Marketing Research Test 3

Chapters 7, 8, 9

measurement

assigning numbers or other symbols to characteristics of objects according to certain pre-specified rules

scaling

involves creating a continuum upon which measured objects are located

description

unique labels or descriptors that are used to designate each value of the scale. All scales possess this.

order

relative sizes or positions of the descriptors. Denoted by descriptors such as greater than, less than, and equal to.

distance

means that absolute differences between the scale descriptors are known and may be expressed in units

origin

means that a scale has a unique or fixed beginning or true zero point.

nominal scale

numbers serve only as labels or tags for identifying and classifying objects (lowest level of measurement)

ordinal scale

ranking scale in which numbers are assigned to objects to indicate the relative extent to which the objects possess some characteristic

interval scale

numerically equal distances on the scale represent equal values in the characteristic being measured. The location of the zero point is not fixed. (ie, temperature, standardized testing, year)

ratio scale

possess all the properties of the nominal, ordinal, and interval scales. It has an absolute zero point.

Comparative Scales

involve the direct comparison of stimulus objects. comparative scale data must be interpreted in relative terms and have only ordinal or rank order properties

Noncomparative scales

each object is scaled independently of the others in the stimulus set. the resulting data are generally assumed to be interval scaled.

paired comparison scaling

respondent is presented with two objects and asked to select one according to some criterion

rank order scaling

respondents are presented with several objects simultaneously and asked to order or rank them according to some criterion

constant sum scaling

respondents allocate a constant sum of units, such as 100 points, to attributes of a product to reflect their importance

continuous rating scale

respondents rate the objects by placing a mark at the apporpriate position on a line that runs from one extreme of the criterion variable to the other.

itemized rating scale

respondents are provided with a scale that has a number or brief description associated with each category.

Likert scale

requires respondents to indicate a degree of agreement or disagreement with each of a series of statements about the stimulus objects

semantic differential

seven-point rating scale with end points associated with bipolar labels that have semantic meaning

stapel scale

unipolar rating scale with ten categories number from -5 to +5, without a neutral point (zero). Usually presented vertically.

reliability

extent to which measures are free from random error

validity

extent to which differences in observed scale scores reflect true differences among objects on the characteristic being measured, rather than systematic or random error

questionnaire

formalizes set of questions for obtaining information from respondents

objectives of a questionnaire

• translate the information needed into a set of specific questions that the respondents can and will answer

• must uplift, motivate, and encourage the respondent to become involved in the interview, to cooperate, and complete the interview

• should minimize response error

response error

arises when respondents give inaccurate answers or their answeres are misrecorded or analyzed incorrectly

what methods are best when utilizing rank order

mail, email, and internet

what type of questionnaire is best for telephone interviews

rating (10 point scales)

Neutral questions

asked at the beginning to establish rapport or filler questions to disguise the purpose

double barreled questions

combine two or more questions into one

Ways to help respondents who do not have the ability to respond to questions

• use filter questions that measure familiarity

• use aided recall approach

• give aids such as pictures and descriptions

How to overcome respondent unwillingness to respond:

• provide response options

• use desensitizing techniques

sensitive topics

placed at END of questionnaire

third person technique

phrasing the question as if it referred to other people

unstructured questions

open-ended questions that respondents answer in their own words

disadvantages of unstructured questions

high potential for interviewer bias and the coding of responses is costly and time consuming

dichotomous questions

only has two response alternatives: yes or no, agree or disagree

Define issues in terms of:

who, what, when, where, why, and WAY

leading question

question that gives the respondent a clue about what answer is desired or leads the respondent to answer in a certain way

opening questions

should be interesting, simple, and non-threatening

funnel approach

strategy for ordering questions in a questionnaire in which the sequence starts with general questions that are followed by progressively specific questions

branching questions

used to guide an interviewer through a survey by directing the interviewer to different spots on the questionnaire

pretesting

testing of the questionnaire on a small sample of respondents to identify and eliminate potential problems

population

aggregate of all elements that share some common set of characteristics, and that compromise the universe for the purpose of the marketing research

census

involves complete enumeration of the elements of a population

sample

subgroup of the population selected for participation in the study

parameter

summary description of a fixed characteristic or measure of the target population

statistic

summary description of a characteristic or measure of the sample. the sample is used as an estimate of the population parameter

element

object about which or from which the information is desired

sampling unit

element, or a unit containing the element, that is available for selection at some stage of the sampling process

sampling frame

representation of the elements of the larger population. consists of a list or set of directions for identifying target population

sample size

number of elements to be included in the study

convenience sampling

attempts to obtain a sample of convenient elements. often respondents are selected because they happen to be in the right place at the right time

judgmental sampling

form of convenience sampling in which the population elements are selected based on convenience or judgment

snowball sampling

when an initial group of respondents is selected, usually at random. after being interviewed, respondents are asked to identify others who belong to the target population of interest. subsequent respondents are selected based on the referrals.

simple random sampling

each element in the population has a known and equal probability of selection. each possible sample of a given size (n) has a known and equal probability of selection

systematic sampling

sample is chosen by selecting a random starting point and then picking every ()th element in succession from the sampling frame

stratified sampling

two-step process in which the population is partitioned into subpopulations or strata. then elements are selected from each stratum by random procedure.

cluster sampling

target population is first divided into mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive subpopulations, or clusters. then a random sample of clusters is selected, based on a probability sampling technique such as SRS.