Management

Research
Methods
Mr Manjesha
Module 3
Sample design, steps in sampling process, sampling methods – probability
Sampling and non- probability sampling, sampling error, Criteria for good
sample, determining sample size.
Measurement – Types of Scales Scaling techniques. Meaning of Primary and
Secondary data, Primary data collection methods - observations, survey,
interview and Questionnaire, Qualitative Techniques of data collection,
Questionnaire design – Meaning - process of designing questionnaire.
Secondary data -Sources – advantages and dis-advantages. Measurement and
Scaling Techniques: Basic measurement scales-Nominal scale, Ordinal scale,
Interval scale, Ratio scale. Attitude measurement scale - Likert’s Scale,
Semantic Differential Scale, Thurstone scale, Multi-Dimensional Scaling.
 What is Population and Sample?
• The population is the entire group that you want to
draw conclusions about.

• The sample is the specific group of individuals that you

will collect data from.
What is Sampling?
• Sampling is a process used in statistical analysis in which a predetermined
number of observations are taken from a larger population.
• Sampling involves any procedure that draws conclusions based on
measurements of a portion of the population.
• Sampling is the most widely used tool for gathering important and useful
information from the population.
• If certain statistical procedures are followed, a researcher need not select
every item in a population because the results of a good sample should
have the same characteristics as the population as a whole.
Case of Sampling
• A famous example of error due to sampling is the 1936 Literary
Digest fiasco
• The magazine conducted a survey and predicted that Republican Alf
Landon would win over Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt by a
landslide in that year’s presidential election. Alf Landon
• This prediction was wrong—and the error was due to sample
selection.
• The post-mortems showed that Literary Digest had sampled its
readers and names drawn from telephone books.
• In 1936, not everyone had a telephone or a car; thus the sample was
biased toward people with means.
• In reality, Roosevelt received over 60 percent of the popular vote.
Franklin D
Roosevelt
Why Sampling is essential?
• Sampling saves time.
• Sampling saves money.
• Sampling broadens the scope of the study in light of the scarcity of
resources.
• It has been noticed that sampling provides more accurate results,
as compared to census because in sampling, non-sampling errors
can be controlled more easily.
What is Sampling error?
• A sampling error is a statistical error that occurs when an analyst does
not select a sample that represents the entire population of data. As a
result, the results found in the sample do not represent the results
that would be obtained from the entire population.

• Sampling error occurs when the sample is not a true representative of

the population.

• For example, in case US election 1936

What is Non-Sampling error
• Non-sampling errors include non-response errors, coverage errors, and
processing errors.

• A coverage error would occur, for example, if a person were counted

twice in a survey, or their answers were duplicated on the survey.

• It is difficult to prove that respondents in a survey are providing false

information—either by mistake or on purpose.

• Either way, mis information provided by respondents count as non-

sampling errors and they are described as response errors.
Sampling Design Process
• Target population is the collection of objects, which possess the
information required by the researcher and about which an
inference is to be made.

• A researcher takes a sample from a population list, directory, map, city

directory, or any other source used to represent the population. This list
possesses the information about the subjects and is called the sampling
frame.

• Random sampling or Non Random sampling

• Sample size refers to the number of elements to be included in the

study.
• Qualitative (minimum) and Quantitative (maximum)

• The execution of sampling techniques requires detailed

specification of all above steps
Probability Sampling
• Probability sampling is a technique in which the researcher chooses
samples from a larger population using a method based on probability
theory. For a participant to be considered as a probability sample, he/she
must be selected using a random selection.

• The most critical requirement of probability sampling is that everyone in

your population has a known and equal chance of getting selected.

• Probability sampling uses statistical theory to randomly select a small

group of people (sample) from an existing large population and then
predict that all their responses will match the overall population.
Non-Probability/Non-Random Sampling
• Non-probability sampling is defined as a sampling technique in which the
researcher selects samples based on the subjective judgment of the
researcher rather than random selection. It is a less stringent method. This
sampling method depends heavily on the expertise of the researchers. It is
carried out by observation, and researchers use it widely for qualitative
research.

• Non-probability sampling is a sampling method in which not all members

of the population have an equal chance of participating in the study
Sampling Methods
Probability Sampling Methods
 Simple Random Sampling
• In a simple random sample, every member of the
population has an equal chance of being selected.

• Your sampling frame should include the whole population.

• To conduct this type of sampling, you can use tools like

random number generators or other techniques that are
based entirely on chance.

• You want to select a simple random sample of 100

employees of Company X. You assign a number to every
employee in the company database from 1 to 1000, and
use a random number generator to select 100 numbers.
 Simple Random Sampling Cont.
• Each member of population has equal chance of being
selected
 Systematic Sampling
• Systematic sampling is similar to simple random sampling,
but it is usually slightly easier to conduct.

• Every member of the population is listed with a number,

but instead of randomly generating numbers, individuals
are chosen at regular intervals.

• “with systematic sampling, every Kth item is selected to

produce a sample of size n from a population size of N”
 Systematic Sampling Cont.
All employees of the company are listed in alphabetical order. From
the first 10 numbers, you randomly select a starting point: number
6.

From number 6 onwards, every 10th person on the list is selected

(6, 16, 26, 36, and so on), and you end up with a sample of 100
people.
Systematic Sampling Cont.
 Stratified Sampling
• Stratified sampling involves dividing the population into
subpopulations that may differ in important ways.

• It allows you to draw more precise conclusions by

ensuring that every subgroup is properly represented in
the sample.

• To use this sampling method, you divide the population

into subgroups (called strata) based on the relevant
characteristic (e.g. gender, age range, income bracket, job
role).
 Stratified Sampling Cont.
• The company has 800 female employees and 200 male
employees.

• You want to ensure that the sample reflects the gender

balance of the company, so you sort the population into
two strata based on gender.

• Then you use random sampling on each group, selecting

80 women and 20 men, which gives you a representative
sample of 100 people.

• They are internally homogenous

Stratified Sampling Cont.
 Cluster Sampling
• Cluster sampling refers to a sampling method wherein the
members of the population are selected at random, from
naturally occurring groups called 'cluster’.

• All the individuals are taken from randomly selected

clusters.

• It might seem as there is no difference between stratified

sampling and cluster sampling?

• There is a well-defined difference between stratified

sampling and cluster sampling.
Cluster Sampling cont.
Difference between Stratified Sampling vs Cluster Sampling
 Difference between Stratified Sampling vs Cluster Sampling

BASIS FOR
STRATIFIED SAMPLING CLUSTER SAMPLING
COMPARISON
Meaning Stratified sampling is one, in which the population Cluster sampling refers to a sampling
is divided into homogeneous segments, and then method wherein the members of the
the sample is randomly taken from the segments. population are selected at random, from
naturally occurring groups called 'cluster'.

Sample Randomly selected individuals are taken from all All the individuals are taken from randomly
the strata. selected clusters.
Selection of Individually Collectively
population elements
Homogeneity Within group Between groups
Heterogeneity Between groups Within group
Bifurcation Imposed by the researcher Naturally occurring groups
Objective To increase precision and representation. To reduce cost and improve efficiency.
Non-Probability Sampling
Methods
Non-Probability Sampling
 Convenience Sampling
• A convenience sample simply includes the individuals who happen to be most accessible
to the researcher.

• This is an easy and inexpensive way to gather initial data, but there is no way to tell if the
sample is representative of the population, so it can’t produce generalizable results.

• You are researching opinions about student support services in your university, so after
each of your classes, you ask your fellow students to complete a survey on the topic.

• This is a convenient way to gather data, but as you only surveyed students taking the same
classes as you at the same level, the sample is not representative of all the students at
your university.
 Voluntary response sampling

• Similar to a convenience sample, a voluntary response sample is mainly based on

ease of access. Instead of the researcher choosing participants and directly
contacting them, people volunteer themselves (e.g. by responding to a public
online survey).

• Voluntary response samples are always at least somewhat biased, as some people
will inherently be more likely to volunteer than others.
 Purposive sampling
• This type of sampling involves the researcher using their judgement to select a
sample that is most useful to the purposes of the research.

• Judgmental or Expert sampling is usually used in situations where the target

population comprises of highly intellectual individuals who cannot be chosen by
using any other probability or non-probability sampling technique.
 Snowball sampling
• If the population is hard to access, snowball sampling can be used to recruit
participants via other participants.

• The number of people you have access to “snowballs” as you get in contact with
more people.

Example
• You are researching experiences of homelessness in your city. Since there is no
list of all homeless people in the city, probability sampling isn’t possible.

• You meet one person who agrees to participate in the research, and she puts
you in contact with other homeless people that she knows in the area.
 Sample Size Determination

where,
•N = Population size,
•Z = Critical value of the normal distribution at the required
confidence level,
•p = Sample proportion,
•e = Margin of error
 How to Calculate Sample Size? (Step by Step)

Step 1: Firstly, determine the population size, which is the total number of
distinct entities in your population, and it is denoted by N.

[Note: In case the population size is very large but the exact number is not
known, then use 100,000 because the sample size doesn’t change much for
populations larger than that.]
 How to Calculate Sample Size? (Step by Step) cont.
Step 2: Next, determine the critical value of the normal distribution at the
required confidence level. For example, the critical value at 95% confidence level
is 1.96.
Step 3: Next, determine the sample proportion which can be used from previous
survey results or be collected by running a small pilot survey. [Note: if unsure,
one can always use 0.5 as a conservative approach, and it will give the largest
possible sample size.]

Step 4: Next, determine the margin of error, which is the range in which the
true population is expected to lie. [Note: Smaller the margin of error, more is
the precision and hence the exact answer.]
How to Calculate Sample Size? (Step by Step) cont.

Step 5: Finally, the sample size equation can be derived by using population
size (step 1), the critical value of the normal distribution at the required
confidence level (step 2), sample proportion (step 3), and margin of error
(step 4) as shown below.
How to Calculate Sample Size? (Step by Step) cont.

Margin of error: A percentage that tells you how much you can
expect your survey results to reflect the views of the overall
population. The smaller the margin of error, the closer you are to
having the exact answer at a given confidence level.

Sampling confidence level: A percentage that reveals how confident

you can be that the population would select an answer within a
certain range. For example, a 95% confidence level means that you
can be 95% certain the results lie between x and y numbers.
 Example of sample size determination

Example #1

Let us take the example of a retailer who is interested to know how many of their
customers bought an item from them after viewing their website on a certain day.
Given that their website has on average, 10,000 views per day determine the sample
size of the customers that they have to monitor at a 95% confidence level with a 5%
margin of error if:

• They are uncertain of the current conversion rate.

• They know from previous surveys that the conversion rate is 5%.
• Given,
• Population size, N = 10,000
• Critical value at 95% confidence level, Z = 1.96
• Margin of error, e = 5% or 0.05
• 1 – Since the current conversion rate is unknown, let us assume p =
0.5
 Example of sample size determination cont.

Given,
Population size, N = 10,000
Critical value at 95% confidence level, Z = 1.96
Margin of error, e = 5% or 0.05
1 – Since the current conversion rate is unknown, let us assume p = 0.5

= (10,000 * (1.96^2)*0.5*(1-0.5)/(0.05^2)/(10000 – 1+((1.96^2)* 0.5*(1-0.5)/(0.05 ^2))))

=370
Therefore, 370 customers will be adequate for deriving meaningful inference.
 Example of sample size determination cont.

2 – The current conversion rate is p = 5% or 0.05

Therefore, the sample size can be calculated using the above formula as,

= (10,000 * (1.96^2)*0.05*(1-0.05)/(0.05^2)/(10000 – 1+((1.96^2)* 0.05*(1-

0.05)/(0.05^2))))

Therefore, a size of 72 customers will be adequate for deriving meaningful

inference in this case.
Data collection methods
Data Classification
 Data Classification
1. Nominal/Categorical (E.g. Male or Female; Colors,
Country, State, Territory, Region) no order
Categorical Data

2.Ordinal (E.g. 1st, 2nd and 3rd in class ranking) ordered

3. Interval (E.g. Celsius and Fahrenheit) there is no absolute

zero Continuous Data

4. Ratio/ continuous (E.g. 10kgs is twice as much as 5kgs)

there is a true zero point
Nominal Scale
Nominal scales represent the most elementary level of measurement.
A nominal scale assigns a value to an object for identification or
classification purposes only. The value can be, but does not have to be,
a number because no quantities are being represented. In this sense, a
nominal scale is truly a qualitative scale. Nominal scales are extremely
useful, and are sometimes the only appropriate measure, even though
they can be considered elementary.
Ex:
Movie Genres - Comedy, Action, horror, drama
Gender – Male, Female
Ordinal Scale
Ordinal scales allow things to be arranged in order based on how much
of some concept they possess. In other words, an ordinal scale is a
ranking scale. In fact, we often use the term rank order to describe an
ordinal scale.

Ex: When class rank for high school students is determined, we have used an
ordinal scale. We know that the student ranked seventh finished ahead of the
student ranked eighth, who finished ahead of the ninth ranked student.
Interval Scale
Scales that have both nominal and ordinal properties, but that also
capture information about differences in quantities of a concept from
one observation to the next.

Ex: If a professor assigns grades to term papers using a numbering system ranging
from 1.0–20.0, not only does the scale represent the fact that a student with a 16.0
outperformed a student with 12.0, but the scale would show by how much (4.0).
Ratio Scale
Represent the highest form of measurement in that they have all the
properties of interval scales with the additional attribute of
representing absolute quantities; characterized by a meaningful
absolute zero.
Consider the following items offered for sale in an online auction:
-“Antique” 1970s digital watch—did not sell and there were no takers for free
- Gold-filled Elgin wristwatch circa 1950—sold for $100
- Vintage stainless steel Omega wristwatch—sold for $1,000
- Antique rose gold Patek Philippe “Top Hat” wristwatch—sold for $9,000
Data collection methods
 Data collection methods

Data Collection Method

Transactional Interview and Social Media Online Tracking

Observation Tracking Focus Groups
Survey
monitoring
OBSERVATION TECHNIQUES
 OBSERVATION TECHNIQUE

• Observation techniques involve watching and recording the behaviour of test

subjects or test objects in a systematic manner without interacting with them.

• Systematic observation represents the ultimate in cheap but good research, which
enables one to gather free data found in the environment.

• While applying observation techniques, the researcher does not communicate

with the subjects and acts as a neutral observer.

• In observation method, the researcher records the behaviour of the test subjects
or test objects using a pencil and paper or does videography.

• Hard to quantify the outcomes, time consuming, and difficult to generalize.

Observation methods
 Personal Observation
• As the name indicates, in personal observation, an observer actually watches
the subject behaviour and makes a record of it.

• The researcher never tries to alter the behaviour of the subject but just
records it as it happens in front of him.
 Mechanical Observation
• Mechanical observation involves the observation of behaviour of the respondents through a
mechanical device.

• This device may be a video camera, a voice recorder, eye-movement recorder, and other
such devices.

• In modern times, many mechanical devices are available to record the behaviour of the
subjects.
 Mechanical Observation (Cont.)
• For example, a camera can record the actions of a respondent better than any human being.

• When a researcher, in particular will like to measure the emotional reaction of an individual to
a stimuli through his eye pupil movement, the human observation is neither feasible nor
practical.

• The capacity of measuring eye movement at a rate of 30 readings per second with respect to
any stimuli such as advertisement, shelf display, and so on.
 Audits
• Audit involves examination of particular records or inventory analysis of the items
under investigation.

• In audit analysis, the researchers personally collect the data and usually make the
count of the items under investigation.

• Audit is a highly structured technique and usually is performed personally by an

auditor.
 Content Analysis
• Content analysis is a research technique used to objectively and systematically make
inferences about the intentions, attitudes, and values of individuals by identifying
specified characteristics in textual, voice and video messages.

• Content analysis systematically examines the content of communication as an

indirect observation and analysis.

• The unit of analysis may be words (different words or type of words in the message),
characters (individuals or objects), themes (propositions), space and time measures
(length or duration of the message), or topics (subjects of the message)

• With this type of analysis, you can analyse data such as text messages, books,
Facebook posts, videos, and audio
 Content Analysis Cont.
 Two types of Content Analysis
 Conceptual Analysis
 Relational Analysis

 Conceptual Analysis
 The conceptual analysis focuses on the number of times a concept occurs in a
set of data
 For example

Sireesh: Anjali told me that she has three cats.

Suraj: What are her cats’ names?

Sireesh: I think the first one is Bella, the second one is Mia,
and… I can’t remember the third cat’s name.
 Content Analysis Cont.

Sireesh: Anjali told me that she has three cats.

Shreya: What are her cats’ names?

Sireesh: I think the first one is Chinnu, the second one is

Mannu, and… I can’t remember the third cat’s name……

In this data, you can see that the word “cat” has been used three times. Through
conceptual content analysis, you can deduce that cats are the central topic of the
conversation.

You can also perform a frequency analysis, where you assess the term’s frequency in
the data
 Content Analysis Cont.
Affect extraction

Affect extraction is when you assess concepts according to emotional attributes.

Raj: KGF is an awesome movie.

Kumar: Yeah I watched it. Its full of Action. I liked it

The emotions are typically mapped on scales, such as a Likert scale or a rating scale ranging from 1 to
5, where 1 is “very sad” and 5 is “very happy”.

If participants are talking about their achievements, they are likely to be given a score of 4 or 5,
depending on how good they feel about it. If a participant is describing a traumatic event, they are
likely to have a much lower score, either 1 or 2.
 Content Analysis Cont.
Proximity Analysis

Proximity analysis investigates the relationship between terms and aims to group these to extract
themes and develop meaning.

Jubin: Hi there, what can I help you with?

Lauren: I recently adopted a puppy and I’m worried that I’m not
feeding him the right food. Could you please advise me on what I
should be feeding?

Jubin: Sure, just follow me and I’ll show you. How many puppies do
you have?

Lauren: I have only one.

Proximity analysis is typically utilised when you’re looking for hard facts rather than
emotional, cultural, or contextual factors.
 Content Analysis Cont.

Cognitive Mapping

A cognitive map is a mental representation of the layout of one's environment. It seems that many
animals, not just humans, are able to form a mental representation of an environment that they
have been in or are currently in.

For example, when a friend asks you for directions to your house, you are able to create an image
in your mind of the roads, places to turn, landmarks, etc., along the way to your house from your
friend's starting point. This representation is the cognitive map.

Just share your experience at KFC/McDonalds/MTR/Wonderla/….

Survey Method
 Survey Method
• Survey means gathering information through respondents for any pre- established
research objective.

• In most of the scientific research, this information is obtained from a representative

sample of the population.
 Survey Method (Cont.)
• In a survey method, a structured questionnaire is given to the respondents and the
information is obtained.

• This information pertains to some demographic characteristics, attitudinal aspects,

intentions, and awareness of the respondents participating in survey.
 Survey Method (Cont.)

• Survey also covers overall assessment of a respondent

about any object and his or her favourable or
unfavourable opinion about it.

• Measuring the respondent behaviour mainly involves

seeking answers of “what,” “when,” “where” and
“how often” about a research phenomenon.

• For example, a toothpaste company can launch a

survey to assess “what” attributes consumers want,
“when” they purchase toothpaste, “where” is the
source of purchase, and “how often” consumers
purchase the product.
Door to Door Interview
 Door to Door Interview
• Door-to-door interview technique is a traditional technique of
getting responses from the respondents at their home.

• In this technique, the interviewer contacts the respondents at

their home in person and seeks a face-to-face interview.

• Principally, door-to-door interview technique is ideal as it

allows the respondents to provide answers in a familiar, safe,
and comfortable home environment.

• This gives an opportunity to an interviewer to uncover some

real facts and figure that otherwise is very difficult to obtain.

• But it is very difficult in terms of execution.

• Now a days people are busy, Job Stress, do not want to meet
strangers.,
 Door to Door Interview Cont.

• Great deal of difficulty for an interviewer who is

supposed to visit the respondent.

• The door bell can be very unpleasant for many

individuals as this hinders their routine or leisure
activities such as watching a movie with the family.
Mall Intercept Interview
 Mall Intercept Interview
• In mall intercept interview technique, a respondent who
actually is a visitor to the shopping mall is intercepted
by the interviewer for obtaining the responses.

• The interviewers stationed at the entrance of the

shopping mall or any other pre-specified location invite
the respondents to participate in a structured interview.

• Cost-efficient approach of collecting data is a major

advantage of this type of interview

• Easy to execute
 Mall Intercept Interview

• Difficulty in response rate: The respondents come to the

malls for shopping and not for answering the questions.

• Especially in India, where visiting shopping malls is

treated as a fun activity with the family, interruption of
any kind is not welcomed by anyone.

• Not the true representative of the population.

• The interviewer will try to contact a respondent who

looks friendly, and this results in a respondent selection
bias.
 Office Interview
• An interviewer conducts an office interview at the work place of the respondents.

• When the research objective is to unfold the consumer attitude of any industrial product or
services, then probably home interview technique will not be able to generate accurate
responses.
 Self-Administered Questionnaire

• In self-administered questionnaire, no interviewer is involved.

• A series of questions are presented to the respondents without the intervention of the
interviewer.
• Example Service ratings in Hotels, Restaurants, and Service providers
 Self-Administered Questionnaire Cont.

• Absence of intervention of the interviewer makes this interview technique bias free from the
interviewer’s angle on the one hand.

• Some of the difficult-to-understand questions will always be suspicious as it is affected by the

interpretation of the respondent.
 Omnibus Surveys

• An omnibus survey is a single questionnaire administered to a large number of respondents

that ask about a variety of unrelated topics.
• The questions span across a variety of products, services, brands, and behaviors paid for by
several survey sponsors.
• This variety and all-encompassing nature of an omnibus survey are driven by those paying
sponsors who buy questions in the survey together to share costs across the sample pool.
• As a form of continuous marketing research, such surveys are conducted at regular intervals
and cover a range of topics, usually for a number of different clients.

• cost effective
• standardized and schedule based
• respondents can be easily tracked
Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) Techniques
 Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) Techniques

• CAPI is a type of personal interview technique where the respondents provide

their response inputs directly through a computer terminal by using a keyboard or
a mouse.

• Graphical display associated with the question presents a good opportunity for the
respondents to understand the questions well

• Respondent can take more time to answer.

• Reduce time spent in data collection and coding

 Personal Interview using Telephone
• In personal interview using telephone, the interviewers ask a series of questions to
the respondents and record the responses on the questionnaire papers.

• These days most of the telephone interviews are conducted from a centralized
location where the telephone lines are specifically set up for conducting the
surveys.

• Researcher to control the interview process and help the interviewer when
required

• cost efficient

• interviewer talks to a respondent as a stranger

• “non-response” of the respondent.

• very difficult for an interviewer to explain to the respondent.

 E-Mail Interview using Telephone
In an e-mail interview technique, the researcher sends the questionnaire to the respondents by
an e-mail.
The respondents key in their answers and send the e-mail back to the researcher.
EVALUATION CRITERIA FOR SURVEY METHODS
 Transactional Survey

• Each time your customers make a

purchase, tracking that data can allow you
to make decisions about targeted
marketing efforts and understand your
customer base better.

• Often, e-commerce and point-of-sale

platforms allow you to store data as soon
as it’s generated, making this a seamless
data collection method that can pay off in
the form of customer insights.
Focus Group
Process of Focus Group Interview:
• In a focus group, the participants gather at a centralized location.
• There are usually 8 to 12 participants discussing a single topic in the
presence of the moderator.
• The moderator introduces the discussion topic and encourages the
participants to discuss the topic within the discussion range.
• In this mode of discussion, the participants are allowed to express their true
emotional feelings, anxieties, frustrations, and opinions in a free discussion
atmosphere.
• The focus group provides an opportunity for the researchers to probe the
people’s emotional reaction to issues that offer further understanding of
the target individuals’ reaction to the issues, thereby assisting in better
understanding of the research finding
In-depth Interview
 In-Depth Interviews

• A one-on-one interview between a professional researcher and a research

respondent conducted about some relevant business or social topic.

• A depth interview is a probing between a highly skilled interviewer and a

respondent from the target population to unfold the underlying opinions,
motivations, emotions, or feelings of an individual respondent, on a topic
generally coined by the researcher.

• In the depth interview, one-on-one information is obtained from a member

of the target population by a skilled interviewer.
 In-Depth Interviews
• Through a one-on-one interaction process, an interviewer can explore the
in-depth information, which is not possible through a focus group interview.

• The quality of information obtained through the depth interview is

dependent on the skill and experience of the interviewer, hence, a skilled
and qualified interviewer is the first pre-requisite of the depth interview
technique.

• The depth interview can last for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

 Social Media Monitoring
• Monitoring your company’s social media channels for follower engagement
is an accessible way to track data about your audience’s interests and
motivations.

• Many social media platforms have analytics built-in, but there are also
third-party social platforms that give more detailed, organized insights
pulled from multiple channels.

• You can use data collected from social media to determine which issues are
most important to your followers. For instance, you may notice that the
number of engagements dramatically increases when your company posts
about its sustainability efforts.
Attitude Measurement Scales
Likert Scale
Likert scale is a five (or seven) point scale which is used to allow the
individual to express how much they agree or disagree with a particular
statement.

Likert scale (typically) provides five possible answers to a statement or

question that allows respondents to indicate their positive-to-negative
strength of agreement or strength of feeling regarding the question or
statement. People state how much they agree or disagree with a
particular statement.
Likert Scale Example – 5 point
I’m satisfied with the investment my organization makes in education:

1. Strongly agree
2. Agree
3. Neither agree nor disagree
4. Disagree
5. Strongly disagree
Likert Scale Example – 7 point
I’m satisfied with the security that my I Phone provides:

1. Strongly agree
2. Agree
3. Somewhat agree
4. Neither agree nor disagree
5. Somewhat disagree
6. Disagree
7. Strongly disagree
Semantic Differential Scale
• Semantic differential scale is a type of survey rating scale used for
psychological measurement. It helps to get to know your audience’s
attitudes, approaches and perspectives. A researcher develops a
survey allowing a respondent to express a judgment, using a scale of
five to seven points.
• Questionnaires that use the semantic scale are considered to be a
very reliable way to get information on people’s emotional reactions
when it comes to a wide variety of subjects.
Semantic Scale - Example
Thurstone scale
• The Thurstone Scale is a method used to measure and quantify the
opinions or attitudes of people being surveyed, using a format of
‘agree-disagree’ questions.
• The agree-disagree statements are assigned a numerical value by the
researcher before beginning. These weighted responses help a
researcher understand a respondent’s opinion about a subject but
also the strength of that opinion.
• The Thurstone Scale is a very effective way of accurately quantifying
responses, attitudes and opinions, making statistical comparisons
much more effective. The scale is commonly used in the fields of
psychology and sociology.
Thurstone scale Example
1. I am happy with the level of attention I am receiving.
a. Agree
b. Disagree

2. I am confident in the quality of training resources available to me.

a. Agree
b. Disagree

3. I feel I can achieve a good balance between college and relaxation time.
a. Agree
b. Disagree
Multidimensional Scaling(MDS)

Multidimensional scaling is a visual representation of distances or

dissimilarities between sets of objects. “Objects” can be colors, faces,
map coordinates, political persuasion, or any kind of real or conceptual
stimuli. Objects that are more similar (or have shorter distances) are
closer together on the graph than objects that are less similar (or have
longer distances). As well as interpreting dissimilarities as distances on
a graph, MDS can also serve as a dimension reduction technique for
high-dimensional data.
Questionnaire Design
Questionnaire

A questionnaire is a research instrument that consists of a set of

questions or other types of prompts that aims to collect information
from a respondent. A research questionnaire is typically a mix of close-
ended questions and open-ended questions.
Types of Questions
• Open-Ended Questions: Open-ended questions help collect qualitative data in
a questionnaire where the respondent can answer in a free form with little to no
restrictions.
• Dichotomous Questions: The dichotomous question is generally a “yes/no”
close-ended question. This question is usually used in case of the need for
necessary validation. It is the most natural form of a questionnaire.
• Multiple-Choice Questions: Multiple-choice questions are a close-ended
question type in which a respondent has to select one (single-select multiple-
choice question) or many (multi-select multiple choice question) responses from a
given list of options.
• Scaling Questions: These questions are based on the principles of the four
measurement scales – nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio.
 Step 1: Specify the Information Needed

• The first and the foremost step in designing the questionnaire is to

specify the information needed from the respondents such that
the objective of the survey is fulfilled.

• The researcher must completely review the components of the

problem, particularly the hypothesis, research questions, and the
information needed.
Step 2: Define the Target Respondent:

• At the very outset, the researcher must identify the target

respondent from whom the information is to be collected.
• The questions must be designed keeping in mind the type of
respondents under study.
• Such as, the questions that are appropriate for serviceman might not
be appropriate for a businessman.
• The less diversified respondent group shall be selected because the
more diversified the group is, the more difficult it will be to design a
single questionnaire that is appropriate for the entire group.
 Step 3: Specify the type of Method:
• The next step is to identify the way in which the respondents are
reached.
• In personal interviews, the respondent is presented with a
questionnaire and interacts face-to-face with the interviewer. Thus,
lengthy, complex and varied questions can be asked using the
personal interview method.
• In telephone interviews, the respondent is required to give answers
to the questions over the telephone. Here the respondent cannot
see the questionnaire and hence this method restricts the use of
small, simple and precise questions.
Step 4: Specify the type of Method Cont.

• The questionnaire can be sent through mail or post. It should be

self-explanatory and contain all the important information such
that the respondent is able to understand every question and
gives a complete response. The electronic questionnaires are sent
directly to the mail ids of the respondents and are required to give
answers online.
 Step 5: Determine the Content of Individual Questions:
• Once the information needed is specified and the interviewing
methods are determined, the next step is to decide the content of
the question. The researcher must decide on what should be
included in the question such that it contribute to the information
needed or serve some specific purpose.
• In some situations, the indirect questions which are not directly
related to the information needed may be asked. It is useful to ask
neutral questions at the beginning of a questionnaire with intent to
establish respondent’s involvement and rapport. This is mainly done
when the subject of a questionnaire is sensitive or controversial.
• The researcher must try to avoid the use of double-barreled
questions. A question that talks about two issues simultaneously,
such as Is the Real juice tasty and a refreshing health drink?
Step 6: Overcome Respondent’s Inability and Unwillingness to
Answer:
• The researcher should not presume that the respondent can provide
accurate responses to all the questions. He must attempt to overcome
the respondent’s inability to answer.
• The questions must be designed in a simple and easy language such that
it is easily understood by each respondent. In situations, where the
respondent is not at all informed about the topic of interest, then the
researcher may ask the filter questions, an initial question asked in the
questionnaire to identify the prospective respondents to ensure that
they fulfil the requirements of the sample.
• Despite being able to answer the question, the respondent is unwilling to
devote time in providing information. The researcher must attempt to
understand the reason behind such unwillingness and design the
questionnaire in such a way that it helps in retaining the respondent’s
attention.
Step 7: Decide on the Question Structure:

• The researcher must decide on the structure of questions to be

included in the questionnaire.
• The question can be structured or unstructured.
• The unstructured questions are the open-ended questions which
are answered by the respondents in their own words. These
questions are also called as a free-response or free-answer
questions.
• While, the structured questions are called as closed-ended
questions that pre-specify the response alternatives. These
questions could be a multiple choice question, dichotomous (yes or
no) or a scale.
 Step 8: Determine the Question Wording
• The desired question content and structure must be translated into
words which are easily understood by the respondents. At this step,
the researcher must translate the questions in easy words such that
the information received from the respondents is similar to what
was intended.
• In case the question is written poorly, then the respondent might
refuse to answer it or might give a wrong answer. In case, the
respondent is reluctant to give answers, then “nonresponse” arises
which increases the complexity of data analysis. On the other hand,
if the wrong information is given, then “ response error” arises due
to which the result is biased.
Step 9: Identify the Form and Layout:

• The format, positioning and spacing of questions has a significant

effect on the results.
• The layout of a questionnaire is specifically important for the self-
administered questionnaires.
• The questionnaires must be divided into several parts, and each
part shall be numbered accurately to clearly define the branches of
a question.
 Step 10: Pretesting:
• Pretesting means testing the questionnaires on a few selected
respondents or a small sample of actual respondents with a
purpose of improving the questionnaire by identifying and
eliminating the potential problems.
• All the aspects of the questionnaire must be tested such as question
content, structure, wording, sequence, form and layout,
instructions, and question difficulty.
• The researcher must ensure that the respondents in the pretest
should be similar to those who are to be finally surveyed.