Running head: SURVEY METHODS 1 SURVEY METHODS 2 , I appreciate the online submission of the assignment. I want to remind you of the importance of submitting assignments on-time to avoid late penalties. This is particularly true with the signature assignment that is worth a significant portion of your overall course grade. In a 6-9-page paper using a minimum of 5 scholarly sources, you are to complete a three- part assignment. In the first, you are to select a method of survey administration and the provide the rationale for that selection for each of 4 different research objectives. In part 2, you are to provide a list of questions that would be used on a questionnaire to meet the objectives. Finally, assuming that you may be using a survey in your research, you are to decide on and explain the method of administration you would use. You met the assignment requirements with respect to the use of scholarly sources and meeting page expectations. I was surprised to not see the textbook on the reference page given that this should be your primary source for basic information. The text was selected by the faculty due to both content and level. That is why this is required, not optional, reading. There is an issue with respect to APA formatting that is somewhat surprising given this is the fifth week in the course. First, you are not adhering to the required line spacing. Second, you need to be applying feedback on past assignments. For instance, how the assignment should be spaced is shown below as an example. Finally, while you want to use headings to organize your paper, this can be overdone. In the first part 1 of the assignment, you are asked to decide on the method of survey administration for a number of scenarios. In part 2, you are being asked to provide a list of questions that would meet the objective. Together, these are not mini-papers for each scenario. Therefore, it is not necessary or appropriate to have an introduction and conclusion for each one with is often redundant and repetitive. It is important to remember that scholarly writing is to be both precise and concise. That is, you want to provide the necessary information without excess verbiage and repetition. A brief introduction to the paper overall or even each part might be appropriate but is not necessary. You were advised of this previously. Overall, in part one, you are not providing a sufficient rationale for the selection of your survey method. As advised in the feedback on the last assignment, this involves examining the specifics of the information needs, who are the target respondents and availability of sampling frames and the criteria to be used in the selection of a method. This is discussed at length in the required reading. As noted in the assignment instructions, “The researcher needs to carefully consider the objectives of the study, the questions that need to be asked and the target respondents in addition to the pros/cons of the alternatives.” It.

1. Running head: SURVEY METHODS 1
SURVEY METHODS 2
,
I appreciate the online submission of the assignment. I want to
remind you of the importance of submitting assignments on-
time to avoid late penalties. This is particularly true with the
signature assignment that is worth a significant portion of your
overall course grade.
In a 6-9-page paper using a minimum of 5 scholarly sources,
you are to complete a three- part assignment. In the first, you
are to select a method of survey administration and the provide
the rationale for that selection for each of 4 different research
objectives. In part 2, you are to provide a list of questions that
would be used on a questionnaire to meet the objectives.
Finally, assuming that you may be using a survey in your
research, you are to decide on and explain the method of
administration you would use.
You met the assignment requirements with respect to the use of
scholarly sources and meeting page expectations. I was
surprised to not see the textbook on the reference page given
that this should be your primary source for basic information.
The text was selected by the faculty due to both content and
level. That is why this is required, not optional, reading.
There is an issue with respect to APA formatting that is
somewhat surprising given this is the fifth week in the course.
First, you are not adhering to the required line spacing. Second,
you need to be applying feedback on past assignments. For
instance, how the assignment should be spaced is shown below
as an example. Finally, while you want to use headings to

2. organize your paper, this can be overdone. In the first part 1 of
the assignment, you are asked to decide on the method of survey
administration for a number of scenarios. In part 2, you are
being asked to provide a list of questions that would meet the
objective. Together, these are not mini-papers for each scenario.
Therefore, it is not necessary or appropriate to have an
introduction and conclusion for each one with is often
redundant and repetitive. It is important to remember that
scholarly writing is to be both precise and concise. That is, you
want to provide the necessary information without excess
verbiage and repetition. A brief introduction to the paper
overall or even each part might be appropriate but is not
necessary. You were advised of this previously.
Overall, in part one, you are not providing a sufficient rationale
for the selection of your survey method. As advised in the
feedback on the last assignment, this involves examining the
specifics of the information needs, who are the target
respondents and availability of sampling frames and the criteria
to be used in the selection of a method. This is discussed at
length in the required reading. As noted in the assignment
instructions, “The researcher needs to carefully consider the
objectives of the study, the questions that need to be asked and
the target respondents in addition to the pros/cons of the
alternatives.”
It is also critical to be realistic! For instance, is it reasonable to
expect respondents to fill out a questionnaire as they exist the
Superbowl? It is not. This would also be expensive to recruit
and train a large number of fieldworkers to go to the facility
and wait outside the stadium since you would not be able to
obtain tickets. Your rationale is also inconsistent. On the one
hand, you state the advantage of a self-administered
questionnaire is that there is no interviewer bias. You follow
this by saying that one of the advantage of the procedure that
you propose is that “researcher might have to interview
spectators.” This can easily result in interviewer bias. Note also
that it not the “researcher” who would be collecting the data.

3. You are also missing the major point. Spectators at the game are
not seeing the commercials. These are seen by all those
watching the game on TV, the television viewing audience.
In the second scenario you suggest that the criteria to be used is
speed and cost but provide no rationale other than that the
population is large. We studied sampling in week 3. Therefore,
you should have an understanding as to why a census would not
be taken but a sample of patients. In addition, just because there
is a large population, even if you were taking a census, this
does not just suggest that speed and cost are the only the
appropriate criteria. What about response rate? The complexity
of questions? The length of questionnaire? Characteristics of
the sample? In this case, you also do not chose one method as
required. This is not an either/or situation. While it is clear that
the hospital would have the addresses of patients, how an online
survey would be administered is unclear. It is also not clear
what you mean by an online survey. As explained in the text,
this can involve an e-mail survey or an internet survey where
respondents are directed to a website,
In the third scenario, you recommend a personal interview
arguing that an honest reply is more likely. You not only have
no evidence to support this, but it is in contrast to what you
stated previously about the issue with interview bias. You also
suggest that you can observe respondent’s behavior. First, this
is not part of the objective. Second, it is not clear how you can
observe “difficulties” in answering, Third, even is this is
possible, why would you expect to be an issue when all you are
asking is about the decision to be in law enforcement. This
would not be considered a sensitive topic such as sexual
behavior, drinking, drug use, a history of mental illness in the
family, etc.
In the final scenario you recommend an online survey due to
ease, cost, automation of responses and expected higher
response rates. There is no evidence to suggest that latter. What
you are not addressing is how you would reach respondents.
You also bring up that the respondent would be anonymous but

4. do not connect this with the nature of the study or the
respondents. It is not clear why anonymity would be an issue
when all you are asking are opinions about the training that
would be best for a career in IT. Again, this is not a sensitive
topic.
In the second part of the assignment, you are to list question
that may be asked to meet the objective described in the
scenario. While we have yet to discuss questionnaire design,
this requires that you draw on what you learned about
measurement in week 4.
You did not complete the third part of the assignment.
In the next assignment you are required to demonstrate your
understanding of experimentation by evaluating one of three
experiments in a 5-7-page paper. This is to include a discussion
of the objectives and design of the study as well as an
assessment of internal and external validity using appropriate
experimental terminology.
Experimentation is a rather complex topic that will require
careful reading of the required chapter in the text. I also
recommend that you look each over each of the three options
before selecting the one you intend on analyzing. Please let me
know if you have any questions as you undertake this
assignment.
Dr. P
Dr. Susan M. Petroshius 70 - late penalty = 65
6/18/2020
Selecting Survey Methods and Questions
BUS-7320
June 14, 2020
Dr. Susan Petroshius

5. Selecting Survey Methods and Questions
Surveys are a critical part of quantitative studies in that they
enable researchers to obtain crucial information to support the
investigation of the primary problem. Different methods of
survey administration exist but the most appropriate one
depends on the objectives of the study, the respondents desired,
and the questions that one needs to ask (Donohoe & Karadakis,
2014). In this light, this article recommends methods of survey
administration for various scenarios, as well as developing a list
of questions to be utilized during the process. Comment by
Susan Petroshius: Source? This is not necessarily true. There
are many quantitative studies such as observation studies that
do not involve surveys. Comment by Susan Petroshius: This is
a dated source. It is not clear why you are relying on this as
opposed to the required reading that also discussed the
pros/cons of alternative methods that is critical in determining
the most appropriate method. Comment by Susan Petroshius:
This is not an article but a paper.
a. To determine the effectiveness of advertising of a specific
product during the Super Bowl on increasing consumer
awareness of the product.
Introduction, recommendation and justification
The appropriate method of survey administration to be used in
this scenario is paper-and-pencil survey. Paper-and-pencil
survey administration is appropriate for three main reasons.
First, it allows the researcher to interview many people within a

6. very short time. Secondly, the method limits the influence of
the interviewer on the feedback that respondents give (Weigold,
Weigold, Drakeford, Dykema & Smith, 2016). Comment by
Susan Petroshius: Why is this important in this particular
scenario? Comment by Susan Petroshius: Again, why is this
important here with these respondents and this objective?
Another reason why this method of administration has to do
with the nature of the exercise. To obtain the right feedback on
the effectiveness of advertising of a specific product during the
Super Bowl on increasing consumer awareness of the product,
the researcher might have to interview spectators as they walk
out of the stadium. Usually, the people are in a rush to get home
and they exit in large numbers. A quick paper-and-pencil
survey, therefore, enables the researcher to reach many
respondents and to take as little of their time as possible.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: Why? Given what you
stated, what make you think they would stop? What other
alternatives are there? Comment by Susan Petroshius: The
commercials are on television for the viewing audience, not
people attending the game.
List of questions
To meet the objectives of the survey, the questionnaire will
contain the following questions (let us assume the name of the
specific product is mineral water):
i. Do you use mineral water?
ii. What brand of mineral water do you prefer?
iii. Please name three brands of mineral water that you know.
iv. Did you see [the specific mineral water brand] in the
stadium’s advertising board today? [Please tick in the
appropriate box]
[ ] Yes [ ] No [ ] Not Sure Comment by Susan Petroshius:
The use of the product category, preferred brands, and the
ability to name three are not relevant to what you are measuring
which is brand awareness. This is not measured.
Method of survey Comment by Susan Petroshius: This is what
was and/or should have been discussed prior to the questions to

7. be asked.
Paper-and-pencil survey is among the oldest survey
administration methods in market research. According to
Weigold et al (2016), this method of survey injected efficiency
and cost effectiveness in market research. In this method,
processing of questions lies squarely with the respondent, which
encourages obtaining of more useful and unbiased information.
This method is ideal in situations where researcher need to
reach a big sample. It would be impossible to reach super bowl
fans through the internet as they walk out of the stadium.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: This is not relevant to the
assignment. Comment by Susan Petroshius: First, where is
the evidence of this. Second, why is this needed.
Conclusion Comment by Susan Petroshius: You should not
have to have a conclusion.
Paper-and-pencil surveys require interviewers to be present. In
this case, it would be impossible for the researcher to attend to
all respondent at the same time. Online survey would have been
the best method to reach such a big population but the
circumstances make it inappropriate. Even with the
shortcomings, paper-and-pencil survey remains the best-fit
survey administration method to achieve the objects of this
study. Comment by Susan Petroshius: Why?
b. To determine the level of satisfaction of patients who are
admitted to a hospital during the past 6 months.
Introduction Comment by Susan Petroshius: This is not
necessary.
To measure patient satisfaction, hospital management needs to
reach out to the patients with appropriate questions. The study
intends to interview patients who have been admitted at the
hospital during the past 6 months. This is a large population and
it might require a survey administration method that can reach
many people fast and cheaply. Comment by Susan Petroshius:
Why? There is not rationale for this.
Recommendation and justification of the method of survey
administration

8. In this case, there are two appropriate methods of survey
administration. The first one is online survey and the second
one is mail survey. Online survey is applicable to all patients
who can access the internet. One can obtain such patients’ email
addresses from the hospital’s electronic health records (EHR).
This method is appropriate because it can reach a large sample
size cheaply and fast (Ball, 2019). In case there are patients
who do not have access to the interne, or they are internet
illiterate, then mail survey is appropriate. Mail survey is more
expensive than online survey and the response rate is lower.
However, it remains the best alternative to online survey.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: Why are these two criteria
most important here? Comment by Susan Petroshius:
Source? What is this dependent on? Comment by Susan
Petroshius: Why? You need to be providing your rationale.
List of questions to be used on the questionnaire
The following are some questions that would be used in the
questionnaire to meet the objectives of the study:
i. How often do you visit the hospital? Comment by Susan
Petroshius: Not relevant. Also, how is a person to answer this?
When needed???
ii. How would you rate your experience with our services?
[Please tick the appropriate box] Comment by Susan
Petroshius: Go back to assignment 4. You are not measuring
experience but satisfaction. How would this be operationally
defined?
[ ] Very Satisfied, [ ] Satisfied, [ ] Dissatisfied, [ ] Very
Dissatisfied, [ ] Not Sure.
iii. On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely are you to recommend this
facility to your family or friends? Comment by Susan
Petroshius: These two questions are not directly relevant. What
would be are the various elements that might have an impact on
patient satisfaction. This could have been examined by looking
at scholarly sources measuring this.
iv. What would you change or improve concerning our services
if you could?

9. Methods of survey
According to Ball (2019), online surveys provide the cheapest
and fastest means of obtaining feedback from respondents. In
addition, majority of human population is currently online.
Comparatively, face-to-face interviews would require
interviewers to travel to the respondents’ physical location.
This costs a fortune in terms of transportation, accommodation,
and other logistical needs. Mail surveys, on the other hand, are
not as cost effective as online surveys but they work better than
face-to-face interviews, particularly when the sample size is
large. Comment by Susan Petroshius [2]: You need to be
considering your sources and the generalizability. As this author
states, this article: “discuss the benefits and pitfalls of online
surveys for breastfeeding and lactation research,”This is not
what there studies are all about. Comment by Susan
Petroshius: What about telephone surveys?
Conclusion Comment by Susan Petroshius: This is repetitive
and not necessary. It is also not clear why you are assuming the
hospital draws patients from a broad geographical area. Even is
this is the case, it does not negate mail or telephone interviews.
Customer satisfaction is critical for organizations whose
functioning depends on their goodwill. For this reason,
hospitals regularly seek feedback from patients to determine
where they stand in terms of the quality of service. To this end,
online surveys are ideal especially if the patients are many and
come from distant places. In place of online surveys, mail
surveys can obtain the feedback without costing as much as it
would if face-to-face interviews would have been used.
c. To determine if there is a relationship between the decision to
pursue a career in law enforcement and gender.
Introduction
Career decision making is a difficult process and deeply
personal (Bacanli, 2016). In many societies, certain careers are
thought to be preserves of certain genders. Such careers are
demanding in terms of physical energy and commitment. For
example, law enforcement entails dealing with dangerous

10. characters who might harm officers deemed weak. This study
intends to find out if there is a relationship between the
decision to pursue a career in law enforcement and gender.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: It is inappropriate to
generalize these findings to this study since this is not only
dealing with adolescents but also those who are in Turkey. If
this study were dealing with those non-adults, it would have to
be started given issues of ethics and informed consent of non-
adults. Comment by Susan Petroshius: This sounds somewhat
biased. You might want to use the term people. You need to be
providing evidence for your assertions. While it is general
knowledge that there are dangers inherent in such as career, it is
not general knowledge that there is a relationship between
“characters” and officers who are perceived as being weak.
Recommendation and justification of method of survey
administration
The recommended method of survey administration is face-to-
face structured interview. This is because this method connects
the interviewer and the interviewee at a personal level. As such,
one is more likely to get an honest reply to questions posed. In
addition, face-to-face interviews offer the researcher the
opportunity to observe the behavior of the respondents when
asked certain questions (Mahfoud, Ghandour, Ghandour,
Mokdad & Sibai, 2015). Consequently, the researcher might be
able to quantify the level of difficulties respondents face when
making this career decision.
List of questions
The following questions would be used on a questionnaire to
meet the objects of the study:
i. Would you wish to be a law enforcement officer? Why?
Comment by Susan Petroshius: You are not addressing the
sample. Wouldn’t you be contacting those who have chosen this
as their career?I understand that we have not discussed
questionnaire design but given you are conducting a
quantitative study, would you not want to be using structured
questions as opposed to those that are open-ended. If any other

11. method was used, you would have to have a question on
gender.
ii. What do you think is the biggest hurdle that people of your
gender in law enforcement careers face that impedes their
success?
iii. Between men and women, who do you think are better law
enforcement officers? Why?
Method of survey
According to Mahfoud (2015), face-to-face interviews entail
some kind of person-to-person connection between the
interviewer and the respondent. This connection enables
interviewers to ask deeply personal questions that might require
long answers. Besides, this kind of survey administration
method gives the time and space for the respondents to explain
themselves at length. Nonetheless, interviewers play a major
role in the manner in which respondents answer questions in
face-to-face interviews. If the interviewer seems desperate for
an answer, the respondent might lie just to please the
interviewer. In addition, this method is cumbersome, costly, and
time intensive because it involves a lot of travelling.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: There is no evidence that
these are “deeply personal” questions. Even political view and
religious beliefs would be more personal. Comment by
Susan Petroshius: Where is the evidence of this? If this is the
case, why would you suggest using an interviewer?
Conclusion
Law enforcement is taxing and inherently risky. However,
various functions within the force have been developed that do
not involve as much risk as going out into the field.
Nevertheless, gender is still pivotal in decisions taking people
into law enforcement career. Whether one is willing to take this
path or not is a deeply personal question. As such, face-to-face
interviews are the appropriate method of administering the
survey where one intends to determine the relationship between
the decision to pursue a career in law enforcement and gender.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: You are ignoring the fact

12. that you have to reach these people. How would you do that?
The target respondents and access has to be considered in
making these decisions.
d. To determine IT professionals’ perceptions of the best
preparation for an IT career.
Introduction
The objective of this study is to determine the perceptions of IT
professionals concerning the best preparation for an IT career.
In this study, the researcher would be looking for the opinion of
the respondents when it comes to working towards a career in
IT. To get a better perspective, a researcher might want to reach
as large a sample as possible. This way, one can obtain a wide
variety of perspectives from which one can obtain the
overarching perception via generalization. As such, one needs a
method of survey administration that would enable one to reach
many respondents in the shortest time possible, and cheaply.
Recommendation and justification of method of survey
administration
Online survey is the recommended method of survey
administration for this study. This is because of various
reasons. Firstly, it is easy to gather data from a large sample of
respondents at minimal costs (Ball, 2019). Secondly,
researchers can design the questionnaire in such a way that
respondents can input data automatically. This makes the
process of survey taking easy and fun hence fast. Ultimately,
the researcher is likely to obtain higher response rates compared
to other alternative methods. Comment by Susan Petroshius:
You are ignoring a major issue. How are you reaching these
people?
List of questions
The following questions would be used on a questionnaire to
meet the objects of the study:
i. Do you need a degree qualification to succeed as an IT
professional? Comment by Susan Petroshius: Be specific.
What degree? High school? An associate degree?
ii. How much time did you spend studying and looking for your

13. first job in IT? Comment by Susan Petroshius: This is not
relevant.
iii. Do you agree with the following statements about
preparation for a career in IT? Please only tick against
statements that you agree with. Comment by Susan
Petroshius: Pick.
This is an inappropriate why to operationalize this concepts.
You are listing two statements and asking a respondent to pick
one. How could this be addressed? What about using a Likert
scale as studied previously?
a) Preparation for a career in IT is time consuming because of
time spent in school.
b) Technical skills are more valuable in IT compared to
theoretical knowledge.
Method of survey
Traditional methods of data collection for research are
cumbersome, time consuming, and costly. However, the internet
provides a platform that is universal where anyone from
anywhere on the globe can view the same piece of information
(Regmi, Waithaka, Paudyal, Simkhada & Teijlingen, 2017).
Online or internet-based data collection methods gather huge
amounts of data in a very small timeframe. In addition, this
method ensures the highest levels of protection of respondents
especially if the nature of the survey requires anonymity. As
such, respondents who would be hard to be accessed through
face-to-face interviews can easily be targeted using the internet.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: Source? What are you
considering “traditional” methods? Comment by Susan
Petroshius: You have stated this repeatedly. In addition, you are
not making the distinction between an online survey and an e-
mail survey.
Conclusion
Online surveys uphold the highest levels of security of the
identity of respondents. In addition, the internet is accessible in
most parts of the world, which makes it easy to reach a large
and diverse sample size fast. Subsequently, this method of

14. survey administration enables collection is large amounts of
data in a short period of time.
References
Bacanli, F. (2016). Career decision-making difficulties of
Turkish adolescents. International Journal for Educational and
Vocational Guidance, 16(2), 233-250.
Ball, H. L. (2019). Conducting Online Surveys. Journal of
Human Lactation,35(3), 413-417.
doi:10.1177/0890334419848734
Donohoe, H., & Karadakis, K. (2014). Survey Administration.
Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research,
6481-6483. doi:10.1007/978-94-007-0753-5_2924
Mahfoud, Z., Ghandour, L., Ghandour, B., Mokdad, A. H., &
Sibai, A. M. (2015). Cell phone and face-to-face interview
responses in population-based surveys: how do they
compare?. Field methods, 27(1), 39-54.
Regmi, P. R., Waithaka, E., Paudyal, A., Simkhada, P., &
Teijlingen, E. V. (2017). Guide to the design and application of
online questionnaire surveys. Nepal Journal of
Epidemiology,6(4), 640-644. doi:10.3126/nje.v6i4.17258
Weigold, A., Weigold, I. K., Drakeford, N. M., Dykema, S. A.,
& Smith, C. A. (2016). Equivalence of paper-and-pencil and
computerized self-report surveys in older adults. Computers in
Human Behavior, 54, 407-413.
Running head: MEASUREMENT 1
MEASUREMENT 10
Thanks for the timely submission of the assignment.

15. As you will note in the margin comments, there is often
confusion as to what construct is being defined and measured.
For instance, attitude toward technology is not the same as
attitude toward a specific form of technology. Similarly, self-
concept is a different from self-concept clarity.
Also note that not all articles provide conceptual definitions on
commonly used constructs but reference other prior research. A
perfect example is customer satisfaction which is a function of
perceived expectations vs. perceived performance. The same is
true with operational definitions since scholars build on one
another’s work. This requires that a researcher often has to
examine more than one article.
The operational definitions, including for your intended
research, has to be very specific. It is how you are measuring
the variable. An example of what was to be done is provided in
Exhibit 13.3.
In the next assignment you are to select a method of survey
administration given a number of different objectives. Each
method of administration has pros and cons but what is most
important to consider is the unique situation posed by the
objective(s) of the study. When deciding on a method of
administration for a survey, it is first necessary to determine the
unique characteristics that will need to be met. For instance, is
the topic sensitive or personal? This might lead to a greater
emphasis on the ability to build a rapport with respondents. Is
the sample a group that has a high interest in the topic where
nonresponse would be less of an issue making a mail survey
feasible. Is there a sampling frame available that would provide
what may be needed to access respondents such as e-mails? In
other cases, the amount of data needed may be considerable so
the ability to engage respondents for a long time may be critical
thus ruling out a telephone interview. Alternatively, cost may
be a dominant factor automatically eliminating the possibility of
personal (door to door) interviews. These critical factors are not
always identified in your responses. As stated in the
assignment, “The researcher needs to carefully consider the

16. objectives of the study, the questions that need to be asked and
the target respondents in addition to the pros/cons of the
alternatives.”
Let me know if you have any questions as you work on this.
Dr. P
Dr. Susan M. Petroshius 83
6/9/2020
Measurement: Conceptual and Operational Definitions of
Constructs
BUS-7320
June 7, 2020
Dr. Susan Petroshius
Conceptual and Operational Definitions of Constructs
The primary goal of a quantitative study is to test hypotheses
and theories (Claydon, 2015). To this end, researchers come up
with abstract constructs whose measurement would provide data
that is critical in the hypothesis testing process. The abstract
constructs that a researcher selects in a study have a certain

17. relationship that makes the hypothesis/theoretical propositions.
Therefore, testing a hypothesis entails measuring the abstract
constructs. A hypothesis testing process begets results that are
more accurate if the constructs are measured not only in a
scientific manner but also correctly and accurately (John &
Benet-Martínez, 2014). Comment by Susan Petroshius: The
research doesn’t just “come up” with the constructs, they are
part of the hypothesis being tested.
Nevertheless, what does the process of measurement of
construct entail? According to John and Benet-Martínez (2014),
measurement of abstract constructs entails researchers
observing the real world in a deliberate and careful manner.
Essentially, these kinds of observations are what constitute
empirical research. John and Benet-Martínez further wrote that
measurement of constructs begins with specifying their
conceptual and the operational definitions. Against this
background, this paper provides a conceptual and operational
definition of each of the given constructs. The definitions are
based on the scholarly studies researched in various databases.
In addition to the definitions, the paper provides a measurement
for the variables as well as an explanation of the level of
measurement.
Attitude toward new technology
To define this construct, this paper cites a 2016 study by Al-
Emran, Elsherif and Shaalan titled “Investigating attitudes
towards the use of mobile learning in higher education.” In the
study, the researchers explored the attitudes of students and
educators towards the use of mobile devices in learning.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: It is not necessary to
provide the name of the author and title in the paper. It is
essentially a waste of space. You can just provide and in-text
citation.
Conceptual definition:
Attitude refers to the internal evaluation of an object (abstract
or material) by an individual, according to Maio, Haddock and

18. Verplanken (2018). In the case of the study by Al-Emran,
Elsherif and Shaalan, the conceptual definition of attitude is the
students and educators’ internal evaluation of the use of new
technology (mobile technology) in higher educational learning
within Oman and the UAE. The attitude of the learners and the
educators influences the eventual adoption of mobile technology
as a means of learning in higher education. A study of attitude
can help researchers to understand the process of formation of
attitude toward new technology in higher education learning.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: Correct. Therefore, you are
not measuring “attitude” but attitude toward a particular object.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: Just cite the source.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: When you use this here,
you need to provide the date. Comment by Susan Petroshius:
Source? It is not clear that you are still referring to the same
source if you are. These authors are not measuring attitude
toward new technology but mobile learning. I understand that
this is somewhat difficult to identify.
Operational definition:
In the scholarly article, the researchers provided two different
sets of the operational definition of the construct. On the one
hand, 10 operational definitions of the “Attitude” facilitated the
measurement of the students’ attitude toward mobile technology
in higher education learning. One of the definitions was
“Mobile technology is a useful tool for my study.” Based on
this operational definition, the measurement for the variable
would be “Strongly Agree”, “Agree” “Disagree”, and “Strongly
Disagree”. The level of measurement that is generated,
therefore, is ordinal. Comment by Susan Petroshius: You
want to explain why. One was for students and the other was for
faculty. Comment by Susan Petroshius: There were 10 items
used. For instance, for the students, they were: 1 Mobile
technology is a useful tool for my study.2 Mobile technology
can offer opportunities for communication and team-working. 3
Mobile technology can help me in finding resources related to
my study. 4 Mobile technology can bring many opportunities to

19. the learning process. 5 Mobile technology can help me to access
the course-material anytime anywhere. 6 Mobile technology can
be an easy way to get feedback and notifications from my
instructors. 7 Mobile technology can help me to exchange the
course-material with my friends. 8 Mobile Apps can help me to
manage my study. 9 Mobile technology can help me to do my
coursework. 10 Mobile technology can help me to develop my
learning skills.You are correct that a Likert scale was used.
On the other hand, ten definitions of “Attitude” facilitated the
measurement of educators’ attitude toward use of mobile
devices in higher education learning. One such definition is
“Mobile technology is a useful and effective tool in Education”.
In like manner, the measurement for this variable would be
“Strongly Agree”, “Agree” “Disagree”, and “Strongly
Disagree”. Furthermore, the level of measurement generated is
ordinal. Comment by Susan Petroshius: Note: Attitude was not
measured but attitude toward the devices.
Customer satisfaction
This paper provides the conceptual and operational definitions
of customer satisfaction based on the study by Hussain, Nasser
and Hussain (2015) titled “Service quality and customer
satisfaction of a UAE-based airline: An empirical
investigation.”
Conceptual definition:
In the study, the authors define customer satisfaction in the
conceptual sense as the case where customers purchasing
products or services from a particular business without
complaining or exiting. This definition helped the authors to
develop two hypotheses that they investigate throughout the
study. Comment by Susan Petroshius: The authors don’t
provide a conceptual definition of customer satisfaction. They
assume that the reader is aware of it. You would have to go to
the article that they cite.
Operational definition:
In the study, customer satisfaction is operationalized by two

20. items i.e. prompt service delivery and overall passenger
satisfaction. Based on this operational definition, the
measurement for the variable would be “Strongly Satisfied”,
“Satisfied”, “Neutral”, Dissatisfied”, and “Strongly
Dissatisfied” and the level of measurement generated is ordinal.
Self-Concept
The study by Fullwood, James and Chen-Wilson (2016) helps to
define self-concept both conceptually and operationally. In the
study, the authors investigate the influence of the internet on
the self-concept of adolescents.
Conceptual definition:
In the study, self-concept refers to how adolescents think about,
evaluate or perceive themselves. During adolescence, young
boys and girls begin to become aware of themselves including
their attributes (Palacios, Echaniz, Fernández & De Barrón,
2015). One aspect of self-concept is the existential self, which
is the sense of distinctness from other people. On the other
hand, the categorical self entails an adolescent realizing that
he/she exists as an object in a world of many objects like
him/her. Comment by Susan Petroshius: The authors define
self-concepts as: “Self-concept may be defined as ‘‘the totality
of an individual’s thoughts and feelings having reference to
himself as an object.’’
Operational definition:
Operationally, the study defines self-concept as the clarity of
self that affects how one represents oneself to the world around
him/her. To measure the variable, the study used the Self-
Concept Clarity Scale. As such, the level of measurement
generated will be nominal since the resulting data will be
categorical. Comment by Susan Petroshius: This is not self-
concept that they are measuring but self-concept clarity. These
are two separate constructs. As noted by the author’s, self-
concept clarity is conceptually defined as: “Individuals vary in
the extent to which their self-concept is ‘‘clearly and
confidently defined, internally consistent, and temporally
stable’’ and this has become known as self-concept clarity.”

21. Leadership style
This paper defines leadership style conceptually and
operationally using the study titled “Leadership style and job
satisfaction in higher education institutions” by Alonderiene
and Majauskaite (2016).
Conceptual definition:
The conceptual definition of leadership style refers to the
manner in which a leader provides direction, implements plans,
and motivates his/her direct and indirect reports. In this regard,
a leadership style is autocratic, democratic, or delegative.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: These authors discuss the
fact that more than 50 approaches to leaderships are identified
in the literature. In discussing leadership style theory, they
state: “Leaders demonstrate particular leadership styles, the
most common investigated are transactional, transformational
and laissez-faire styles.” They then go on to define each of
these and discuss who these are defined by the behavior of the
leader.
Operational definition:
In the case of Alonderiene and Majauskaite’s study, leadership
style affects followers either positively or negatively. To
operationalize the construct, the authors boiled the leadership
style down to individual styles and asked participants to name
the style of their bosses. Therefore, leadership style was
measured in terms of “Coach Leadership Style”, “Human
Relations Specialist Leadership Style”, “Controlling Autocrat
Leadership Style”, “Transformational Visionary Leadership
Style”, “Transactional Exchange Leadership Style”, and Servant
Leadership Style”. The level of measurement generated was
ordinal. Comment by Susan Petroshius: This needs to be
explained. What are these? Comment by Susan Petroshius:
What is being measured? How? Comment by Susan
Petroshius: As stated by the authors: “In total, 21 question
reflects six different leadership styles (as in Figure 1) defined
by particular behaviors (see the constructs defined in Table AI).
For example, human relations leadership style is defined by the

22. following questions: “Does your supervisor show concern for
your welfare and comfort?”; “Does your supervisor listen
carefully to your problems and frustrations?”; “Does your
supervisor include you in decision making and problem
solving?”; “Does your supervisor keep you informed about
important issues?”; Faculty’s direct supervisors are asked to
evaluate themselves on the before mentioned behaviors.”
Organizational Commitment
To provide the conceptual and operational definitions of
organizational commitment, this paper uses the study by Nazir,
Shafi, Qun, Nazir and Tran (2016) titled “Influence of
organizational rewards on organizational commitment and
turnover intentions.”
Conceptual definition:
Commitment is a concept that comprises an emotion and
attitude dimension. Employees are committed to organizations
through emotional attachments, as well as an employee’s
evaluation of the current circumstances, whether the
circumstances are what the employee expects or are what the
employee might expect in future. Organizational commitment,
therefore, entails a sense of an employee’s identification with
the goals of the organization, a feeling of involvement in the
duties of the organization, as well as a feeling of loyalty to the
organization. Comment by Susan Petroshius: The authors
define it as: “Organizational commitment is defined as the
influence of an employee’s identification and engagement with
a certain organization.”They go on to explain that they have
adopted the three-component classification developed by Allen
and Meyer (1990). These are “emotional attachment (affective),
perceived cost (continuance), and obligation (normative)”Each
of these is explained and measured. They were operationalized
by the following:“Affective and normative commitment was
measured using two six-item scales that construct the 12-item –
two component scales developed by Meyer et al. (1993)”They
go on to say that the affective dimension was modified to
include only 4 items.These items are how the concepts were

23. operationalized and measured.
Operational definition:
In the case of the study by Nazir et al, the operational definition
of organizational commitment is the acceptance of the values of
the organization, as well as a willingness to put in more effort
for the sake of the organization’s desire to meet key goals.
Further, it refers to the desire by the employees to remain in the
organization. However, the construct is a dependent variable in
the study, which means its behavior depends on the
measurement of organizational rewards.
The constructs I will measure in the intended dissertation
research
In the untended dissertation, I will measure consumer
preferences and employee turnover. Comment by Susan
Petroshius: Preference toward what?
Customer preferences
Conceptual definition:
Consumer preference refers to the tastes for goods/services that
are unique to individual consumers. Usually, consumers prefer
items that satisfy them most after purchasing them.
Comment by Susan Petroshius: Source? Comment by
Susan Petroshius: Source?
Operational definition:
To operationalize this variable, I will measure customer
preferences in terms of likes and dislikes. The generated level
of measurement will be a nominal scale. Comment by Susan
Petroshius: You need to be more specific. Likes/dislikes toward
what? Why would you use only a nominal scale? Are there not
degree of preference? This has a significant impact on your data
analysis.
Employee turnover

24. Conceptual definition:
Employee turnover measures the rate at which workers in an
organization exit their positions (Kim, Tam, Kim & Rhee,
2017). Usually, this happens over a defined period of time, say
annually. Employee turnover could be considered on an
organizational or departmental level. Comment by Susan
Petroshius: Note that these authors are not measuring turnover
but turnover intention, a different construct. Comment by
Susan Petroshius: What is your intent?
Operational definition:
Employee turnover is often dependent on other factors such as
leadership style or workplace climate. As such, this construct
will be a dependent variable whose behavior will depend on the
nature of the independent variables. To operationalize the
variable, the study will consider employee turnover in the last
five years. The generated level of measurement will be an
interval scale Comment by Susan Petroshius: These are
separate constructs that are related to turnover. Comment by
Susan Petroshius: This needs to be explained. You are not
explaining the operational definition, how it is being measured.
References
Al-Emran, M., Elsherif, H. M., & Shaalan, K. (2016).
Investigating attitudes towards the use of mobile learning in
higher education. Computers in Human Behavior,56, 93-102.
doi:10.1016/j.chb.2015.11.033
Alonderiene, R., & Majauskaite, M. (2016). Leadership style
and job satisfaction in higher education institutions.
International Journal of Educational Management,30(1), 140-
164. doi:10.1108/ijem-08-2014-0106
Claydon, L. S. (2015). Rigour in quantitative research. Nursing
Standard,29(47), 43-48. doi:10.7748/ns.29.47.43.e8820
Fullwood, C., James, B. M., & Chen-Wilson, C. (. (2016). Self-
Concept Clarity and Online Self-Presentation in Adolescents.
Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking,19(12),
716-720. doi:10.1089/cyber.2015.0623

25. Hussain, R., Nasser, A. A., & Hussain, Y. K. (2015). Service
quality and customer satisfaction of a UAE-based airline: An
empirical investigation. Journal of Air Transport
Management,42, 167-175. doi:10.1016/j.jairtraman.2014.10.001
John, O. P., & Benet-Martínez, V. (2014). Measurement:
Reliability, construct validation, and scale construction.
Kim, S., Tam, L., Kim, J. N., & Rhee, Y. (2017). Determinants
of employee turnover intention. Corporate Communications: An
International Journal.
Maio, G. R., Haddock, G., & Verplanken, B. (2018). The
psychology of attitudes and attitude change. Sage Publications
Limited.
Nazir, S., Shafi, A., Qun, W., Nazir, N., & Tran, Q. D. (2016).
Influence of organizational rewards on organizational
commitment and turnover intentions. Employee Relations,38(4),
596-619. doi:10.1108/er-12-2014-0150
Palacios, E. G., Echaniz, I. E., Fernández, A. R., & De Barrón,
I. C. O. (2015). Personal self-concept and satisfaction with life
in adolescence, youth and adulthood. Psicothema, 27(1), 52-58.
160
Part Three: Research Methods for Collecting Primary Data
Chapter Ten: Survey Research
161
Chapter 10
Survey Research: Communicating with Respondents
Zikmund, W., Babin, B. J., Carr, J., & Griffin, M. (2013).
Business research methods (9th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage
Learning.

26. AT-A-GLANCE
I.
Interviews as Interactive Communication
A.
Noninteractive media
II.
Personal Interviews
A.
Advantages of personal interviews
· Opportunity for feedback
· Probing complex answers
· Length of interview
· Completeness of questionnaire
· Props and visual aids
· High participation
B.
Disadvantages of personal interviews
· Interviewer influence

27. · Lack of anonymity of respondent
· Cost
C.
Door-to-door interviews and shopping mall intercepts
· Door-to-door interviews
· Callbacks
· Mall intercept interviews
D.
Global considerations
III.
Telephone Interviews
A.
Mobile phone interviews
B.
Phone interview characteristics
· Speed
· Cost

28. · Absence of face-to-face contact
· Cooperation
· Incentives to respond
· Representative samples
· Callbacks
· Limited duration
· Lack of visual medium
C.
Central location interviewing
D.
Computer-assisted telephone interviewing
E.
Computerized voice-activated telephone interview
F.
Global considerations
IV.
Self-Administered Questionnaires

29. A.
Mail questionnaires
· Geographic flexibility
· Cost
· Respondent convenience
· Anonymity of respondent
· Absence of interviewer
· Standardized questions
· Time is money
· Length of mail questionnaire
B.
Response rates
C.
Increasing response rates for mail surveys
· Cover letter
· Money helps
· Interesting questions

30. · Follow-ups
· Advance notification
· Survey sponsorship
· Other techniques
· Keying mail questionnaires with codes
D.
Global considerations
V.
Self-Administered Questionnaires Using Other Forms of
Distribution
A.
Fax surveys
B.
E-mail surveys
C.
Internet surveys
· Speed and cost-effectiveness

31. · Visual appeal and interactivity
· Respondent participation and cooperation
· Representative samples
· Accurate real-time data capture
· Callbacks
· Personalized and flexible questioning
· Respondent anonymity
· Response rates
· Security concerns
D.
Kiosk interactive surveys
E.
Survey research that mixes modes
F.
Text-message surveys
VI.
Selecting the Appropriate Survey Research Design

32. VII.
Pretesting
VIII.
Ethical Issues in Survey Research
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Summarize ways researchers gather information through
interviews
2. Compare the advantages and disadvantages of conducting
door-to-door, mall intercept, and telephone interviews
3. Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of distributing
questionnaires through the mail, the Internet, and by other
means
4. Discuss the importance of pretesting questionnaires
5. Describe ethical issues that arise in survey research
CHAPTER VIGNETTE: Mobile Surveys Catching On, and
Catching Respondents “On the Go”!
Mobile surveying technologies now integrate SMS text
messaging (“texting”) with electronic surveys. Respondents
answer single or multiple choice questions, or even provide
open-ended responses to questions. These “instant feedback”
types of survey responses can have many different business
applications. Researchers interested in experiential surveying
use mobile surveys to capture people’s feelings at that
particular instant, and thus can create a longitudinal
understanding of people’s attitudes and emotional states over
time.
SURVEY THIS!
How would you classify the survey you participated in as part
of this class? Which approach did it use? What media type was
involved? What do you think the response rate for this survey
is? Students are instructed to e-mail the survey link to 10

33. friends not taking this class. How many actually responded?
What factors of this survey contribute to either a relatively high
or relatively low response rate?
RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS
· Being Good Neighbors Means Learning About Them First
In 2004-2005, students from a community college engaged in a
service learning project and captured information from an often
missed demographic in our society—the elderly. They
established a door-to-door survey of older adults, and their hard
work led to the inclusion of elderly adult needs as part of the
Good Neighbor Initiative, which included programs for literacy,
hunger, homelessness, and health. Without going from house to
house, it may not have been possible for the community to
capture the specific needs of this important population in their
city.
· Automated Phone Surveys of Teens
Computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) and
computerized self-interviewing, in which the subjects listen to
prerecorded questions and then respond by entering answers
with the telephone’s keypad, have been used to ask teens
potentially sensitive questions. For example, teens were more
likely to say they had smoked or lack a firm commitment not to
smoke in the future using this method. However, when a parent
was present, their responses were less likely to indicate
smoking desire or susceptibility. This suggests that teens might
be underreporting their smoking behavior.
· Mixed Mode Data Collection: The Case of Web and Telephone
Surveys
While the advantages in time and cost efficiencies of Internet-
based surveys are apparent, a major criticism is the low
response rate. This gives rise to the question, “Would the
information provided by sample members that did not respond
to the web survey differ from that provided by web survey
respondents?” Research investigated this using a “sequential
mixed-mode data collection” procedure that compared web-

34. based surveys and telephone surveys of nonrespondents. While
response rates were much higher for telephone the telephone
survey, comparison of the responses revealed very few
significant differences. It appears that web-based surveys are
not only fast and cost-effective, they provide the same
information as the far more costly telephone surveys.
OUTLINE
I.
INTERVIEWS AS INTERACTIVE COMMUNICATION
· Human interactive media are a personal form of
communication.
· Electronic interactive media allow businesses to reach a large
audience, personalize individual messages, and interact using
digital technology.
· Largely controlled by the users themselves.
· No other human need be present.
· The Internet is radically altering many organizations’ research
strategies, being the prominent form of new electronic
interactive media.
· Electronic interactive media also include DC-ROM and DVD
materials, touch-tone telephone systems, touch-screen
interactive kiosks in stores, and other forms of digital
technology.
· Noninteractive Media
· Self-administered questionnaires printed on paper are
noninteractive.
· Less flexible than surveys using interactive communication
media.
II.
PERSONAL INTERVIEWS
· A personal interview is a form of direct communication in
which an interviewer asks respondents questions face-to-face.

35. · This versatile and flexible method is a two-way conversation
between interviewer and respondent.
· Advantages of Personal Interviews
· Opportunity for Feedback
· Offer the lowest chance that respondents will misinterpret
questions because the interviewer can clarify the instruction or
questions.
· Probing Complex Answers
· Although interviewers are expected to ask questions exactly as
they appear on the questionnaire, probing allows them some
flexibility.
· Personal interviews vary in the degree to which questions are
structured and in the amount of probing required.
· Personal interview is especially useful for obtaining
unstructured information.
· Length of Interview
· General rules of thumb:
· Mails surveys should not exceed 6 pages.
· Telephones interviews should not exceed 10 minutes.
· Personal interviews can be much longer (i.e., 1 ½ hours).
· Should be clear about how long participation should take when
requesting participation.
· Online surveys should include a completion meter that shows a
respondent’s progress.
· Completeness of Questionnaire
· The social interaction between a well-trained interviewer and

36. a respondent increases the likelihood that the respondent will
answer all of the items on the questionnaire.
· Item nonresponse – failure to provide an answer to a
question—is least likely to occur when an experienced
interviewer asks questions directly.
· Props and Visual Aids
· Face-to-face interviews allow the showing of new product
samples, sketches of proposed advertising, or other visual aids.
· High Participation
· Presence of an interviewer generally increases the percentage
of people willing to complete the interview.
· All respondents have to do is talk.
· Disadvantages of Personal Interviews
· Interviewer Influence
· Some evidence suggests that demographic characteristics of
the interviewer influence respondents’ answers.
· Differential interviewer techniques may be a source of bias
(i.e., tone of voice, appearance).
· Lack of Anonymity of Respondent
· Because a respondent is not anonymous, researchers often
spend considerable time and effort to phrase sensitive questions
to avoid social desirability bias.
· Cost
· Personal interviews are expensive.
· Cost is influenced by:
· geographic proximity of respondents

37. · length and complexity of the questionnaire
· number of people who are nonrespondents because they could
not be contacted
· Door-to-Door Interviews and Shopping Mall Intercepts
· Door-to-Door Interviews
· Because door-to-door interviews increase the participation
rate, they may provide a more representative sample of the
population than mail questionnaires.
· Can reach people who do not have telephones, who have
unlisted numbers, or who are otherwise difficult to contact.
· May underrepresent some groups and overrepresent others
based on the geographic area covered.
· May exclude individuals who live in multiple-dwelling units
with security systems or executives who are too busy to
participate.
· Some people simply will not open the door when a stranger
knocks.
· Becoming a thing of the past.
· Callbacks
· Callbacks, or attempts to recontact individuals selected for the
sample, are the major means of reducing nonresponse error.
· Important in door-to-door interviews because not-at-home
individuals (e.g., working parents) may systematically vary
from those who are at home (e.g., nonworking parents, retirees).
· Mall Intercept Interviews

38. · Personal interviews conducted in shopping malls are referred
to as mall intercept interviews, or shopping center sampling.
· Typically intercept shoppers at a central point within the mall
or at an entrance.
· Costs are lower.
· No travel is required.
· Can be conducted quickly.
· A major problem is that individuals usually are in a hurry to
shop, so refusal is high (i.e., around 50%).
· More conducted than door-to-door interviews.
· Researcher must recognize that he or she is not looking for a
representative sample of the total population.
· Can show large, heavy, or immobile visual materials (e.g.,
television commercial).
· Can give an individual a product to take home to use and
contact later by phone.
· Appropriate when a consumer durable product must be
demonstrated.
· Global Considerations
· Willingness to participate in a personal interview varies
dramatically around the world.
· In many Middle Eastern countries, women would never
consent to be interviewed by a man.

39. · In some countries, discussing grooming behavior and
personal-care products with a stranger would be highly
offensive.
· Norms about appropriate business conduct also influence
businesspeople’s willingness to provide information to
interviewers (e.g., Japanese managers will not conduct
interviews during business hours due to responsibility to
oversee their employees while on the job).
III.
TELEPHONE INTERVIEWS
· The mainstay of commercial survey research for decades.
· Quality of data may be comparable to that of data collected in
personal interviews.
· Respondents are more willing to provide detailed and reliable
information on a variety of personal topics than they are with
personal interviews.
· Cellphone adoption and no-call laws limit the ability to
generate a representative sample.
· Mobile Phone Interviews
· In the U.S., no telemarketing can be directed toward mobile
phone numbers by law. Respondents have to “opt-in” before
their phone number would be made available for such calls.
· The recipient of a mobile phone call is even more likely to be
distracted than the recipient of a home or office call.
· The area codes for mobile phones are not necessarily tied to
geography, so a researcher may be unable to determine whether
or not a respondent fits into the desired geographic sampling
population simply by taking note of the area code.
· The phones have varying abilities for automated responses and
differing keypads.
· Phone Interview Characteristics
· Speed – hundreds of interviews can be collected literally

40. overnight.
· Cost – estimated to be less than 25 percent of the cost of door-
to-door personal interviews; travel time and costs are
eliminated.
· Absence of Face-to-Face Contact – respondents may answer
embarrassing or confidential questions more willingly, but
interviewer and respondent cannot see each other, resulting in a
greater tendency for interviewers to record no answers and
incomplete answers than in personal interviews.
· Cooperation
· Telephone response rates have been falling due to caller ID
and answering machines used to screen calls as well as more
phone lines dedicated to fax machines and computers.
· It is illegal in the U.S. for researchers to contact anyone who
would have to pay for the call (i.e., cellphones).
· Incentives to Respond – respondents should receive some
incentive to respond.
· Representative Samples – practical difficulties complicate
obtaining representative samples based on listings in the
telephone book.
· Well over 95% of U.S households have land-line telephones.
· People without phones are likely to be poor, aged, rural, or
living in the South.
· People have unlisted phone numbers for two reasons:
· they have moved recently
· by choice

41. · Random digit dialing eliminates the counting of names in a list
and subjectively determining whether a directory listing is a
business, institution, or legitimate household.
· Callbacks – an unanswered call, a busy signal, or a respondent
who is not at home requires a callback, which is much easier to
make than callbacks in personal interviews.
· Limited Duration – respondents who run out of patience can
hang up.
· Lack of Visual Medium – medium is not appropriate if need to
show respondent something (i.e., package, advertisement) or if
using certain attitude scales and measuring instruments (i.e.,
semantic differential that requires the respondent to see a
graphic scale).
· Central Location Interviewing
· Central location interviewing allows firms to hire a staff of
professional interviewers and to supervise and control the
quality of interviewing more effectively.
· Can benefit from cost economies.
· Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing
· Computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) allows
response to telephone interviews to be entered directly into the
computer by the interviewer.
· Telephone management systems select phone numbers, dial the
numbers automatically, and perform other labor-saving
functions, such as generating an automatic callback schedule.
· Researchers can request daily status reports on the number of
completed interviews relative to quotas.
· Interviews can also be conducted by a pre-recorded voice with

42. the respondent answering by punching buttons on the phone.
· Computerized Voice-Activated Telephone Interview
· Allows researchers to conduct telephone interviews without
human interviewers.
· Works best with very short, simple questionnaires.
· Entire data collection process can be automated because a
recorded voice is used to both ask the questions and record
answers.
· Global Considerations
· Different cultures have different norms about proper telephone
behavior.
· Latin American businesspeople will not open up to strangers
on the telephone.
· Japanese respondents consider it ill-mannered if telephone
interviews last more than 20 minutes.
IV.
SELF-ADMINISTERED QUESTIONNAIRES
· No matter how self-administered questionnaires are distributed
(i.e., mail, in high-traffic locations in stores), they are different
from interviews because the respondent takes responsibility for
reading and answering the questions.
· Presents a challenge to researchers because they rely on the
clarity of the written word rather than on the skills of the
interviewer.
· Mail Questionnaires
· A mail survey is a self-administered questionnaire sent to
respondents through the mail.

43. · Several advantages and disadvantages are listed below.
· Geographic Flexibility
· Can reach a geographically dispersed sample simultaneously
because interviewers are not required.
· Isolated respondents (e.g., farmers) or those who are difficult
to reach (e.g., busy executives) can easily be contacted by mail.
· Cost
· Relatively inexpensive compared with personal interviews, but
they are not cheap.
· Most include follow-up mailings, which require additional
postage and printing costs.
· Low response rates contribute to higher cost.
· Respondent Convenience
· Can be filled out when the respondents have time, so they are
more likely to take time to think about their replies.
· Allow respondents to collect facts that they may not be able to
recall without checking.
· Anonymity of Respondent
· Respondents are more likely to provide sensitive or
embarrassing information when they can remain anonymous.
· Can reduce social desirability bias.
· Absence of Interviewer
· Once the respondent receives the questionnaire, the
questioning process is beyond the researcher’s control.
· Respondent does not have the opportunity to question the
interviewer.
· Respondents can read the entire questionnaire before they
answer individual questions, which could affect responses.
· Standardized Questions
· Questionnaires typically are highly standardized, and the
questions are quite structured.
· Questions and instructions must be clear-cut and
straightforward.
· Time Is Money
· A minimum of 2 or 3 weeks is necessary for receiving the
majority of the responses.

44. · Follow-up mailings require an additional 2 or 3 weeks.
· The time between the first mailing and the cut-off date
normally is 6 to 8 weeks.
· Length of Mail Questionnaire
· General rule of thumb is not to exceed six pages in length.
· When a questionnaire requires a great deal of effort, and
incentive should be given.
· Response Rates
· The basic calculation for obtaining a response rate is to count
the number of questionnaires returned or completed, then divide
the total by the number of eligible people who were contacted
or requested to participate in the survey.
· Typically, the number in the denominator is adjusted for faulty
addresses and similar problems that reduce the number of
eligible participants.
· The major limitations of mail questionnaires relate to response
problems.
· Respondents who complete it may not be typical of all people
in the sample.
· Researcher has no assurance that the intended subject is the
person who fills out the questionnaire (electronic surveying
suffers same problem).
· Cooperation and response rates rise as home value increases.
· Rarely will have response rates of 50 percent or more, but
follow-up mailings and other techniques may increase response
rate to an acceptable level.
· Increasing Response Rates for Mail Surveys
· Individuals who are interested in the general subject of the
survey are more likely to respond than those who are not.
· Ways to increase response rates include using a stamped
return envelope, using attractive questionnaires, and wording
questions so that they are easy to understand.
· Cover Letter
· A cover letter that accompanies a questionnaire or is printed

45. on the first page is an important means of inducing the reader to
complete and return the questionnaire.
· First paragraph explains why the study is important.
· The basic appeal alludes to the social usefulness of
responding.
· Two other appeals are asking for help (“Will you do us a
favor?”) and the egotistical appeal (“Your opinions are
important!”).
· Most cover letters:
· promise confidentiality
· encourage recipient to use the postage-paid reply envelope
· describe any incentive for participation
· explain that answering the questionnaire will not be difficult
or time consuming
· describe how the person was scientifically selected for
participation.
· Personalized letter shows the respondent that he or she is
important.
· Using letterhead rather than a printed form increases response
rates.
· Money Helps
· Monetary incentives appear to be the most effective and least
biasing incentive.
· Attracts attention and creates a sense of obligation.
· Works for all income categories.
· Sending the monetary incentive to a charity of the
respondent’s choice increases response rates dramatically.
· Interesting Questions
· Certain interesting questions can be added to the questionnaire
to stimulate respondents’ interest and to induce cooperation.
· Questions may be of little concern to the researcher, but
respondents who are indifferent may be given a reason for
responding.
· Follow-up
· Response rates are relatively high for the first two weeks, then
the rates gradually taper off.

46. · Most studies use a follow-up letter or postcard reminder that
may include a duplicate questionnaire or may merely be a
reminder to return the original questionnaire.
· Multiple contacts almost always increase response rates.
· Advance Notification
· Advance notification (i.e., by letter or telephone) that a
questionnaire will be arriving has been successful in increasing
response rates.
· Notices that go out closer to the questionnaire mailing time
produce better results than those sent out too far in advance.
· Optimum lead time is 3 days before the mail survey is to
arrive.
· Survey Sponsorship
· Sponsorship by well-known and prestigious organizations
(i.e., universities or government agencies) may also
significantly influence response rates.
· Surveys mailed to a consumer panel receive exceptionally high
response rates because members have already agreed to
cooperate.
· Other Techniques
· Numerous other devices, such as type of postage (i.e.,
commemorative vs. regular stamp), envelope size, color of
paper, etc, have been varied to increase response rates.
· Limited success.
· The researcher should consider his or her particular situation.
· Keying Mail Questionnaires with Codes
· One device for eliminating those who have already responded
from the follow-up mailing list is to mark the questionnaire so
that they may be keyed to identify members of the sampling
frame who are nonrespondents.
· Blind keying of questionnaires can entail varying the job
number or room number on the research department on a return
envelope.
· Visible keying is a visible code number on the questionnaire,
and a statement should indicate to respondents that the purpose
is to avoid sending them a duplicate questionnaire.

47. · Global Considerations
· Postal services and cultural circumstances differ around the
world.
· Issues to consider include the reliability of mail delivery,
literacy rates, and trust that researchers can and will provide
confidentiality.
· Hand delivery or door-to-door interviewing may be necessary.
· Some consumers may be discouraged from talking to an
interviewer (e.g., women and children), so mailed
questionnaires would be superior to interviews.
V.
SELF-ADMINISTERED QUESTIONNAIRES USING OTHER
FORMS OF DISTRIBUTION
· Many forms are similar to mail questionnaires.
· Warranty or owner registration cards often are used to collect
demographic information and data about where and why
products were purchased.
· People who fill these out may differ form those who do not.
· The drop-off method, in which an interviewer drops off a
questionnaire (often an extremely long one) and then picks it up
later, sacrifices some cost savings because it requires traveling
to each respondent’s location.
· Fax Surveys
· Potential respondents receive and/or return questionnaires via
fax machine.
· Disadvantage is that only respondents with fax machines who
are willing to exert the extra effort will return questionnaires.
· People with extreme opinions will be more likely to respond.
· Researchers may use faxing as one of several options for
replying to a survey.
· Faxing questionnaires reduces the sender’s printing and
postage costs and can be delivered and returned faster than

48. traditional mail surveys.
· Can deal with timely issues.
· E-Mail Surveys
· Some individuals cannot be reached this way.
· Some projects lend themselves to e-mail surveys (i.e., internal
surveys of employees or satisfaction surveys of retail buyers
who deal with the organization via e-mail).
· Benefits include:
· speed of distribution
· lower distribution and processing costs
· faster turnaround time
· more flexibility
· less handling of paper questionnaires
· Some researchers have argued that many respondents feel they
can be more candid.
· But employees know that their e-mails are not secure.
· Maintaining respondents’ anonymity is difficult because reply
will have the sender’s address.
· Not all e-mail systems have the same capacity or settings,
which limits the types of questions and layout of the e-mail
questionnaire.
· Guidelines for printed mail surveys apply to e-mail surveys.
· Should include a valid return e-mail address in the “from” box
and reveal who is conducting the survey.
· E-mail should be addressed to a single person (the blind
carbon copy, or BBC, field can be used if the same message
must be sent to an entire sample).
· E-mail letters can be used as cover letter asking respondents to
participate in an Internet survey, and they usually include a
password and a link to a unique Web site.
· Internet Surveys
· An Internet survey is a self-administered questionnaire posted
on a website.
· Speed and Cost-Effectiveness
· Internet surveys allow researchers to reach a large audience
(possibly a global one), personalize individual messages, and

49. secure confidential answers quickly and cost-effectively.
· Eliminates the costs of paper, postage, data entry, and other
administrative costs.
· Once developed, the incremental cost of reaching additional
respondents is minimal.
· Even with large samples, surveys can be conducted in a week
or less.
· Visual Appeal and Interactivity
· Surveys can be interactive.
· Can use more sophisticated lines of questioning based on the
respondent’s prior answers.
· Can use color, sound, and animation.
· Can present visual materials.
· Respondent Participation and Cooperation
· Participation may occur because computer users intentionally
navigate to a particular website where questions are displayed.
· In some cases, visitors to a site cannot venture beyond the
survey page without providing information.
· Participants can initially be contacted via e-mail and given
logon instructions and a password, thus preventing access by
individuals who are not part of the selected sample.
· Unique passwords also allow the researcher to track the
responses of each respondent to identify anyone who makes an
effort to participate more than once.
· The welcome screen should contain the name of the research
company and information about how to contact the organization
if the respondent has a problem or concern.
· Representative Samples
· Some individuals cannot access the Internet.
· Not all people have the same level of technology.
· Some people have minimal computer skills.
· Internet surveys should be simple so that all respondents can
interact at the same level of technological sophistication.
· Accurate Real-Time Data Capture
· Each respondent’s answers are entered …

50. 308
Part Five: Sampling and Fieldwork
Chapter Eighteen: Fieldwork
309
Chapter 18
Fieldwork
Zikmund, W., Babin, B. J., Carr, J., & Griffin, M. (2013).
Business research methods (9th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage
Learning.
AT-A-GLANCE
I.
The Nature of Fieldwork
II.
Who Conducts Fieldwork?
III.
In-House Training for Inexperienced Interviewers
A.
Making initial contact and securing the interview
· Personal interviews
· Telephone interviews

51. · Internet surveys
· Gaining participation
B.
Asking the questions
C.
Probing when no response is given
D.
Recording the responses
E.
Terminating the interview
IV.
Principles of Good Interviewing
A.
The basics
B.
Required practices

52. V.
Fieldwork Management
A.
Briefing sessions for experienced interviewers
B.
Training to avoid procedural errors in sample selection
VI.
Supervision of Fieldworkers
A.
Sampling verification
B.
Interviewer cheating
C.
Verification by reinterviewing
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Describe the role and job requirements of fieldworkers

53. 2. Summarize the skills to cover when training inexperienced
interviewers
3. List principles of good interviewing
4. Describe the activities involved in the management of
fieldworkers
5. Discuss how supervisors should minimize errors in the field
CHAPTER VIGNETTE: Software for Fieldwork? Ask Askia
In the past, fieldworkers used notebooks and clipboards to
gather specialized or detailed data. Fortunately, technology has
made this process significantly easier. One example of a
company that has specialized in face-to-face fieldwork software
is Askia. This company has developed a fully functioning
software application that works with tablet PCs and PDAs for
field researchers. Their interface provides seamless integration
with telephone-assisted survey databases and an ability to
directly download data into an analysis program. Additionally,
survey applications can be updated on-the-fly, and users can
even use multimedia to present products or services, or provide
illustrations for the respondent.
SURVEY THIS!
Students are asked to examine the section of the questionnaire
shown and to answer several questions. Respondents answered
these questions without the benefit of an interviewer. Do you
think an interviewer could help provide better answers to these
questions? What are the pros and cons of a personal interviewer
or a telephone interviewer for this type of information? If you
think an interviewer should be used, explain why and give an
indication of the instructions the fieldworker should receive.
How might the interviewer actually contribute to lower quality
in responses?
RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS
· Interviewing for Horizon Research Services
Many smaller research companies offer interviewing and other
services to clients in their city or region, and an example is
Horizon Research Services. This company conducts focus

54. groups, telephone surveys, and other research projects. Horizon
uses part-time employees to staff its dozen computer
workstations whenever a client requests a telephone survey.
One of biggest challenges is keeping the respondent from
hanging up, so in the first few seconds, an interviewer quickly
reassures the person that the call is for research, not to sell
something. Retaining respondents becomes a matter of
reinforcing that they are doing something good for research.
Recruiting 12 people to participate in a focus group typically
requires four interviewers to spend about three hours, perhaps
requiring up to 600 phone calls.
· Why is “Why” Important?
While the use of field interviews has many logistic and quality
management challenges, they are unique in the ability to really
capture what a respondent is thinking about. This is due to the
ability to follow up and probe deeper on a respondent’s initial
response, and key way is through asking “why” follow-up
questions. Calo Research Services makes asking “why” their
business. Regardless of the reason for the research, they have
adopted a philosophy from the top down that stresses the
importance of asking why. Field interviewers that can probe
deeper into the question of interest will recognize the value of
this approach.
· Probing for Deeper Meaning at Olson Zaltman Associates
This research firm’s method, called ZMET (for Zaltman
Metaphor Elicitation Technique), begins by asking respondents
to come to a one-on-one interview, bringing along a set of 8 to
10 photographs related to their thoughts and feelings about the
topic. The photos are used as nonverbal clues about the
associations the person makes with the product and brand. A
typical interview lasts 2 hours, and the challenge is to ask
questions that reveal what is behind the selection of the
photographs. Probing is used to uncover a deeper meaning by
asking respondents to elaborate on their initial statements. Skill
based on training in fields such as psychotherapy and sociology
is needed by interviewers. Finally, a computerized collage that

55. illustrates the respondent’s thoughts and feelings about the
topic is created and submitted to computer software to identify
response patterns that suggest “metaphors” for the product—a
general theme that describes respondents’ attitudes.
· Total Quality Management for Interviewing
Interviewers and their supervisors can improve the process of
data collection to minimize errors, and total quality
management (TQM) seeks continuous improvement by getting
everyone involved in measuring performance and looking for
ways to improve processes:
· Measure response rates, and improve interviewer training to
improve response rates.
· Measure defects in terms of measurement errors, and improve
interviewer techniques and respondent behavior.
· Measure the interview process, including the training
provided, the application of principles from training, and
feedback about the interviewer.
OUTLINE
I.
THE NATURE OF FIELDWORK
· A personal interviewer administering a questionnaire door-to-
door, a telephone interviewer calling from a central location,
and an observer counting pedestrians in a shopping mall are all
examples of researchers conducting fieldwork.
· All of these people are fieldworkers.
II.

56. WHO CONDUCTS FIELDWORK?
· The actual data collection process is rarely done by the person
who designs the research.
· The people who gather the data typically have little research
training or experience.
· Much fieldwork is conducted by research suppliers who
specialize in data collection.
· In some cases, a company may subcontract the fieldwork to a
field interviewing service that specializes in gathering data.
· Field interviewing services and full-service research agencies
typically employ field supervisors who supervise and train
interviewers, edit completed questionnaires in the field, and
confirm that interviews have been conducted by telephoning or
recontacting respondents.
· Whether the research administrator hires in-house interviewers
or selects a field interviewing service, it is desirable that field
workers meet certain job requirements.
· Interviewers should be healthy, outgoing, and of pleasing
appearance (i.e., well-groomed and tailored).
· In ethnographic research, however, the interviewers should
dress to blend in with the group being studied.
· Survey interviewers are generally paid an hourly rate or per-
interview fees, and many are part-time workers from a variety
of backgrounds.
· Some research projects require special knowledge or skills
(i.e., health care professionals).
III.
IN-HOUSE TRAINING FOR INEXPERIENCED
INTERVIEWERS

57. · After personnel are recruited and selected, they must be
trained.
· Almost always there will be a briefing session on the
particular project.
· The objective of training is to ensure that the data collection
instrument will be administered in a uniform fashion by all field
workers.
· In most extensive training programs, the following topics are
likely to be covered:
· How to make initial contact with the respondent and secure the
interview.
· How to ask survey questions.
· How to probe.
· How to record responses.
· How to terminate the interview.
· Making Initial Contact and Securing the Interview
· Personal Interviews
· Interviewers will be trained to make appropriate opening
remarks that will convince the respondent that his or her
cooperation is important.
· Telephone Interviews
· Giving one’s name personalizes the call and using the name of
the research agency implies that the caller is trustworthy.
· Providing an accurate estimate of the time helps gain
cooperation, but it also is the ethically correct thing to do.

58. · Internet Surveys
· The potential respondent may receive an email requesting
assistance.
· Gaining Participation
· Avoid questions that ask permission for an interview, such as
“May I come in?” and “Would you mind answering some
questions?”
· Interviewers should be instructed on handling objections.
· In other cases, client companies will not wish to offend any
individual, so in the case where a respondent refuses, the
interviewer will be instructed to merely say, “Thank you for
your time.”
· The foot-in-the-door and door-in-the-face compliance
techniques are useful in securing interviews.
· Foot-in-the-door theory attempts to explain compliance with a
large or difficult task on the basis of respondents’ earlier
compliance with a smaller initial request.
· With the door-in-the-face technique, the interviewer begins
with an initial request so large that nearly everyone refuses it
(that is, the door is slammed in his or her face); the interviewer
then requests a small favor—to comply with a “short” survey.
· Asking the Questions
· There are five major rules for asking questions:
1. Ask the questions exactly as they are worded in the
questionnaire.
2. Read each question very carefully and clearly.

59. 3. Ask the questions in the specified order.
4. Ask every question specified in the questionnaire.
5. Repeat questions that are misunderstood or misinterpreted.
· Even the slightest change in wording may inject some bias
into a study.
· If respondents do not understand a question, they will usually
ask for some clarification, and the recommended procedure is to
repeat the question.
· However, interviewers often supply their own personal
definitions and ad lib clarifications and these may include
words that are not free from bias.
· Often respondents volunteer information relevant to a question
that is supposed to be asked at a later point in the interview.
· In this situation, the response should be recorded under the
question that deals specifically with that subject.
· Probing When No Response is Given
· Training of interviewers should include instructions on how to
probe when respondents give no answer, incomplete answers, or
answers that require clarification.
· Probing may be needed in two types of situations:
1. It is necessary in situations in which the respondent must be
motivated to enlarge on, clarify, explain, or complete his or her
answers.
2. May be necessary when a respondent begins to ramble or lose
track.
· The interviewer will have several possible probing tactics to
choose from, depending on the situation:
· Repeating the question: When the respondent remains
completely silent, he or she may not have understood the

60. question or decided how to answer it. Mere repetition may
encourage the respondent to answer.
· Using a silent probe: If the interviewer believes that the
respondent has more to say, a silent probe—that is, an expectant
pause or look—may motivate the respondent to gather his or her
thoughts and give a complete response.
· Repeating the respondent’s reply: This may stimulate the
respondent to expand on the answer.
· Asking a neutral question: Asking a neutral question may
specifically indicate the type of information that the respondent
is seeking. For example, if the interviewer believes that the
respondent’s motives should be clarified, he or she might ask,
“Tell me about this feeling?” Exhibit 18.1 shows some standard
interview probes and the standard abbreviations that are
recorded on the questionnaire with the respondent’s answer.
· Probes should be neutral and not leading.
· Probes may be general, or they may be questions specifically
designed by the interviewer to clarify a particular statement by
the respondent.
· Recording the Responses
· Although recording an answer seems extremely simple,
mistakes can occur in this phase of the research.
· Each field worker should use the same recording process.
· The rules for recording responses to fixed-alternative
questions vary with the specific questionnaire.
· The general instruction for recording open-ended questions is
to record the response verbatim, a task that is difficult for most
people.
· Some suggestions for recording open-ended answers include:
· Record responses during the interview.
· Use the respondent’s own words.
· Do not summarize or paraphrase the respondent’s answer.

61. · Include everything that pertains to the question objectives.
· Include all of your probes.
· Terminating the Interview
· The final aspect of training is to instruct interviewers on how
to close the interview.
· The interviewer who departs hastily will be unable to record
those spontaneous comments respondents sometimes offer after
all formal questions have been asked.
· The field worker should also answer any respondent’s
questions concerning the nature and the purpose of the study.
· The respondent should be thanked for his or her time and
cooperation.
IV.
PRINCIPLES OF GOOD INTERVIEWING
· This section presents the principles of good interviewing as
put together by one of the nation’s top research organizations,
Yankelovich and Partners.
· These principles have been divided into two categories:
1. the basics—the interviewing point of view
2. required practices—standard inquiry premises and procedures
· The Basics
· Interviewing is a skilled occupation. The basic qualities of a
good interviewer are as follows:
1. Have integrity, and be honest.
2. Have patience and tact.

62. 3. Pay attention to accuracy and detail. A good rule of thumb is
not to record an answer unless you fully understand it yourself.
Probe for clarification and rich, full answers and record all
answers verbatim.
4. Exhibit a real interest in the inquiry at hand, but keep your
own opinions to yourself.
5. Be a good listener.
6. Keep inquiry and respondent’s answers confidential. Do not
discuss the studies with others, and never quote one
respondent’s opinion to another.
7. Respect others’ rights. There is a happy medium path to
pursue in obtaining this information. On the one hand is failure
to get it all; and on the other hand is unnecessary coercion.
· Required Practices
· These are the practical rules of research inquiry, to be
followed and used without exception:
1. Complete the number of interviews according to the sampling
plan assigned to you. Both are calculated with the utmost
precision.
2. Follow the directions provided. Lack of uniformity in
procedure can only spell disaster for later analysis.
3. Make every effort to keep schedules.
4. Keep control of each interview you do. It is up to you to
determine the pace of a particular interview, keeping several
points in mind:
a. There is an established average length of an interview from

63. the time you start to talk to the respondent to the time you
finish. It represents a guideline, but some will be shorter and
some longer.
b. Always get the whole story from the respondent, and write it
all down in the respondent’s own words, but it’s equally
important to keep the interview to the subject at hand.
c. Avoid offending the respondent by being too talkative
yourself.
5. Complete the questionnaires meticulously. This means:
a. Follow exactly all instructions that appear directly on the
questionnaire.
b. Ask the questions from the first to the last in the exact
numerical order.
c. Ask each question exactly as it is written.
d. Never leave a question blank. If none of the answer
categories provided prove suitable, write in what the respondent
said, in his or her own words.
e. Use all the props provided to aid both interviewers and
respondents.
6. Check over each questionnaire you have completed. This is
best done directly after it has been completed; if you find
something you have done wrong or have omitted, correct it.
7. Compare your sample execution and assigned quota against
the total number of questionnaires you have completed.
8. Clear up any questions with the research agency.

64. V.
FIELDWORK MANAGEMENT
· Managers of the field operation select, train, supervise, and
control fieldworkers.
· Briefing Session for Experienced Interviewers
· There is always a need to inform field workers about the
individual project.
· Both experienced and inexperienced field workers must be
briefed on the background of the sponsoring organization,
sampling techniques, asking of questions, callback procedures,
and other matters specific to the particular project.
· If there are any special instructions (e.g., using show cards or
video equipment) they should also be covered during the
training session.
· Instructions for handling certain key questions are always
important.
· Interviewers are provided with minimum information about the
purpose of the study, to ensure that they will not transmit any
preconceived notions to respondents.
· One technique used to train the interviewers about the
questionnaire is for a field supervisor to conduct an interview
with another field supervisor who acts as a respondent.
· The trainees observe the interviewing process and afterwards
are instructed to personally interview and record the responses
of another field supervisor “respondent.”
· Training to Avoid Procedural Errors in Sample Selection
· The briefing session also covers the sampling procedure.
· A number of research projects allow the interviewer to be at

65. least partially responsible for selecting the sample, and the
potential for selection bias exists.
· Considerable effort in training and supervisory control should
be carried out to minimize these errors.
· Another selection problem is the practice of contacting a
respondent when and where it is convenient for both parties.
VI.
SUPERVISION OF FIELD WORKERS
· Direct supervision of fieldworkers is necessary to ensure that
the techniques communicated in the training sessions are
implemented in the field.
· Field supervision of interviewers requires checking to see that
field procedures are being properly followed.
· In addition to quality control, continual training may be
provided.
· Sampling Verification
· Another important job of the supervisor is to verify that the
interviews are being conducted according to the sampling plan
rather than at the households most accessible to the interviewer.
· Supervisors must also make sure that the right people within
the household or sampling unit are being contacted.
· Interviewer Cheating
· Interviewer cheating in its most blatant form occurs when an
interviewer falsifies interviews, merely filling in fake answers
rather than contacting respondents (a.k.a., curb-stoning).

66. · This situation is not common if the job of selection has been
properly accomplished.
· However, less obvious forms of interviewer cheating occur
with greater frequency.
· Quota samples are often seen as time consuming, and the
interviewer may stretch the requirements a bit to obtain
seemingly qualified respondents.
· An interviewer may fake part of a questionnaire to make it
acceptable to the field supervisor.
· Interviewers fake answers when they find questions
embarrassing or troublesome to ask because of sensitive
subjects.
· What appears to be interviewer cheating often is caused by
improper training or fieldworkers’ inexperience.
· The quality of fieldwork improves if fieldworkers know that a
supervisor may follow up with a respondent.
· Verification by Reinterviewing
· Supervisors verify approximately 15 percent of the interviews
by reinterviewing.
· Normally the interview is not repeated, but the supervisors
recontact respondents and ask about the length of the interview
and their reaction to the interviewer.
· Such verification does not detect the more subtle form of
cheating in which only portions of the interview have been
falsified; rather, it may simply point out that an interviewer
contacted the proper household but interviewed the wrong
individual.
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND CRITICAL
THINKING/ANSWERS
1.

67. What qualities should field workers possess?
Field interviewers should be personable, healthy, and well
groomed. Being personable is important. Respondents do not
like interviewers who act like traffic cops impersonally filling
their quotas of parking and speeding tickets. Field workers
should be of a similar background to the respondent. Average
or greater intelligence, honesty, and diligence are important to
ensure that the research is conducted as requested.
2.
[Ethics Question] An interviewer has a rather long telephone
interview. The estimate suggests that fully completing the
survey will take 30 minutes. However, what do you think the
response rate will be if people are told ahead of time that it will
take 30 minutes to finish participating in the survey? Should
the interviewer fudge a little and state that the survey will take
only 15 minutes? Explain.
The respondent must be given an accurate estimate of the
amount of time participating in the interview will take. If
someone is told that fifteen minutes will be required, and the
questioning proceeds to more than that, respondents will tend to
quit before completing the interview. Providing an accurate
estimate of the time not only helps gain cooperation, it is the
ethically correct thing to do.
3.
What should the interviewer do if a question is misunderstood?
If a respondent answers a question before it is encountered in
the questionnaire?
Frequently, when a question is misunderstood, the interviewer
is instructed to repeat the question. If skilled interviewers are
used, when a respondent answers a question before it is
encountered in the questionnaire, the fieldworker will record the
response where it belongs, if possible.

68. 4.
When should interviewers probe? Give some examples of how
it should be done.
Interviewers should probe when respondents give no answer,
incomplete answers, or answers that require clarification. In
addition, probing is often necessary when the respondent begins
to fail to focus on the specific content of the interview. Some
examples of probing techniques are (1) repeating the question,
(2) using a silent probe, that is, an expectant pause or look, (3)
repeating the respondent’s reply, and (4) asking a neutral
question.
5.
How should respondents’ answers to open-ended questions be
recorded?
Verbatim. Although it is difficult to write a respondent’s
answer down word for word, this should be the goal.
Statements that seem irrelevant to the interviewer may be
important to an analyst when interpreting the data. Some
suggestions for recording open-ended answers include:
· Record responses during the interview.
· Use the respondent’s own words.
· Do not summarize or paraphrase the respondent’s answers.
· Include everything that pertains to the question objectives.
· Include all of your probes.
6.
How should the fieldworker terminate the interview?
Fieldworkers should wait to close the interview until they have

69. secured all pertinent information. The interviewer who departs
hastily will be unable to record the spontaneous comments
respondents sometimes offer after all formal questions have
been asked. Merely recording one of these comments may
result in a new product idea or creative campaign. Avoiding
hasty departures is also a matter of courtesy. The fieldworker
should also answer any respondent questions concerning the
nature and purpose of the study to the best of his or her ability.
Finally, the interviewer should always thank respondents for
their time and cooperation. It is extremely important to leave
the respondent with a positive feeling because it may be
necessary to reinterview the respondent in a future time period.
7.
Why is it important to ensure fieldworkers adhere to the
sampling procedure specified for a project?
As the introduction of the chapter illustrates, the best laid plans
of mice and men may go astray. Business research is no
exception. A great plan, if not properly executed, may fail to
achieve its objectives. Chapter 16 pointed out some of the
problems involved in sample selection. If fieldworkers do not
follow a scientifically selected plan, there may be considerable
bias in the project.
8.
[Ethics Questions] What forms does interviewer cheating take?
How can it be prevented or detected?
Interviewer cheating most often occurs on a portion of the
questionnaire rather than the entire questionnaire. Interviewers
who find some questions troublesome because the questionnaire
is too long or because the questions are embarrassing may skip
the questions. For example, if they find it embarrassing to ask
income questions, they may estimate the income of the
respondents on the basis of the house size, the clothes

70. respondents wear, etc. The best way to reduce interviewer
cheating is to control interviewer work with supervision.
However, as field services have become larger, control over
fieldwork has been slipping. Control over fieldworkers can
increase with training. When the interviewer is confident of the
task, he or she will be less inclined to skip portions of the
questionnaire.
9.
[Ethics Question] Two interviewers are accused of curb-stoning.
What have they done?
Curb-stoning is a term used to refer to a blatant form of
interviewer cheating that occurs when an interviewer falsifies
interviews, merely filling in fake answers rather than contacting
respondents.
10.
Comment on the following field situations.
a.
After conducting a survey with about 10 people, an interviewer
noticed that many of the respondents were saying, “Was I
right?” after a particular question.
This indicates that the respondents are viewing the interview as
a quiz rather than a situation where they respond with their true
feelings. The interviewer should remind the respondent that
there are no right or wrong answers.
b.
A questionnaire asking about a new easy-opening can has the
following instructions to interviewers: (Hand respondent can
and matching instruction card.) “Would you please read the
instructions on this card and then open this can for me?”
(Interviewer: Note any comments respondent makes. Do not