Self-report techniques

What are questionnaires used for??

To assess dependent variable

What are open questions?

Respondents are free to answer in any way they like

What kind of data does open questions produce?

Qualitative data

What are closed questions?

Fixed number of responses

What kind of data do closed questions produce?

Quantitative data

What is a structured interview?

Pre-determined set of questions asked in a fixed order

What is an unstructured interview?

No set questions - general topic to be discussed, but interaction is free-flowing like a conversation. Interviewee is encouraged to expand and elaborate their answers, prompted by the interviewer

What are semi-structured interview?

Pre-determined questions but interviewers are free to ask follow-up questions based on interviewee’s answers.

What are the strengths of questionnaires?

• Cost-effective - large amount of data gathered quickly as they can be distributed widely, and researcher does not need to be present.

• Data is straightforward in fixed-choice questions, making analysis and comparison easy using graphs and charts.

What are the limitations of questionnaires?

• Responses may not be truthful - respondents may want to present a positive image which may influence their answers - social desirability bias.

• Response bias - respondents tend to rely in a similar way - due to completing too quickly, not reading questions properly → acquiscence bias (always agreeing with items on questionnaire) - shown in F-scale, where they found a strong positive correlation when they gave a reversed version of the scale to respondents.

What are the strengths of structured interviews?

• Easy to replicate due to standardised format

• Reduces differences between interviewers

What are the limitations of structured interviews?

Interviewers cannot deviate from a topic or explain their questions, limiting the richness of data

What are the strengths of unstructured interviews?

• More flexibility

• Gain more insight into the interviewee

What are the limitations of unstructured interviews?

• Increased risk of interviewer bias

• Analysis of data is more difficult

• Difficult to draw firm conclusions as researcher has to sift through lots of irrelevant information.

• Interviewees may lie for social desirability