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Essentials of Marketing Research 5th Edition Zikmund Test Bank
Essentials of Marketing Research 5th Edition Zikmund Test Bank
TRUE/FALSE
3. Surveys provide accurate means of assessing information about a population, but they are expensive
and an inefficient means of doing so.
ANS: F
Surveys provide a quick, often inexpensive, efficient, and accurate means of assessing information
about a population.
4. Two major sources of survey error are random sampling error and nonrandom sampling error.
ANS: F
Two major sources of survey error are random sampling error and systematic error.
6. A respondent error exists when the results of a sample show a persistent tendency to deviate in one
direction from the true value of the population parameter.
ANS: F
This is a sample bias.
7. Two general categories of systematic error are Type I errors and Type II errors.
ANS: F
The two general categories of systematic error are respondent error and administrative error.
ANS: F
Nonresponse is a type of respondent error.
9. The number of "no contacts" in survey research has been decreasing because of the increased use of
technology that allows people to screen calls.
ANS: F
The number of no contacts in survey research has been increasing because of the proliferation of
answering machines, mobile phones, and the growing use of caller ID to screen calls.
10. No contacts occur when people are unwilling to participate in the research.
ANS: F
This type of error is referred to as refusals. No contacts are potential respondents in the sense that
they are members of the sampling frame but who do not receive the request to participate in the
research.
11. Self-selection biases in survey research overrepresent indifferent responses and underrepresent
extreme consumer positions.
ANS: F
Self-selection biases in survey research underrepresent indifferent responses and overrepresent
extreme consumer positions.
12. A response bias occurs when respondents tend to answer questions with a certain slant.
13. The categories of response bias are mutually exclusive from one another.
ANS: F
These categories overlap and are not mutually exclusive.
PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 157 OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
14. When a respondent exaggerates his income and education in an interview in order to make a favorable
impression on the interviewer, this is an example of auspices bias.
ANS: F
This is social desirability bias.
15. When an interviewer is not able to write fast enough to record the respondent’s answers verbatim, this
is an example of interviewer error.
16. Interactive survey approaches are those that allow spontaneous two-way interaction between the
interviewer and the respondent.
18. The personal interview is especially useful for obtaining unstructured information.
19. The interaction between an interviewer and a respondent increases the chances that the respondent will
answer all of the survey questions over what would be likely to occur in a mail survey.
20. Personal interviews are typically less costly per respondent than telephone surveys.
ANS: F
Personal interviews are expensive, generally substantially more costly than mail, e-mail, Internet, and
phone surveys.
ANS: F
Door-to-door interviews are becoming a thing of the past due to security reasons or executives who are
too busy to grant personal interviews during business hours.
22. Callbacks are attempts to reconnect individuals selected for the sample who were not available
initially.
23. Marketing researchers cannot contact phone numbers on the National Do-Not-Call registry.
ANS: F
Marketers cannot call these numbers, but marketing research efforts do not always fall under the
legislation.
24. Respondents are typically less willing to answer potentially embarrassing questions in a phone
interview than in a face-to-face interview.
ANS: F
They may be more willing to answer these types of questions.
25. Mail surveys can reach geographically dispersed respondents who are otherwise difficult to contact.
26. Mail surveys allow respondents to check facts that they may be unable to recall.
27. The basic calculation for obtaining a response rate is to count the number of eligible people who were
asked to participate in the survey, then divide that by the number of questionnaires returned or
completed.
ANS: F
The basic calculation for obtaining a response rate is to count the number of questionnaires returned or
completed, then divide that by the number of sample members provided a chance to participate in the
survey.
PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 173 OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
28. The first paragraph of a cover letter that accompanies a questionnaire should explain the purpose of the
study.
ANS: F
The first paragraph of a cover letter that accompanies a questionnaire should explain why the study is
important, not necessarily the purpose of the study.
29. One way to increase response rates in mail surveys is to notify potential respondents in advance.
ANS: F
E-mail surveys involve making the questionnaire available to a potential respondent via e-mail,
whereas an Internet survey is a self-administered questionnaire posted on a website. An e-mail can
include a hyperlink within the body of an e-mail that directs the respondent to a website that contains
the questionnaire, in essence, making the e-mail an Internet survey at this point.
31. With Internet surveys, the click rate represents how many people responded to the survey.
ANS: F
The click rate is the portion of potential respondents exposed to a hyperlink to a survey who actually
click through to view the questionnaire, but they may not complete he questionnaire.
32. Internet surveys have real-time data capture, which allow respondents to record their own answers
directly into a data file.
33. Internet surveys allow researchers to vary the questions to respondents based on their answers to
previous questions in the survey.
35. One way to avoid ethical dilemmas in survey research using e-mail is to focus on consumers who opt
in and thus give their explicit approval to receive e-mails.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
4. Which type of error arises because of inadequacies of the actual respondents to represent the
population of interest?
a. population error
b. systematic error
c. response error
d. sampling error
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 154
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
5. When a research study is not conducted according to the plan in the proposal for the research study,
what kind of error has occurred?
a. random sampling error
b. systematic error
c. respondent error
d. implementation error
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 154
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
6. Systematic errors are _____ because they include all sources of error other than those introduced
directly by the sampling procedure.
a. random sampling errors
b. interviewer errors
c. nonresponse errors
d. nonsampling errors
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 154
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
9. People who are not contacted or who refuse to cooperate are called _____.
a. random errors
b. biased respondents
c. sample selection errors
d. nonrespondents
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 155
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
10. Barbara received a phone call asking her to participate in a survey. She told the interviewer that she
was too busy and could not participate. This is an example of a(n)_____.
a. random sampling error
b. administrative error
c. nonresponse error
d. respondent error
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 155
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
11. People who are unwilling to participate in a research project are referred to as _____.
a. refusals
b. deviations
c. no contacts
d. random errors
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 155
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
12. In a research study, a potential respondent who is not at home at either the first or second attempt to
reach this person by phone is called a(n) _____.
a. sample bias
b. no contact
c. interviewee
d. random sampling error
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 155
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
13. When a restaurant customer decides to fill out a customer satisfaction survey to complain about having
to wait an hour for her food that was cold, this is an example of _____.
a. random sampling error
b. self-selection bias
c. auspices bias
d. social desirability bias
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 156
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
14. Which of the following occurs when respondents tend to answer questions with a certain slant?
a. interviewer bias
b. self-selection bias
c. self-preservation bias
d. response bias
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 156
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
15. When a respondent tells an interviewer that his annual income last year was $50,000 because he is
embarrassed to admit that it was $25,000, this is an example of _____.
a. nonresponse error
b. auspices bias
c. interviewer cheating
d. deliberate falsification
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 156
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
16. All of the following are types of response bias EXCEPT _____.
a. acquiescence bias
b. extremity bias
c. self-selection bias
d. interviewer bias
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 157
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
17. The tendency for respondents to agree with most questions in a survey is known as _____.
a. auspices bias
b. interviewer bias
c. extremity bias
d. acquiescence bias
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 157
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
18. When a respondent tells the interviewer that he reads The Wall Street Journal on a daily basis so that
he can impress the interviewer, this is an example of _____.
a. interviewer bias
b. auspices bias
c. administrative bias
d. acquiescence bias
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 157
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
19. Which type of bias occurs when a respondent wishes to create a favorable impression or save face in
the presence of an interviewer?
a. random sampling bias
b. social desirability bias
c. administrative bias
d. interviewer cheating
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 158
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
20. When a research company pulls a random sample of people from a phone book and that sample does
not include people with unlisted numbers or who do not have landline telephone service, we say that
the sample contains _____.
a. sample selection error
b. acquiescence bias
c. social desirability error
d. auspices bias
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 158
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
21. When an interviewer unintentionally and mistakenly checks the wrong response on a checklist during
an interview, this is an example of _____.
a. interviewer cheating
b. auspices bias
c. interviewer error
d. social desirability bias
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 159
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
22. Carl is an interviewer, and he is supposed to write down everything respondents say. However, he
has difficulty getting everything down. This is an example of _____.
a. curb-stoning
b. interviewer error
c. auspices bias
d. interviewer cheating
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 159
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
23. Which term is sometimes used to refer to interviewers filling in responses for respondents that do not
really exist?
a. curb-stoning
b. auspices bias
c. sugging
d. mere-measurement effect
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 159
OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
24. The two approaches that marketer researchers conduct surveys are referred to as _____.
a. interactive and noninteractive
b. personal and impersonal
c. mail and telephone
d. interviewer and noninterviewer
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 160
OBJ: 07-3
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
25. Josh received a research questionnaire in the mail. He completed it and sent it back to the marketing
researcher. Which type of survey approach is this researcher using?
a. mixed-mode survey approach
b. simple survey approach
c. noninteractive survey approach
d. interactive survey approach
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 160
OBJ: 07-3
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
26. All of the following are advantages of personal interviews EXCEPT _____.
a. interviewer influence
b. opportunity for feedback
c. probing complex answers
d. high participation rate
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 160
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
27. "Can you tell me more about what you mean by that?" is an example of _____.
a. a mall intercept
b. a self-administered questionnaire
c. a probe
d. the drop-off method
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 161
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
28. Which of the following has been considered the mainstay of commercial survey research for years?
a. mall-intercept interviews
b. Internet surveys
c. telephone interviews
d. e-mail surveys
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 165
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
30. Which of the following eliminates the counting of names in a list and subjectively determining
whether a telephone directory listing is a business, institution, or legitimate household?
a. mixed-mode survey
b. predictive calling
c. computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI)
d. random digit dialing
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 167
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
31. A callback procedure should be used for all of the following situations EXCEPT _____.
a. a busy signal
b. a respondent who does not answer the phone
c. a respondent who is not at home
d. a respondent who answers but refuses to participate
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 169
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
32. When a research agency conducts all telephone interviews from one location where they can hire a
staff of professional interviewers and supervise and control the quality of interviewing more
effectively, this is an example of _____.
a. central location interviewing
b. single-mode interviewing
c. synergistic interviewing
d. quick-response interviewing
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 170
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
33. Surveys in which the respondent takes the responsibility for reading and answering questions are
called _____.
a. self-administered questionnaires
b. independent questionnaires
c. stand-alone surveys
d. interactive questionnaires
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Easy REF: p. 171
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
34. For mail surveys, the time period between the first mailing and the cut-off date after which no
additional surveys will be analyzed is typically about:
a. 1-2 weeks
b. 2-3 weeks
c. 3-5 weeks
d. 6-8 weeks
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 173
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
35. The number of questionnaires returned or completed divided by the total number of sample members
provided a chance to participate is called _____.
a. churn
b. click rate
c. response rate
d. success rate
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 173
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
36. Suppose that a mail survey is sent to 220 people and 20 surveys are returned because they were mailed
to the wrong address. If completed surveys are received from 60 people, the response rate for this
study was _____.
a. 27.3 percent
b. 30 percent
c. 40 percent
d. 55.6 percent
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 173
OBJ: 07-4 NAT: AACSB Analytic| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
37. The cover letter for a mail survey should include all of the following EXCEPT _____.
a. a description of the incentive for participating in the study
b. a comment on the postage-paid reply envelope to use to return the survey
c. a description of how the person was selected for the study
d. names of other potential respondents
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 174
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
38. Which of the following has typically been shown to produce the highest response rates in mail surveys
as an incentive for participation in the study?
a. an enclosed ball-point pen
b. a monetary incentive
c. an appeal for help
d. a list of other potential respondents
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 174
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
39. All of the following are ways to increase response rates for mail surveys EXCEPT _____.
a. cover letter
b. interesting questions
c. advance notification
d. always revealing the sponsor of the research
ANS: D PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 174
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
42. Clark was asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire posted at MySurvey.com. What type
of survey did Clark complete?
a. Internet survey
b. mixed-mode survey
c. computer-assisted interactive survey
d. networked survey
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 178
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
43. The portion of potential respondents exposed to a hyperlink to a survey who actually click through to
view the questionnaire is called the _____.
a. response rate
b. click rate
c. hit ratio
d. viewer rate
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 178
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
44. All of the following are advantages of Internet surveys EXCEPT _____.
a. random sampling
b. speed
c. visual appeal
d. accurate real-time data capture
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 178
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
45. Which of the following methods offers the lowest degree of geographic flexibility?
a. telephone interview
b. door-to-door personal interview
c. Internet survey
d. mail survey
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 182
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
46. Which of the following survey research methods offers the lowest degree of respondent anonymity?
a. telephone interview
b. mail survey
c. mall intercept interview
d. Internet survey
ANS: C PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 182
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
47. Which of the following survey research methods is the most expensive?
a. door-to-door personal interview
b. mall intercept personal interview
c. telephone interview
d. mail survey
ANS: A PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 182
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
48. Which of the following has the highest item non-response rate?
a. door-to-door interview
b. mail survey
c. telephone interview
d. Internet survey
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 182
OBJ: 07-4
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Comprehension
49. A trial run of a survey with a group of respondents who are representative of the target group for the
survey is called a _____.
a. callback
b. pretest
c. drop-off method
d. dry run
ANS: B PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate REF: p. 183
OBJ: 07-5
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
COMPLETION
1. The person who answers questions in a mail survey is called a(n) ______.
ANS: respondent
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy REF: p. 152 OBJ: 07-1
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Knowledge
2. When primary data are collected by asking respondents questions, these data are generated by a(n)
______.
ANS: survey
3. Error arising because of inadequacies of the actual respondents to represent the population of interest
is called _____ error.
ANS: sampling
4. When a mistake in the implementation of the design of a research study is made, we say that the study
has ______ error.
ANS: systematic
5. When the results of a sample deviate in a significant way from the true value of the population mean,
we say that the study has _____ bias.
ANS: sample
6. When the people who answer a mail survey are different in important ways (e.g. income level) from
the people who did not answer the survey, the survey is said to have ______ error.
ANS: nonresponse
7. People who are not contacted or who refuse to cooperate are called ______.
ANS: nonrespondents
8. Carly was not at home when a researcher called to conduct a survey. Carly is called a(n) ______.
ANS: no contact
PTS: 1 DIF: Hard REF: p. 155 OBJ: 07-2
NAT: AACSB Reflective Thinking| CB&E Model Research| Blooms Application
9. A person who hangs up the phone when he is asked to answer a few questions about his television
viewing habits because he is not interested in participating in the study is called a(n) ______.
ANS: refusal
10. Highly opinionated respondents may create _____ bias because they are more likely to respond to
surveys.
ANS: self-selection
11. One study found that Asian respondents are more likely to respond more favorably than Western
respondents and that they usually used the most positive responses available on a survey. This is an
example of _____ bias.
ANS: extremity
12. If the interviewer’s presence influences respondents to give untrue or modified answers, the survey
will be marred by _____.
13. When a mistake is made in carrying out the design of a research study, this is called ______ error.
ANS: administrative
14. A researcher mistakenly entered data incorrectly into a spreadsheet. This type of error is called a(n)
_____ error.
15. When an interviewer does not record the respondent's answers correctly, this is an example of ______
error.
ANS: interviewer
16. A survey approach that does not facilitate two-way communication is called a(n) _____ survey
approach.
ANS: noninteractive
17. A face-to-face communication in which an interviewer asks a respondent questions is called a(n)
______.
18. When an interviewer asks a respondent to clarify what he or she meant by a response, this is known as
______.
ANS: probing
19. When a respondent fails to answer a survey question in a personal interview, this is called an item
______.
ANS: nonresponse
20. When a respondent is asked to participate in a research study while walking through a shopping mall,
this is an example of a(n) ______.
21. An attempt to re-contact a potential respondent in a phone survey when no one answered the phone on
a previous attempt is called a(n) ______.
ANS: callback
23. When a respondent is asked to read the questions on a survey and to answer them by himself or
herself, this is an example of a(n) ______.
24. A self-administered questionnaire that is sent to potential respondents through a postal service is called
a(n) ______.
25. The percentage found when the number of completed surveys returned in a mail survey is divided by
the total number of sample members provided a chance to participate is known as the ______.
26. The letter that is on top of a mail survey that explains why the potential respondent should fill out the
survey is called the ______.
27. A researcher who takes a questionnaire to a respondent’s office or home and then comes back to pick
it up is using the _____ method.
ANS: drop-off
ANS: Internet
30. When a researcher uses a trial run with a group of people to try to discover any problems with a survey
before it is mailed to the sample of potential respondents, this is called a(n) ______ of the survey.
ANS: pretest
ESSAY
1. Describe the purpose of surveys and the type of information that may be gathered in a survey.
ANS:
A survey represents a way of describing public opinion by collecting primary data by communicating
directly with individual sampling units. The type of information gathered in a survey varies
considerably depending on its objectives. Typically, surveys attempt to describe what is happening,
what people believe, what they are like or to learn the reasons for a particular marketing activity.
More specifically, surveys gather information to assess consumer knowledge and awareness of
products, brands, or issues and to measure consumer attitudes and feelings. Surveys can describe
consumer characteristics including purchasing patterns, brand usage, and descriptive characteristics
including demographics and lifestyle. Not all survey research is conducted with the ultimate
consumer - some focus on wholesalers, retailers, or industrial buyers. Although most surveys are
conducted to quantify certain factual information, some aspects of surveys may also be qualitative.
2. A business owner is hesitant to spend money on a survey of his customers because he thinks surveys
give erroneous and useless results. Convince him that a survey can be useful for his business.
ANS:
Survey research presents numerous advantages. They provide a quick, often inexpensive, efficient,
and accurate means of assessing information about a population. Researchers can apply fairly
straightforward statistical tools in analyzing sample survey results. One of the key disadvantages,
though, is that survey results are no better than the quality of the sample and answers obtained. A
survey opens the door to errors in general and those errors contribute to misleading results. In
addition to these general disadvantages, each individual survey tool introduces unique disadvantages.
By understanding the nature of the errors that can result, researchers can hopefully better match a
survey data collection approach and reduce the likelihood of erroneous or useless results.
3. Name and describe the types of response bias and give an example of each.
ANS:
Responses bias falls into four specific categories:
(1) Acquiescence bias - a tendency to agree with all or most questions. For example,
respondents may respond favorably to a new product concept to please the researcher
but have no intention to purchase the product.
(2) Extremity bias - results because some individuals tend to use extremes when
responding to questions. For example, a respondent may always respond “extremely
likely” or “extremely unlikely” and never use the options in between.
(3) Interviewer bias - occurs because the presence of the interviewer influences
respondents’ answers. For example, a respondent may want to appear intelligent and
say they read the newspaper every day when in reality they do not.
(4) Social desirability bias - may occur either consciously or unconsciously because the
respondent wishes to create a favorable impression or save face in the presence of an
interviewer. For example, a respondent may say they only drink alcohol occasionally
when they really drink quite a bit every day.
4. Discuss the different ways researchers conduct surveys and explain which one you think is the best
approach.
ANS:
We can summarize all the ways that marketing researchers communicate with survey respondents
broadly into interactive and noninteractive media. Interactive survey approaches are those that
allow spontaneous two-way interaction between the interviewer and the respondent. These can be
either personal or electronic. These approaches try to capture the dynamic exchange that is possible
through face-to-face interviews. Noninteractive survey approaches are those that do not facilitate
two-way communication and are thus largely a vehicle by which respondents give answers to static
questions. Self-administered questionnaires printed on paper are noninteractive.
No one approaches is the “best.” Each technique for conducting surveys has merits and shortcomings.
While a noninteractive self-administered questionnaire is less flexible than surveys using interactive
communication media, this may be the best approach in some situations. For example, simple opinion
polls, awareness studies and even surveys assessing consumer attitudes can generally be collected
adequately via one-way communication.
5. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of conducting surveys using personal interviews.
ANS:
A personal interview is a form of direct communication in which an interviewer asks respondents
questions face-to-face. It offers many unique advantages:
(1) Opportunity for feedback
(2) Opportunity to follow up by probing
(3) Can be longer than other forms of surveys
(4) Item nonresponse is low
(5) Can use props and visual aids
(6) High participation rate
Personal interviews also have some disadvantages:
(1) Interviewer may influence respondents’ answers
(2) Respondents are not anonymous and may be reluctant to provide confidential
information to another person
(3) Expensive
ANS:
A traditional mail survey is a self-administered questionnaire sent to respondents through a postal
service. This paper-and-pencil method has several advantages and disadvantages. Mail
questionnaires can reach a geographically dispersed sample simultaneously because interviewers are
not required. They are relatively inexpensive compared with personal interviews, though they are not
cheap. They are convenient for respondents because they can be filled out when the respondents have
the time, and respondents are more likely to take time to think about their replies. They also allow
respondents to collect facts that they may not be able to recall. Anonymity of respondents may result
in them being more likely to provide sensitive or embarrassing information as well as reducing social
desirability bias. Although the absence of an interviewer can induce respondents to reveal sensitive or
socially undesirable information, this lack of personal contact can also be a disadvantage. Once the
respondent receives the questionnaire, the questioning process is beyond the researcher’s control.
While mail questionnaires are highly standardized, this could be a disadvantage due to the difficulty in
changing the format of the questions. If time is an issue, mail surveys may not be a good
communication medium. Finally, mail questionnaires can be relatively long in length.
7. Explain how response rates are determined for surveys and discuss ways to increase response rates for
mail surveys.
ANS:
The response rate is the number of questionnaires returned or completed divided by the number of
sample members provided a chance to participate. Typically, the number in the denominator is
adjusted for faulty addresses and similar problems that reduce the number of eligible participants.
8. A marketing research company has been commissioned to conduct an Internet survey with 5,000
potential respondents. Explain how a researcher can uncover potential problems with a survey design
before launching it.
ANS:
Pretesting involves trial runs using the survey instrument with a group of colleagues or actual
respondents to iron out fundamental problems in instructions, items, or design of a questionnaire.
Researchers benefit by spotting problems in the pretest and rightly inferring that a problem with this
very small sample will likely be a problem in the full sample once data collection actually begins.