“Assignment”

“Business Research Methods”

Submitted to: Ms. Humaira Erum

Group Leader: Raviha Khalid

Submitted by: Raviha Khalid (LCM-3534)

Ayesha Rasheed (LCM-3498)

Rabia Iqbal (LCM-3532)

Rimsha (LCM-3535)

Hafiz M. Zain- Ul- Abideen (LCM-3502)

Class: BBA- V (Section-A)

Date of submission: 21 April 2020

“National University of Modern Languages”

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of personally administered
questionnaires, mail questionnaires, and electronic questionnaires.

What is Questionnaire?

A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a

series of questions for the purpose of gathering
information from respondents. The questionnaire was
invented by the Statistical Society of London in 1838.

E.g.

Customer Satisfaction Questionnaire, Product Use

Satisfaction Questionnaire

Advantages of Questionnaire:

There are the following advantages of questionnaires.

 With a survey questionnaire, you can gather a lot of data in less

time.
 There is less chance of any bias creeping in if you have a
standard set of questions to be used to your target audience. You
can apply logic to questions based on the respondents’ answers,
but the questionnaire will remain common for a group of
respondents that fall in the same segment.
 Conducting a survey through online survey software is really quick and cost-effective. It
offers you a rich set of features to design, distribute and analyze the response data.
 A questionnaire can be customized to reflect your brand voice. Thus, it can be used to
reinforce your brand image.
  The responses can be compared with the historical data and understand the shift in
respondents’ choices and experiences.
 Respondents can answer the questionnaire without revealing their identity. Also, many
survey software comply with major data security and privacy regulations.

Disadvantages:

There are the following disadvantages of questionnaires.

 Dishonest answers
 Unanswered questions
 Differences in understanding and interpretation
 Hard to convey feelings and emotions
 Some questions are difficult to analyze
 Accessibility issues

Characteristics of a Questionnaire:

There are the following characteristics of questionnaire.

 Uniformity
 Exploratory
 Question Sequence

Uniformity:

Questionnaires are very useful to collect demographic

information, personal opinions, facts, or attitudes from
respondents. One of the biggest characteristics of questionnaires is
uniform design and standardization. Every respondent sees the
same questions. This helps in data collection and statistical
analysis of this data.

E.g.
The retail store evaluation questionnaire template contains questions for evaluating retail store
experiences. Questions relate to purchase value, range of options for product selections, and
quality of merchandise. These questions are uniform for all customers.

Exploratory:

To collect qualitative data, the questionnaire should be exploratory. There is no

restriction to questions that can be in questionnaire or the specific objective of the
questions.

E.g.

Researchers may set up websites to attract worldwide feedback on any subject.

Question Sequence:

A questionnaire typically follows a structured flow of questions to increase

the number of responses. This sequence of questions is screening questions,
warm-up questions, transition questions, skip questions, difficult questions,
and classification questions.

E.g.

1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25... This sequence has a difference of 3 between each number.

Types of Questionnaires:

There are the following types of questionnaires.

 Personally administrated questionnaires

 Mail questionnaires
 Electronic questionnaires
 Phone Questionnaire
Personally Administered Questionnaires:

It refers to a questionnaire that has been designed specifically to

be completed by a respondent without intervention of the
researchers.

e.g.

An interviewer

Advantages:

There are the following advantages of personal administrated questionnaire.

 In expensive
 No biasness
 Can ask complex, detailed questions
 Can reach many people
 Wide geographical coverage
 Providing thoughtful answers
 Ability to ask sensitive questions
 Better control
 Anonymity
 Clarity

Disadvantages:

There are the following disadvantages of personal administrated

questionnaires.

 Mailing list problem

 Unidentifiable respondent
 Questionnaire exposure
 Data limitation
 No interviewer assistance
  No exhibits
 Assumed literacy
 Poor response rate
 Longer time
 Sampling error frequent

Mail Questionnaire:

Mail questionnaire is a form of questionnaire which is mailed to targeted

individuals, which has a collection of questions on a particular topic asked to
them as a part of interview or survey which is used for conducting research on
that topic.

E.g.

Census

Advantages:

 Sensitive Questions
 Respondent conveniences & anonymity
 No interviewer bias
 Longer surveys
 Wide geographical regions
 Token gifts can be enclosed to seek compliance
 Can be administered electronically, if desired
 Easy to analyze
 Less intrusive
 Flexibility to complete
Disadvantage:

Following are the disadvantage of mail questionnaires.

 Expensive and time-consuming

 Low response rate
 Questions cannot be probed or explained
 Participants may return incomplete surveys
 Possibility of a self-selection bias
 Not flexible
 Lack of personal contact
 Gestures and visual clues are not available
 Refrain from giving out these details for fear of misuse
 Clarifications cannot be sought

Electronic Questionnaires:

An electronic questionnaire contains questions are in a software

system that can be answered by an individual.

E.g.

Online surveys

Advantages:

There are the following advantages of electronic questionnaires.

 Easy to administer
 Can reach out globally
 Very inexpensive
 Fast delivery
 Cost-effective
 Time-efficient
  More accurate
 Convenience
 Increased Response Rate
 Respondents can answer at their convenience, as with the mail questionnaire

Disadvantages:

Following are the disadvantages of electronic

questionnaires.

 Survey Fraud
 Limited Sampling and Respondent Availability
 Possible Cooperation Problems
 No Interviewer
 Computer literacy is essential
 Respondents must have access to the facility
 Respondent must be willing to complete the survey
 Lack of quality
 Poorly chosen distribution channels
 Difficulty reaching certain types of participants

Phone Questionnaires:

A telephone survey is one of the survey methods used in

collecting data either from the general population or from
a specific target population. Telephone numbers are
utilized by trained interviewers to contact and gather
information from possible respondents.

E.g.

Survey about any product

Advantages:

There are the following advantages of phone questionnaires.

 Less expensive
 Faster
 Can reach wider geographical range
 Anonymity
 Convenience
 Timeliness
 Opportunity for Explanations
 High Accessibility
 Good Quality Control
 Quick Data Processing and Handling

Disadvantages:

There are the following disadvantages of phone questionnaires.

 Time-Constrained Interviews
 Hard-to-Reach Respondents
 Unseen Product
 Call Screening or Hang-Ups
 Quality Measures
 Trained Interviewers Required
 Non-verbal cues cannot be read
 Interviewers have to be kept short
 Obsolete numbers could be contacted
 Expensive
Questionnaire Design

Questionnaire design is the process of designing the format

and questions in the survey instrument that will be used to
collect data about a particular phenomenon. In designing a
questionnaire, all the various stages of survey design and
implementation should be considered. One goal of the
questionnaire design process is to reduce the total amount
of measurement error in a questionnaire.

These include the following nine elements:

(1) Determination of goals, objectives, and research questions

(2) Definition of key concepts

(3) Generation of hypotheses and proposed relationships

(4) Choice of survey mode (mail, telephone, face-to-face, Internet)

(5) Question construction

(6) Sampling

(7) Questionnaire administration and data collection

(8) Data summarization and analysis

(9) Conclusions and communication of results.

Principles for Questionnaire Design

Sound questionnaire design principles should focus on three areas. The first relates to the
wording of the questions. The second refers to the planning of issues with regard to how the
variables will be categorized, scaled, and coded after receipt of the responses. The third pertains
to the general appearance of the questionnaire. All three are important issues in questionnaire
design because they can minimize bias in research. These issues are discussed below. The
important aspects are schematically depicted in Figure.

Principles of wording

The principles of wording refer to such factors as:

1. The appropriateness of the content of the questions.

2. How questions are worded and the level of sophistication of the language used.
3. The type and form of questions asked.
4. The sequencing of the questions.
5. The personal data sought from the respondents.

1. Content and purpose of the questions

 The nature of the variable tapped subjective

 feelings or objective facts will determine what kinds of questions are asked.
 If the variables tapped are of a subjective nature (e.g., satisfaction, involvement), where
respondents’ beliefs, perceptions, and attitudes are to be measured, the questions should
tap the dimensions and elements of the concept.
 Where objective variables, such as age and educational levels of respondents, are tapped,
a single direct question preferably one that has an ordinal scaled set of categories is
appropriate.
 Thus, the purpose of each question should be carefully considered so that the variables
are adequately measured and yet no superfluous questions are asked.

2. Language and wording of the questionnaire

 The language of the questionnaire should

approximate the level of understanding of the
respondents.
 The choice of words will depend on their
educational level, the usage of terms and idioms
in the culture, and the frames of reference of the
respondents.
 For instance, even when English is the spoken or official language in two cultures, certain
words may be alien to one culture. Terms such as “working here is a drag” and “she is a
compulsive worker” may not be interpreted the same way in different cultures.
 Some blue‐collar workers may not understand terminology such as “organizational
structure.” Thus, it is essential to word the questions in a way that can be understood by
the respondent.
 If some questions are either not understood or are interpreted differently by the
respondent, the researcher will obtain the wrong answers to the questions, and responses
will thus be biased.
  Hence, the questions asked, the language used, and the wording should be appropriate to
tap respondents’ attitudes, perceptions, and feelings.

3. Type and form of questions

The type of question refers to whether the question is

open‐ended or closed. The form of the question refers to
whether it is positively or negatively worded.

Open‐ended questions

An open-ended question is a question that cannot be answered with a "yes" or "no" response, or
with a static response. Open-ended questions are phrased as a statement which requires a
response. The response can be compared to information that is already known to the questioner.

Examples of open-ended questions:

 Tell me about your relationship with your supervisor.

 How do you see your future?
 Tell me about the children in this photograph.
 What is the purpose of government?
 Why did you choose that answer?

A Closed Question

Closed-ended questions come in a multitude of forms, including: multiple choice, drop

down, checkboxes, and ranking questions. Each question type doesn’t allow the respondent to
provide unique or unanticipated answers, but rather, choose from a list of pre-selected options.
It’s like being offered spaghetti or hamburgers for dinner, instead of being asked “What would
you like for dinner?”

For instance, instead of asking the respondent to state any five aspects of the job that she finds
interesting and challenging, the researcher might list 10 or 15 aspects that might seem interesting
or challenging in jobs and ask the respondents to rank the first five among these in the order of
their preference. All items in a questionnaire using a nominal, ordinal, Liker, or ratio scale are
considered closed.

Positively and negatively worded questions

 A positively worded question refers to an item

where agreement is considered a good answer.
For example, “Employees are receptive to change.”
 A negatively worded question is considered an item
where disagreement would be a good answer.
For example, “It is difficult to get things changed in
the agency.”
 Instead of phrasing all questions positively, it is
advisable to include some negatively worded questions as well, so the tendency in
respondents to mechanically circle the points toward one end of the scale is minimized.
 For example, let us say that a set of six questions is used to tap the variable “perceived
success” on a five‐point scale, with 1 being “very low” and 5 being “very high” on the
scale.

Double-barreled questions

 A double-barreled question (sometimes, double-direct question) is an informal fallacy. It

is committed when someone asks a question that touches upon more than one issue, yet
allows only for one answer.

 This may result in inaccuracies in the attitudes being measured for the question, as the
respondent can answer only one of the two questions, and cannot indicate which one is
being answered.

 Many double-barreled questions can be detected by the existence of the grammatical

conjunction "and" in them. This is not a foolproof test, as the word "and" can exist in
properly constructed questions
 Example

An example of a double-barreled question would be the following: "do you think that
students should have more classes about history and culture?" This question asks about
two different issues: "do you think that students should have more classes about history"
and "do you think that students should have more classes about culture?" Combining both
questions into one makes it unclear what exactly is being measured, and as each question
may elicit a different response if asked separately there is an increased likelihood of
confusing the respondents. In other words, while some respondents would answer "yes"
to both and some "no" to both, some would like to answer both "yes and no".

Ambiguous questions

 Ambiguous question is a question which has more than one meaning and the intended
answer is vague.
 For example, consider the question “Did Sara see the girl with the telescope?”.
This question does not indicate whether the girl was holding the telescope or Sara was
holding the telescope.

Recall-dependent questions

 Some questions might require respondents to recall experiences from the past that are
hazy in their memory.
 Answers to such questions might have bias. For instance, if an employee who has had 30
years’ service in the organization is asked to state when he first started working in a
particular department and for how long, he may not be able to give the correct answers
and may be way off in his responses.
 A better source for obtaining that information would be the personnel records.
Leading questions

 Leading questions are questions a researcher

asks that may cause a respondent to answer in a
biased, particular way.
 Leading questions are a vital issue of survey and
question design, and should be avoided when conducting either quantitative or qualitative
survey research.
 A leading question often aligns with the goals of the researcher, and thus can prime the
respondent to unknowingly support the views held by the researcher. Also, including
leading questions in survey design can harm both the results and credibility of the
research.
 In addition, using questions that lead respondents can negatively affect objectivity and
ethics of both the researcher and the study. Bad questions lead to bad results, and leading
questions are among the most common types of bad questions.

Loaded questions

 Another type of bias in questions occurs when they are

phrased in an emotionally charged manner. An example
of such a loaded question is asking employees: “To what
extent do you think management is likely to be
vindictive if the union decides to go on strike?” The
words “strike” and “vindictive” are emotionally charged
terms, polarizing management and unions. Hence, asking a question such as the above
would elicit strongly emotional and highly biased responses.
 If the purpose of the question is twofold that is, to find the extent to which employees are
in favor of a strike and the extent to which they fear adverse reactions if they do go on
strike then these are the two specific questions that need to be asked.
  It may turn out that the employees are not strongly in favor of a strike and they also do
not believe that management would retaliate if they did go on strike.

Social desirability

 Social desirability is the tendency of some

respondents to report an answer in a way they deem
to be more socially acceptable than would be their
"true" answer.

 They do this to project a favorable image of

themselves and to avoid receiving negative
evaluations. The outcome of the strategy is over-
reporting of socially desirable behaviors or attitudes and underreporting of socially
undesirable behaviors or attitudes.

 Social desirability is classified as one of the respondent-related sources of error (bias).

 Social desirability bias intervenes in the last stage of the response process when the
response is communicated to the researcher.

 In this step, a more or less deliberate editing of the response shifts the answer in the
direction the respondent feels is more socially acceptable.

Length of questions

Finally, simple, short questions are preferable to long ones. As a rule of thumb, a question or a
statement in the questionnaire should not exceed 20 words, or exceed one full line in print.
4. Sequencing of questions

 Structure your Questionnaire using what is

called the “funnel” technique. Start with
broad general interest questions that are easy
for the respondent to answer.
 These questions serve to warm up the
respondent and get them involved in the
survey.
 The most difficult questions are placed in the middle those that take time to think
about and those that are of less general interest.
 At the end, we again place general questions that are easier to answer and of broad
interest and application. Typically, these last questions include demographic and
other classification questions

5. Classification data or personal information

 Classification data, also known as

personal information or demographic
questions, elicit such information as
age, educational level, marital status,
and income.
 It is best not to ask for the name of
the respondent. If, however, the
questionnaire has to be identified with
the respondents for any reason, then the questionnaire can be numbered and
connected by the researcher to the respondent’s name, in a separately maintained,
private document.
  This procedure should be clearly explained to the respondent. The reason for
using the numerical system in questionnaires is to ensure the anonymity of the
respondent.
 Whether questions seeking personal information should appear at the beginning or
at the end of the questionnaire is a matter of choice for the researcher. Some
researchers ask for personal data at the end rather than the beginning of the
questionnaire.
 Their reasoning may be that by the time the respondent reaches the end of the
questionnaire he or she has been convinced of the legitimacy and genuineness of
the questions framed by the researcher and, hence, is more inclined and amenable
to share personal information.
 Researchers who prefer to elicit most of the personal information at the very
beginning may opine that once respondents have shared some of their personal
history, they may have psychologically identified themselves with the
questionnaire, and may feel a commitment to respond.

Principles of measurement

 There some principles of measurement to be followed to ensure that the data collected are
appropriate to test our hypotheses.
 These refer to the scales and scaling techniques used in measuring concepts, as well as
the assessment of reliability and validity of the measures used.
 Appropriate scales have to be used depending on the type of data that need to be
obtained. The different scaling mechanisms that help us to anchor our scales
appropriately should be properly used.
 Wherever possible, the interval and ratio scales should be used in preference to nominal
or ordinal scales. Once data are obtained, the “goodness of data” should be assessed
through tests of validity and reliability.
 Validity establishes how well a technique, instrument, or process measures a particular
concept, and reliability indicates how stably and consistently the instrument taps the
 variable. Finally, the data have to be obtained in a manner that makes for easy
categorization and coding, both of which are discussed later.

General appearance or “getup” of the questionnaire

Not only is it important to address issues of wording and measurement in questionnaire design,
but it is also necessary to pay attention to how the questionnaire looks. An attractive and neat
questionnaire with appropriate introduction, instructions, and well‐arrayed set of questions and
response alternatives will make it easier for the respondents to answer them. A good
introduction, well‐organized instructions, and neat alignment of the questions are all important.
These elements are briefly discussed with example.

Organizing questions, giving instructions and guidance, and good alignment

Organizing the questions logically and neatly in appropriate sections and providing instructions
on how to complete the items in each section will help the respondents to answer them without
difficulty. Questions should also be neatly aligned in a way that allows the respondent to
complete the task of reading and answering the questionnaire by expending the least time and
effort and without straining the eyes. A specimen of the portion of a questionnaire incorporating
the above points follows

A good introduction

A proper introduction that clearly discloses the identity of the researcher and conveys the
purpose of the survey is absolutely necessary. It is also essential to establish some rapport with
the respondents and motivate them to respond to the
questions in the questionnaire wholeheartedly and
enthusiastically. Assurance of confidentiality of the
information provided by them will allow for less biased
answers. The introduction section should end on a courteous
note, thanking the respondent for taking the time to respond
to the survey. The following is an example of an appropriate
introduction.
Personal data

Demographic or personal data could be organized as in the example that follows. Note the
ordinal scaling of the age variable.

Information on income and other sensitive personal data

Although demographic information can be sought either at the beginning or at the end of the
questionnaire, information of a very private and
personal nature such as income, state of health, and so
on, if considered at all necessary for the survey, should
be asked at the end of the questionnaire, rather than the
beginning. Also, such questions should be justified by
explaining how this information might contribute to
knowledge and problem solving, so that respondents
do not perceive them to be of an intrusive or prying
nature (see example below). Postponing such questions
to the end will help reduce respondent bias if the
individual is vexed by the personal nature of the question.

Open-ended question at the end

The questionnaire could include an open‐ended question at the end, allowing respondents to
comment on any aspect they choose. It should end with an expression of sincere thanks to
respondents. The last part of the questionnaire could look as follows.

Concluding the questionnaire

The questionnaire should end on a courteous

note, reminding the respondent to check that all
the items have been completed.
How these principles are important in questionnaire design?
Researchers are often very disappointed when the questionnaires or surveys they use have a very low
response rate, and this may even affect the validity of their research. It is very important, therefore, that
questionnaires are well prepared, well-constructed & validated in order to enhance the response rate as
desired. Here is the importance of using principles of wording, principles to become better in writing
questionnaires.

1. Comprehensible

Using a clear and comprehensible language to ease

the cognitive burden for the respondents. Each and
every question reduces the respondent’s capability
of concentration. Therefore, if you want to keep
their attention, the questions should be as
comprehensible as possible. This is especially true if
you have less educated people in your sample.

2. Clear

It sounds obvious, but questions need to be clear and unambiguous. Using vague buzz words,
unfamiliar terms or everyday language can blur your results. Even though respondents may think
they understand what you mean, everyone will have something different in mind, when
answering your question. Sometimes being clear runs contrary to being comprehensible,
especially if you try to be overly precise. Being clear
should never lead to these extremely long and awkward
questions that nobody will read thoroughly, especially
when completing the questionnaire on a mobile device.
Always keep the respondent in mind.
3. Neutral

Avoiding suggestive questions or unbalanced answering

options. The respondents may not necessarily mind or
even notice, but your results may then lean towards one
or another answering option. In this case you are not
measuring the objective facts, but implicitly asking for
approval of your subjective standpoint. Your data will
be biased. Hence, you should always take a neutral
standpoint and try to be as objective as possible when writing a questionnaire.

4. Operationalize

Very often, you will want to find out about attitudes and behaviours that can’t be evaluated
directly. Try to operationalize these concepts and translate them into clear and tangible
indicators. Instead of asking directly whether someone is “lifestyle oriented”, rather ask for
specific products or activities, the respondent may have had contact with during the last weeks.
Not only will it be easier for the respondent to find an answer but also lead to much more
accurate results.

5. Mind the order

Any clues given at the beginning of the questionnaire may affect

the answers to questions that follow. Or the first statements
presented to a respondent may affect the respondent’s choice of an
answering option. This is what psychologists call priming, an effect
of the short-term memory on our decision making. Therefore, if
possible, try to randomize the order of your questions and
statements. If you can’t do that, at least try to optimize the order to
get natural, unbiased feedback.