, then each respondent’s will have to be inter one by one into computer spread sheet. For qualitative data use the qualitative software programs where advanced statistical analyses can be performed .

27. Data Analysis in Survey Research A researcher follow the following steps for this purpose. Total size of the sample should be reported, along with the overall percentage of return. The percentage of the total sample responding for each item should then be reported. Finally, the percentage of respondents who chose each alternative for each question should be given.

28. Any Question?