EDU 5900

REKA BENTUK PENYELIDIKAN

PENGUMPULAN DATA

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Memahami konsep pengumpulan data dalam penyelidikan.

Mengetahui kaedah-kaedah pengumpulan data dalam penyelidikan

Data-collection techniques allow us to systematically collect information about our objects of study (people, objects, phenomena) and about the settings in which they occur.

In the collection of data we have to be systematic. If data are collected haphazardly, it will be difficult to answer our research questions in a conclusive way.

Train

researchers to

collect

observational

data

Procedures for

Administering the Data

Collection

Respect individuals and sites

during data gathering

(ethics)

Develop

standard written

procedures for

administering an

instrument

Obtain

permission to

collect and

use public

documents

There are many methods of collecting primary

data and the main methods include: questionnaires

interviews focus group interviews

observation case-studies

diaries critical incidents

portfolios.

Various data collection techniques can be used such as:

Using available information Observing Interviewing (face-to-face) Administering written questionnaires Focus group discussions

1. Using available information

Usually there is a large amount of data that has already been collected by others,

although it may not necessarily have been analyzed or published. Locating these

sources and retrieving the information is a good starting point in any data collection

effort.

E.g.: information system data, census data, unpublished reports and

publications in archives and libraries

2. Observing

OBSERVATION is a technique that involves systematically selecting, watching and

recording behaviour and characteristics of living beings, objects or phenomena.

Participant observation: The observer takes part in

the situation he or she observes. Non-participant observation: The observer watches

the situation, openly or concealed, but does not participate.

Observations of human behaviour can form part of any type of study, but as they are time consuming they are most often used in small-scale studies.

Observations can also be made on objects.

If observations are made using a defined scale they may be called measurements. Measurements usually require additional tools. For example, we use thermometers for measuring body temperature.

3. Interviewing

An INTERVIEW is a data-collection technique that involves oral questioning of respondents, either

individually or as a group.

Answers to the questions posed during an interview can be recorded by writing them down (either during the interview itself or immediately

after the interview) or by tape-recording the responses, or by a combination of both.

Interviews can be conducted with varying degrees of

flexibility. The two extremes, high and low degree of

flexibility

For example: When studying sensitive issues such as teenage pregnancy

and abortions, the investigator may use a list of topics rather than fixed questions. These may, e.g., include how

teenagers started sexual intercourse, the responsibility girls and their partners take to prevent pregnancy (if at all), and the actions they take in the event of unwanted pregnancies.

The investigator should have an additional list of topics ready when the respondent falls silent, (e.g., when asked about abortion methods used, who made the decision and who paid). The sequence of topics should be determined by the flow of discussion. It is often

possible to come back to a topic discussed earlier in a later stage of the interview.

High degree of flexibility

Less flexible methods of interviewing are useful when the researcher is relatively knowledgeable about expected answers or when the number of respondents being interviewed is relatively large.

Then questionnaires may be used with a fixed list of questions in a standard sequence, which have

mainly fixed or pre-categorised answers.

Low degree of flexibility

Face - to - face interviews have a distinct

advantage of enabling the researcher to establish

rapport with potential participants and therefor

gain their cooperation. These interviews yield

highest response rates in survey research. They

also allow the researcher to clarify ambiguous

answers and when appropriate, seek follow-up

information. Disadvantages include impractical

when large samples are involved time consuming

and expensive.(Leedy and Ormrod, 2001)

Telephone interviews are less time consuming

and less expensive and the researcher has ready

access to anyone on the planet who has a

telephone. Disadvantages are that the response

rate is not as high as the face-to- face interview

but considerably higher than the mailed

questionnaire. The sample may be biased to the

extent that people without phones are part of the

population about whom the researcher wants to

draw inferences.

Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI)

is a form of personal interviewing, but instead of

completing a questionnaire, the interviewer brings along

a laptop or hand-held computer to enter the

information directly into the database. This method

saves time involved in processing the data, as well as

saving the interviewer from carrying around hundreds of

questionnaires. However, this type of data collection

method can be expensive to set up and requires that

interviewers have computer and typing skills.

The main advantage of face to face interviews is that

the researcher can adapt the questions as necessary,

clarify doubts and ensure that the responses are

properly understood by repeating or rephrasing the

questions.

The disadvantages of the interview include cost and

possibility of bias. It is very costly to conduct many

interviews over large geographical areas as it may involve

training interviewers, transportation and accommodation

out of town. The very flexibility of an interview is also an

opportunity for researcher bias to influence the data

collected. Facial or verbal cues may influence the

answers the participants give.

Advantage

Disadvantages

4. Administering written questionnaires

A WRITTEN QUESTIONNAIRE (also referred to as self-administered

questionnaire) is a data collection tool in which written questions are presented

that are to be answered by the respondents in written form.

Paper-pencil-questionnaires

can be sent to a large number of people and

saves the researcher time and money. People are

more truthful while responding to the

questionnaires regarding controversial issues in

particular due to the fact that their responses are

anonymous. But they also have drawbacks.

Majority of the people who receive questionnaires

don't return them and those who do might not be

representative of the originally selected

sample.(Leedy and Ormrod, 2001)

Web Based Questionnaires

A new and inevitably growing methodology is the use of

Internet based research. This would mean receiving an e-

mail on which you would click on an address that would

take you to a secure web-site to fill in a questionnaire. This

type of research is often quicker and less detailed. Some

disadvantages of this method include the exclusion of

people who do not have a computer or are unable to

access a computer. Also the validity of such surveys are in

question as people might be in a hurry to complete it and

so might not give accurate responses.

(http://www.statcan.ca/english/edu/power/ch2/methods/met

hods.htm)

A written questionnaire can be administered in different ways, such as by:

Sending questionnaires by mail with clear instructions on how to answer the questions and asking for mailed responses;

Gathering all or part of the respondents in one place at one time, giving oral or written instructions, and letting the respondents fill out the questionnaires; or

Hand-delivering questionnaires to respondents and collecting them later.

The response rate is usually small which requires

a second or even a third mailing. A further more

important disadvantage of this method is that

different participants may interpret the questions

differently and certain questions can be

completely misunderstood by many or all of the

participants. To avoid this problem, questions

would have to be simple

The Negative Side to Postal Questionnaires

Advantages of this method include:

Doubts regarding the meaning of the questions can be clarified to ensure that the participant is answering the

questions in the sense that the researcher intended,

The importance of the research can be personally presented to the participants and its significance explained to them to

motivate honest answers by emphasizing their contribution

to the research,

It requires fewer skills than interviewing, and hence relatively low skilled assistants can be recruited to perform

this task to speed up the research, and

It ensures better response rates because there is a personal face to the questionnaires as personal persuasion usually increases interest.

Personally Administered Questionnaires

The main disadvantage seems to be that the researcher may introduce his personal bias by

giving facial or verbal expressions, which may

put the participant at unease.

Further in explaining questions differently to different people, participants may be in fact

answering different questions as compared to

those whom the questionnaire was mailed.

Personally Administered Questionnaires

5. Focus group discussions (FGD)

A focus group discussion allows a group of 8 - 12 informants to freely discuss a certain subject with the guidance of a

facilitator or reporter.

Telephone surveys may consist of polls, interview or

questionnaire survey conducted over the telephone.

Compared to mailed questionnaires or personal

interviews, they can cover a wider geographical area in

a shorter time. However the disadvantage is the higher

cost compared to mailed questionnaire but there can

be substantial cost savings compared to personal

face-to-face interviews.

6. Telephone Surveys

Anonymity of the telephone survey varies; the lack of face to face

contact can both be an advantage and disadvantage. Personal cues

cannot be given or received, hence there cannot be an accusation of

researcher bias. However, this is not conducive to getting a greater

insight into the perceptions, feelings and thoughts of the interviewee.

Further, interviewees may not be easy with a faceless researcher as

they may fear lack of confidentiality of their views.

In this research, the length of the questionnaire and the nature of the

questions which required some thought was not suitable for

administration over the phone. Hence the telephone was used only to

fix appointments for interviews to hand over questionnaires and make

presentations to academics, in some cases before handing the

questionnaires to staff.

Telephone Surveys

Institutional or

organizational

(e.g., school

district)

Parents of participants who are

not considered adults

Campus approval (e.g., university or college) and

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

What Permissions Are

Needed:

Obtaining Permission

As we develop our data collection techniques, we need to consider whether our research procedures are likely to cause any physical or emotional harm. Harm may be caused, for example, by: Violating informants right to privacy by posing sensitive

questions or by gaining access to records which may contain personal data;

Observing the behavior of informants without their being aware (concealed observation should therefore always be crosschecked or discussed with other researchers with respect to ethical admissibility);

Allowing personal information to be made public which informants would want to be kept private, and

Failing to observe/respect certain cultural values, traditions or taboos valued by your informants.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Several methods for dealing with these issues may be recommended:

Obtaining informed consent before the study or the interview begins;

Not exploring sensitive issues before a good relationship has been established with the informant;

Ensuring the confidentiality of the data obtained; and Learning enough about the culture of informants to ensure it is

respected during the data collection process.

If sensitive questions are asked, for example, about family planning or sexual practices, or about opinions of patients on the health services provided, it may be advisable to omit names and addresses from the questionnaires.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS