WHAT IS A SURVEY? A scientific social research method that

involves Selecting a random sample of people to answer

some questions Designing a standardized questionnaire to get

information about the research question(s) Administering the questionnaire Coding the responses in a standardized form Analyzing the results to provide descriptions about

the people in the sample and find relationships different responses

Generalizing the results to the population from which the sample was drawn

BASIC FORMATS Self-administered mail survey Telephone interview Face-to-face interview Focus group Self-administered Web survey Self-administered Email survey

WHY DO A SURVEY? To collect information that is not available

from other sources Attitudes and opinions Using a standardized measurement

(questionnaire) provides comparable information from everyone taking the survey, which allows for meaningfulanalysis

With a good sample, you can have confidence that the results can be generalized to the population in which you are interested

BEFORE YOU DO A SURVEY.. Think About Available Resources

What information is already available from non-survey sources?

Have any surveys already been done on this question?

Think About Who is going to: Design the survey Administer the survey Enter the data Analyze and interpret the data Write up the results Present the findings Use the findings Pay for it all...

QUESTIONNAIRE CONSTRUCTION To have confidence in your survey

results your questions must be1. Reliable = provide consistent measures

in comparable situations2. Valid = measure what they are intended

to measure Careful wording will decrease bias

QUESTIONS/ITEMS1. Closed-end or Forced-choice Questions

Respondent selects question answer from among a list of possible responses

It’s a good idea to ask multiple indicators of a single concept, and then create a scale by combining those indicators

2. Open-end Questions Respondents write question response in own

words might need to enter data by hand develop coding scheme for responses It’s a good idea to always include an open-ended

question giving the respondent the opportunityto add any additional comments they might have

GOOD QUESTIONS Are clear and use simple language Are concise Are specific Are possible to answer Are relevant to the respondent Do not use negatives Avoid biased terms Have only 1 part (not “double-barrel”)

EXAMPLES OF GOOD AND BAD QUESTIONS… Use simple language...

How often do you discuss course readings outside of class?

Is better than :How often do you confabulate about course

readings with others outside of class?

EXAMPLES OF GOOD AND BAD QUESTIONS… Are concise...

How often do you work with students on class projects outsideof class?

Is better than:Sometimes instructors assign class projects

and have students work on those projects with other students who are in the class, but the students sometimes need to work on the project outside of class time. How often do you have to dothis?

EXAMPLES OF GOOD AND BAD QUESTIONS… Are specific...

In which year and semester did you take your first class at NC State?

Is better than:When did you start taking classes here?

EXAMPLES OF GOOD AND BAD QUESTIONS… Do not use negatives...

I usually see students raise their hand in class.

Is better than: I have rarely seen students not raise their

hand in class.

EXAMPLES OF GOOD AND BAD QUESTIONS… Do not use biased terms or

suggestions...Do you agree or disagree with the following

statement: Inquiry guided learning enhances critical thinking.

Is better than:Don’t you agree with Chancellor Fox when

she says that inquiry guided leaning enhances critical thinking?

EXAMPLES OF GOOD AND BAD QUESTIONS… Do not ask two questions in one

(“doublebarrel”)...How often did you work with other students

on class projects during class time? How often did you work with other students on class projects outside of class time?

How often did you work with other students on class projects during and outside of class time?

RESPONSE OPTIONS Response options should reflect the

concepts you are trying to measure, and fit with the question wording.Suggestion: Avoid simple “yes” or “no” type

responses and try to measure intensity of feeling when possible.

RESPONSE OPTIONS CONTINUED… Must be mutually exclusive

can select only one appropriate answerOn most days, what is the total amount of

time you spend working on your course assignments outside of class?

(IS mutually exclusive) (is NOT mutually exclusive) Less than 1 hour 1 hour or less

1-2 hours 1-2 hours more than 2 hours 2 hours or more

RESPONSE OPTIONS CONTINUED… Must be exhaustive

all possible answers are listed (including e.g., “other, “ “don’tknow,” etc.)

On most days, what is the total amount of time you spend working on your course assignments outside of class?

(IS exhaustive) (is NOT exhaustive)

Less than 1 hour Less than 1 hour

1 to 2 hours 1 to 2 hours more than 2 hours 3 to 4 hours

QUESTION ORDER Be attentive: Initial questions affect

answers to subsequent ones. Start with easy, salient, non-threatening

but necessary questions. Put more difficult or threatening questions

near the end (e.g., demographic questions).

Keep questions dealing with the same topic together.

Do not include questions that are redundant or are not likely to be analyzed.

QUESTIONNAIRE FORMAT Should be:

1. as short as possible2. visually attractive and nicely reproduced3. spread out and uncluttered4. broken into logical sections when

possible5. have clear skip patterns for contingency

questions

QUESTIONNAIRE FORMAT CONTINUED… Should have clear spaces for

respondents to mark answersuse boxesparentheses numbers to circleavoid lines to put check on

The amount of space provided for responses to open-end questions will affect how much respondents write.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR QUESTIONNAIRE Provide general instructions in

beginning of self-administered survey Brief explanation could include:

why doing surveywhy answers are importanthow to answer questions

stress confidentiality (if appropriate) Provide specific instructions to questions

as necessary

EXAMPLE OF INSTRUCTIONS

Instructions: The following questions ask about your classroom experience. Please tell us how satisfied or dissatisfied you feel with these experiences by circling one of the response options listed below each statement.

There are no right or wrong answers. All replies are confidential so give your honest opinion on each of the statements. Please do not discuss your answers with other people. It is your opinion which matters.

Even though it may be hard to decide, please be sure to answer all questions. Thank you for your help.