Transcript Surveys File

Surveys
Sarah Galloway
Surveys
Surveys – an introduction
E-surveys
Longitudinal surveys/Secondary data
Surveys
Advantages
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A good response rate can generate a lot of data in a short time
Can be relatively easy to administer requiring little fieldwork
With an appropriate sample size the results might be generalised
Can be repeated at a date in the future, allowing comparisons to be made
Disadvantages
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Statistics and charts become the main focus of findings
Produces a snapshot; the underlying processes or problems are not revealed
The researcher is not in a position to make judgements about the reliability of
participants individual responses, or barriers preventing participation
Validity of data may be reliant on large sample sizes – a crucial issue for small scale
research projects
(Blaxter, Hughes and Tight, 2006, p79)
Undertaking a survey – the process
The research question has already been selected and a decision made to answer it by
collecting data through using a survey
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Determine the survey population e.g. Library users, inhabitants of Motherwell
Determine mode of sampling and sample size
Convenience
Randomised/Probability
Representative
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Decide the mode of administration e.g. face-to-face, web, postal
Develop questionnaire and review it to check it addresses the research question
Pilot the questions and make revisions
Decide strategy for sampling
Administer questionnaire, including following up non-respondents
Transform completed questionnaires into computerised data
Analyse data
Interpret findings
(Bryman, 2008)
Questions.... to avoid
1.
Exactly how many times have you phoned the College in the last calendar
year?
to,
2.
Which applies to you? When studying, usually I use:
The library
The University shuttle bus
c
Energy drinks
3.
Encyclopaedia Britannica?
Achieving success at university is impossible without excellent access to
library facilities. Do you agree that the library should be open 24 hours a
day? Yes
No
4. How do you feel about the other people, including the tutors, on this
course?
Questions.... to avoid
1.
Exactly how many times have you phoned the College in the last calendar
year?
Remembering the exact amount is difficult
to,
2.
Which applies to you? When studying, usually I use:
The library
The University shuttle bus
c
Topics seem unrelated and random
Energy drinks
Encyclopaedia Britannica?
3.
Achieving success at university is impossible without excellent access to
library facilities. Do you agree that the library should be open 24 hours a day?
Yes
No
The respondent is being forced to tick YES
4. How do you feel about the other people, including the tutors, on this
course? Ethical issues. Makes respondent feel uncomfortable. Trust issues.
Questions.... alternatives
1.
How often have you phoned college in the last year?
0
2.
1 to 5 times
c
c
The University shuttle bus
Moodle
Do the current opening hours of the library meet your needs?
Never
4.
c
Which of these college services do you use regularly (i.e. at least once a week)
The library
University Gym
3.
10 or more times
c
Sometimes
Usually
Almost always
Always
Please use the space below to give us any other feedback about the course
c
More questions to avoid
5. Which of the following is a good type of research sample?
RS c
PS c
CS c
6.
There isn’t always not a reason to conduct research. Don’t you agree?
Yes c
No c
More questions to avoid
5. Which of the following is a good type of research sample?
RS c
PS c
CS c
Respondent might not know the acronyms
How is the respondent supposed to know what is meant by ‘good’?
No option to tick ‘none of these’ – respondent forced to tick that at least one
option is ‘good’
6.
There isn’t always not a reason to conduct research. Don’t you agree?
Yes c
No c
Double negatives – difficult to understand
More alternative questions
5. Which types of research sample have you utilised?
c
Representative c
Probability/randomised
None of these c
6.
Convenience
Are there circumstances in which you think this research should not be
conducted?
Yes c
No c
c
E-Surveys
https://www.surveymonkey.com/home/
Google docs
E-Surveys
Advantages of online surveys:
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Low administration costs
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Quick process of design, administration and data generation
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Might be useful for dealing with some sensitive questions
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Can be completed at respondent’s convenience
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Possible to reach large numbers of respondents
Disadvantages:
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Excludes some participants
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Issues about reliability of data:
respondents ‘click-happy’
respondent may not have answered the questions themselves
respondent loses control over order of completion
Secondary Data
Many publically funded data sets are available for public access
Local council research and planning departments – phone your council
Scottish Government http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics
Topics include lifelong learning, justice and children
Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) - Scottish Government's tool for
identifying small area concentrations of multiple deprivation
http://simd.scotland.gov.uk/publication-2012/
Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics Scottish Governments tool for developing statistics on
health, education, poverty, unemployment, housing, population, crime and social/community
by local geographical area
http://www.sns.gov.uk/
Secondary Data
National records of Scotland
Includes population and Census data
UK data (inc England and Wales)
Office for National Statistics, includes:
Labour market
Children, education and skills
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/index.html
International
UNESCO Institute for Statistics, includes:
Literacy
Education
Culture
http://www.uis.unesco.org/Pages/default.aspx
OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
PISA (Program for International Student Assessment)
Surveys 15 year olds’ competency in key subjects such
as reading and writing
http://www.oecd.org/pisa/
International Survey of Adult Skills
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-survey-of-adult-skills-2012
Large scale longitudinal surveys
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Longitudinal Surveys are repeated periodically so that results can be compared
True longitudinal surveys involve returning to the same participants, allowing individual people
to be tracked over time
Example: The Millennium Cohort Survey based at the University of London. The survey follows a
sample of 20 000 children, and their parents, who were born in year 2000-2001
Secondary Data
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Uses
Can set primary data in context, e.g. socio-economic data concerned with the
geographical area in which your practice research is based
Can describe evidence of a problem that your research is concerned with e.g. boys
underachievement, unemployment, access to services in rural areas etc
Caution
There is ongoing controversy about how large scale survey data is collected and used
in the context of adult education.
For example, the tests utilised in the OECD’s International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS)
have been criticised for being inadequate (e.g. Moser, 1999) and for encouraging
restrtictive understandings of adult learning (eg Fulford, 2010, Oughton, 2007).