Lecture Four

Data Collection Methods

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 Sources of Data

Primary data: information obtained rst-hand by the researcher

on the variables of interest for the specific purpose of the study.

Examples: individuals, focus groups, panels

Secondary data: information gathered from sources already

existing.

Examples: company records or archives, government

publications, industry analyses offered by the media, web sites,
the Internet, and so on.

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 Secondary Sources of data
Secondary data refer to information gathered by someone
other than the researcher conducting the current study.
Such data can be internal or external to the organization and
accessed through the internet or perusal of recorded or published
information.
Sources include:
Books
Periodicals
Government publications of economic indicators
Census data
Statistical abstracts
Databases
The media
Annual financial reports of companies
Secondary data are mostly quantitative in nature.
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 Primary Sources of data

Individuals provide information when

interviewed,
administered questionnaires, or
observed .

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 Data Collection Methods
INTERVIEWS
Interviewing:
It is useful especially during the exploratory stage of research.
Unstructured interviews:
The interviewer does not enter the interview setting with a planned
sequence to be asked of the respondent.
Examples:
Tell me something about yourself.
What do you like about working in this company?
If you were offered a similar job elsewhere, would you be willing to take it and
why?
Structured Interview:
Conducted when it is known at the outset what information is needed.
The interviewer has a list of predetermined questions.
Visual aids may be used.

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 Data Collection Methods
INTERVIEWS
The questioning technique:
Establish credibility and motivate individuals to respond
Use the funneling technique:
Start with asking open-ended questions to get a broad idea and form some
impressions about the situation.
Then from the responses to the broad question, further questions that are
progressively more focused may be asked.
Use unbiased questions
Clarify issues
Help the respondent to think through issues
Take notes

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 Personal Interviews

A personal interview is a form of direct communication

in which an interviewer asks respondents questions
face-to-face.
Versatile and flexible
Truly interactive
 Advantages of Personal Interviews
Opportunity
for Feedback
High Probing Complex
Participation Answers

Personal
Personal
Props and Interviews
Interviews Length of
Visual Aids Interview

Completeness of
Questionnaire
Disadvantages of Personal Interviews
Lack
Lackof
of
Interviewer
Interviewer Anonymity
Anonymityof
of
Influence
Influence Respondent
Respondent

Personal
Personal
Interviews
Interviews

Cost
Cost
 Personal Face-to-Face Interview
Advantages
Can clarify doubts about questions
Can pick up non-verbal cues
Relatively high response/cooperation
Special visual aids and scoring devises can be used

Disadvantages
High costs and time intensive
Geographical limitations
Response bias / Confidentiality difficult to be assured
Some respondents are unwilling to talk to strangers
Trained interviewers

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 Mall Intercept Personal Interview
Personal interviews conducted in a shopping mall.
Interviewers typically intercept shoppers at a central
point within the shopping center or at the main entrance.
 Mall Intercept Interview Characteristics

Speed
Degreeofofdata
interviewer
collection:
influence
fast of answers: highest
Supervision
Geographicalofflexibility: confined,
interviewers: urbantobias
moderate high
Respondent
Anonymity ofcooperation:
respondent: moderate
low to low
Versatility
Ease of callof back
questioning: extremely
or follow-up: versatile
difficult
Questionnaire length:
Cost: Lower than moderate to long
door-to-door
Item non-response:
Special medium
features: taste tests, viewing of TV commercials possible
Possibility of respondent misunderstanding: lowest
 Personal Interviews

Global Considerations
Variations in willingness to participate
Sensitivity to interview subject matter
Beliefs about appropriate business conduct
 Telephone Interviews
Telephone Interviews
Personal interviews conducted by telephone.
The mainstay of commercial survey research.
No-call legislation has limited this capacity.
Mobile Phone Interviews
In U.S., no telemarketing can be directed toward mobile
phone numbers.
Recipient of call is even more likely to be distracted.
Area codes not necessarily tied to geography.
Phones have varying abilities.
 Phone Interview Characteristics
Speed
Cost
Absence of face-to-face contact
Cooperation
Incentives to respond
Representative samples
Callbacks
Limited duration
Lack of visual medium
 Telephone Interview

Advantages
Discomfort of face to face is avoided
Faster / Number of calls per day could be high
Lower cost

Disadvantages
Interview length must be limited
Low response rate
No facial expressions

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 Types of Telephone Interviews

Central Location Interviewing

Conducting interviews from a central location allowing firms to hire a staff
of professional interviewers and to supervise and control the quality of
interviewing more effectively.
Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI)
Allows answers to telephone interviews to be entered directly into a
computer for processing.
Computerized Voice-Activated Telephone Interview
Combining computerized telephone dialing and voice-activated computer
messages to allow researchers to conduct telephone interviews without
human interviewers.
 Telephone Interview Recap

Speed of data collection: very fast Supervision of interviewers: high,

Geographical flexibility: high especially with central location
interviewing
Respondent cooperation: good
Anonymity of respondent: moderate
Versatility of questioning: moderate
Ease of call back or follow-up: easy
Questionnaire length: moderate
Cost: low to moderate
Item nonresponse: medium
Special features: fieldwork and
Possibility of respondent misunderstanding: average
supervision of data collection are
Degree of interviewer influence of answer: moderate
simplified; quite adaptable to
computer technology
 Focus Groups
Consist typically of eight to ten members ,selected on the basis of
their expertise in a topic, with a moderator leading discussions
for about two hours on a particular topic, concept, or product.
Meet for a one-time session.
Content analysis of data obtained provides only qualitative
information.
Used for:
exploratory studies,
making generalization based on the information generated by them,
and
conducting sample surveys .
If regional variations in responses are expected, several focus
groups could be formed including trained moderators at different
locations. Videoconferencing can facilitate that.

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 Panels

Similar to focus groups, but meet more than once.

Used in cases where the effects of certain interventions
or changes are to be studied over a period of time.
Individuals are randomly chosen to serve as panel
members for a research study.
Panels can be either static (i.e., the same members serve on
the panel over extended periods of time) or dynamic (i.e., the
panel members change from time to time as various phases of
the study are in progress).

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 Data Collection Methods
Questionnaires
Definition:
A questionnaire is a pre-formulated, written set of questions to which
the respondent records his answers
Types of Questionnaires:
Personally administered questionnaires
Mail questionnaires
Electronic questionnaires

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Principles of Questionnaire Design

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 Questionnaire Design

Steps
1. Determine the content of the questionnaire
2. Determine the form of response
3. Determine the wording of the questions
4. Determine the question sequence
5. Write cover letter

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 1. Questionnaire content

Framework
Need information for all constructs in framework

Measurement: Operationalizing
Objective construct:
1 element/items
=> 1 question
Subjective construct:
multiple elements/items
=> multiple questions

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 2. Response format
Closed vs. Open-ended questions
Closed question
Helps respondents to make quick decisions
Helps researchers to code
Open-ended question
First: unbiased point of view
Final: additional insights
Complementary to closed question: for interpretation purpose

Measurement: Response scales

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 3. Question Wording
Avoid double-barreled questions

Avoid ambiguous questions and words

Use of ordinary words

Avoid leading or biasing questions

Social desirability

Avoid recall-depended questions

Avoid loaded questions
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 Question Wording

Use positive and negative statements

XYZ delivers high quality banking service
XYZ has poor customer operational support
Avoid double negatives

Limit the length of the questions

Rules of thumb:
< 20 words
< one full line in print

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4. Question Sequence

Personal and sensitive data at the end

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 5. Cover Letter
The cover letter is the introductory page of the
questionnaire

It includes:
Identification of the researcher
Motivation for respondents to fill it in
Confidentiality
Thanking of the respondent

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 Exercise
A production manager wants to assess the reactions of the blue-
collar workers in his department (including foremen) to the
introduction of computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM)
systems. He is particularly interested to know how they would
perceive the effects of CIM on:
a. their future jobs
b. additional training that they will have to receive
c. future job advancement.

Design a questionnaire for the production manager.

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 Exercise Solution
Covering Letter:
Date: November 7, 201X
Dear Employee,
As we had discussed in our meetings, Computer Integrated
Manufacturing (CIM) will form a part of our operations in the
future. We would like to know how you visualize certain aspects
of the future environment as we introduce the changes. Please
take a few minutes to complete this short questionnaire and
return it to the locked box with the slit on the top, in the front
office. Thank you for responding within the next five days.
Karim Ahmed
Production Manager
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 Exercise Solution
1. Personal Information (place a mark on the appropriate box)

JOB STATUS NUMBER OF YEARS WORKED IN SHIFT CURRENTLY

THE DEPARTMENT WORKING IN

Machinist Less than 1 Day

Fitter 1-3 Evening
Loader 3-5 Night
Inspector 5-10
Foreman Over 10 years
Surveyor
Other

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 Exercise Solution
2 . Your Opinions regarding the following.
Please circle the appropriate number for each of the following items using the scale below.

STRONGL AGREE NEITHER DISAGR STRONG

Y AGREE AGREE EE LY
NOR DISAGRE
DISAGREE E
1. I will need additional training to work in the 1 2 3 4 5
changed environment.
2. The new system will offer me better 1 2 3 4 5
opportunities for advancement.
3. The opportunities for training will have to be 1 2 3 4 5
enhanced with CIM.
4. I am not sure if CIM will need all the people 1 2 3 4 5
we now have in this department.
5. I feel that most of us may not have better 1 2 3 4 5
opportunities for future promotions in the new
manufacturing environment.
6. Most of us will need special training to work 1 2 3 4 5
with CIM.
7. I am sure the future looks bright for most of 1 2 3 4 5
us here.
Items 4 and 7 measure opinion about their future jobs
1, 3, and 6 measure perceived training needs
2 and 5 measure job advancement

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Self-Administered Questionnaires
 Mail Questionnaires
Characteristics of Mail Questionnaires
Geographical flexibility
Cost
Respondent convenience
Anonymity of respondent
Absence of interviewer
Standardized questions
Time is money
Length of mail questionnaire
 Mail Questionnaires

Advantages
Lowest cost option
Expanded geographical coverage
Requires minimal staff
Perceived as more anonymous

Disadvantages
Low response rate in some modes
No interviewer intervention possible for clarification
Cannot be too long or complex
Incomplete surveys

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 Increasing Response Rates for Mail
Surveys
Cover letter
Interesting questions
Follow-ups
Advance notification
Survey sponsorship
Other techniques
Keying mail questionnaires with
codes
 Fax Surveys

A survey that uses fax machines as a way for

respondents to receive and return questionnaires.
Advantages
Reduce senders printing and postage costs
Is quicker than traditional mail surveys
Disadvantage
Only respondents with fax machines who are willing to exert
the extra effort will return questionnaires.
 E-Mail Surveys
Surveys distributed through electronic mail.
Ways to contact respondents:
Include a questionnaire in the body of an e-mail.
Distribute questionnaire as an attachment.
Include a hyperlink within the body of an e-mail.
Advantages
Speed of distribution
Lower distribution and processing costs
Faster turnaround time
More flexibility
Less handling of paper questionnaires
Disadvantage
Not all e-mail systems have the same capacity
 Internet Surveys
A self-administered questionnaire posted on a Web site.
Respondents provide answers to questions displayed online by
highlighting a phrase, clicking an icon, or keying in an answer.
 Internet Survey Characteristics

Callbacks
Speed and cost effectiveness
Visual appeal and
Personalized and flexible
interactivity
questioning
Respondent anonymity
participation and cooperation
Representative
Response ratessamples
Accurateconcerns
Security real-time data capture
 Other Approaches

Kiosk Surveys
Placed in high-traffic locations (e.g., airports).
Mixed-Mode Survey Research
Employs any combination of survey methods.
Text-Message Surveys
May use SMS (short-message service) or MMS (Multi-
Media Service).
 Selecting the Appropriate Survey
Approach

Questions to be answered:
Is the assistance of an interviewer necessary?
Are respondents interested in the issues being investigated?
Will cooperation be easily attained?
How quickly is the information needed?
Will the study require a long and complex questionnaire?
How large is the budget?
 Ethical Issues in Survey Research

Many ethical issues apply to survey research:

Respondents right to privacy
Use of deception
Respondents right to be informed
Need for confidentiality
Need for honesty in collecting data
Need for objectivity in reporting data
 Projection Methods
Used for motivational research
To capture emotionality rather than rationality.
Word Association Techniques:
Asking the respondent to quickly associate a word with the first thing that
comes to mind.
Used to get a true attitude and feeling.

Thematic Apperception Tests (TAT):

Asks the respondent to weave a story around a picture that is shown.
Used to trace several need patterns and personality characteristics of the
respondent.

Inkblot Tests:
Use colored inkblots that are interpreted by the respondent
Cannot be too long or complex
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Categories of Survey Errors

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 Errors in Survey Research

Random Sampling Error

A statistical fluctuation that occurs because of chance
variation in the elements selected for a sample.
Systematic Error
Error resulting from some imperfect aspect of the research
design that causes respondent error or from a mistake in the
execution of the research.
Sample Bias
A persistent tendency for the results of a sample to deviate in
one direction from the true value of the population parameter.
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 Respondent Error

Respondent Error
A category of sample bias resulting from some respondent
action or inaction such as non-response or response bias.
Non-response Error
The statistical differences between a survey that includes only
those who responded and a perfect survey that would also
include those who failed to respond.

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 Respondent Error
Non-respondents
People who are not contacted or who refuse to cooperate in
the research.
No contacts: people who are not at home or who are otherwise
inaccessible on the first and second contact.
Refusals: People who are unwilling to participate in a research
project.
Self-Selection Bias
A bias that occurs because people who feel strongly about a
subject are more likely to respond to survey questions than
people who feel indifferent about it.

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 Response Bias

Deliberate Falsification
Occasionally people deliberately give false answers.
Misrepresent answers to appear intelligent
Conceal personal information
Avoid embarrassment
Average-person hypothesis:
Individuals may prefer to be viewed as average, so they alter their
responses to conform more closely to their perception of the average
person.

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 Response Bias
Unconscious Misrepresentation
When a respondent is consciously trying to be truthful and
cooperative, response bias can arise from the question
format, the question content, or some other stimulus that
affects their response to a question.
Sources of misrepresentation:
Misunderstanding the question
Unable to recall details
Unprepared response to an unexpected question
Inability to translate feelings into words
After-event underreporting

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 Types of Response Bias

Acquiescence Bias
A tendency to agree with all or most questions.
Extremity Bias
The tendency of some Individuals to use extremes when responding to
questions.
Interviewer Bias
The presence of the interviewer influences respondents answers.
Social Desirability Bias
Bias in responses caused by respondents desire, either conscious or
unconscious, to gain prestige or appear in a different social role.

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 Administrative Error
An error caused by the improper administration or
execution of the research task.
Data-processing error: incorrect data entry, incorrect
computer programming, or other procedural errors during
data analysis.
Sample selection error: improper sample design or
sampling procedure execution.
Interviewer error: mistakes made by interviewers failing to
record survey responses correctly.
Interviewer cheating: filling in fake answers or falsifying
questionnaires by an interviewer.
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 Observation in Business Research
Observation
The systematic process of recording actual behavioral patterns of
people, objects, and events as they happen.
Best suited for research requiring non-self-report descriptive data
(when behavior is to be examined without directly asking the
respondents themselves)

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What Can Be Observed?

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 What Cannot Be Observed?
Limitations of Observations in General
Observation can describe the event that occurred but cannot
explain why the event occurred.
Observation over long periods is expensive or even
impossible.

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Observing and Interpreting Nonverbal
Communication

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 Direct and Contrived Observation

Direct (Natural) Observation

A straightforward attempt to observe and record what
naturally occurs.
Controlled (Contrived) Observation
Observation in which the investigator creates an artificial
environment in order to test a hypothesis.
Environment may increase the frequency of certain behavior
patterns to be observed.

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Participant versus nonparticipant observation
Nonparticipant observation:
The researcher is never directly involved in the actions of
the actors, but observes them from outside the actors
visual horizon.
Participant observation:
The researcher gather data by participating in the daily
life of the group or organization under study.
Participant observation is neither a pure observation (passive
participation) n or a pure participation (active participation).
Problems include:
Getting permission
Getting overwhelmed with massive amounts of often disconnected data.
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 Structured versus unstructured observation

In a structured observational study, the observer

has a predetermined set of categories of activities or
phenomena planned to be studied. Such studies are
generally quantitative in nature.

In an unstructured observation, the observer

records every thing that is observed. Such studies are
generally qualitative in nature.
 Concealed versus unconcealed observation

Concealed observation:
The members of the social group under study are not
told that they are being investigated. Research subjects
act naturally, however, It has serious ethical drawbacks.
Unconcealed observation:
The members of the social group under study are told
that they are being investigated. It is more obtrusive,
perhaps upsetting the authenticity of the behavior under
study.
 Approaches to Observation
Descriptive observation:
Data are collected that describe the setting, the subjects, and
the events that are taking place.
Such data provide an initial story or narrative account which
may serve as a basis for the development of a set of concepts,
a theory, or even a conceptual framework.
Focused observation:
Concentrates on particular types of feelings, emotions, actions,
activities, and/or events and look for emerging themes.
Selective observation:
Focuses on different types of actions, activities, or events and
look for regularity in them.
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 Approaches to Observation
Structured observation:
Recording pre-specified behavioral patterns of people, objects and events in a systematic
manner.
It is focused in nature, as it looks selectively at predetermined phenomena.
It could be highly structured or semi-structured observation
Different types:
Personal observation (e.g., mystery shopper, pantry audit)
Electronic observation (e.g., scanner data, people meter, eye tracking)
Consideration for the construction of a coding scheme:
Focus: It should be clear what is to be observed.
Objective: It should require little inference or interpretation from the researcher.
Ease of use: A good scaling scheme is easy to use.
Mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive: Categories in a coding scheme
should be mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive.
Always consider the validity and reliability of the coding scheme.

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 Errors Associated With Direct
Observation
Observer Bias
A distortion of measurement resulting from the cognitive
behavior or actions of a witnessing observer.
Recording events subjectively
Recording events inaccurately
Interpreting observation data incorrectly

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Questions?