SURVEY AND INTERVIEW

HUL261 (Introduction to Psychology)

Tutorial III
(Sargam & Megha)
SURVEY
• Self-report data collection methods- Participants report
their attitude and behavior regarding the variables of
interest, either orally or in writing.

• Survey stands as a vital self-reporting tool.

 SURVEY
Surveys can be conducted in
person in the form of
interviews or on the
telephone, the Internet, or
with a questionnaire.

Source. From Psychology (p.25), Ciccarelli and White (2016), Pearson.

TYPE OF QUESTIONS
Three basic question types used in survey

Factual Attitude Behavioral.

Factual Questions
 To collect demographic data (e.g., age, gender,
level of education)
 Often used to gather objective information.
 Attitude Questions

 Measure a person’s feelings, beliefs, or views that often cannot

be easily ascertained from his or her behavior or other sources
of information (Azjen, 1991).
 Often complex.
 Behavioral Questions
 Tap into specific aspects of current or past behavior such as its

frequency, intensity, and timing.

 A NOTE ON QUESTION-WORDING

› Wording should be exact so that it reflects precisely what

you want to measure
› Wording/terminology should be simple.
› Loaded questions should be avoided.
(Loaded questions are questions that are phrased so that
respondents are led to choose one response over another
often reflecting the bias of the researcher).
 A NOTE ON QUESTION-WORDING

› Questions should be kept short and relatively simple

Double barrelled questions should be avoided.

› Questions should not make assumptions- e.g., How could a

person respond if he or she does not own a cell phone?
ADVANTAGES
› Easy to find out about private covert behavior.

› Tremendous amount of data on a very large group of people could be

gathered.

DISADVANTAGES
› Inaccurate responses due to misremembering
things, distorted Memory.

› Socially desirable responses may mask the original

response.
INTERVIE
 Interviews
One of the most popular data collection
method in qualitative research
 Experience
Demographics
&
Knowledge

Opinions r es en t
Why Past an d P

Interviews ?
Beliefs Feeling and
emotions
 Fontana a n d Fre y ’s 19
94

1 3
2
Structured Semi
Interviews Unstructure structured
d Interviews
Interviews
 Structured
• Respondent is asked a series of pre-established

Interviews
questions with preset response categories.
• Flexibility and variations are minimised
• Role of interviewer - neutral
• Mostly focuses on rational rather than emotional
information

Disadvantages
• Little room for unanticipated discoveries
• Respondents might feel constrained
 Unstructured
Interviews
• Precise question and order is not fixed
• Open ended questions
• Develop as the conversation progress
• Also known as informal conversation interview
• Greater flexibility

Disadvantages
• Data analysis and data organisation - time
consuming and difficult
 Semi structured
Interviews
A blend of structured and unstructured type, providing
flexibility while maintaining a certain level of
consistency
Example : The placement interviews
 Group Interviews
• Researcher work with several people simultaneously
• Also known as Focus group interview
• Use of group interactions
• Insights which could be less accessible without the
interaction found in a group
• Interviewer more as a moderator or facilitator
• Mainly used in marketing and political research
 5 points for a
researcher to manage
•
the interview
Preparation of the interviews schedule
• Background and questions to be asked
• Communication and listening skills
• Establishing rapport at the beginning of the interview
• Closing the interview
Guess the
type of
interview!
Guess the
type of
interview!
 Pettigrew, M. (2020). Confessions of a
Serial Killer: A Neutralisation Analysis.
Homicide Studies, 24(1), 69-84.
https://doi.org/10.1177/108876791879367
u ns tr uc tu re d in te rvie w
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e yo u f e l t s o r ry for
ae
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Guess why some survey questions
are wrong !
Question: "Since stress is bad, how often do you feel overwhelmed by
stress?"
Mistake: Leading; presupposes that stress is always negative.

Question: "Do you think intelligent people always perform better in

their careers?"
Mistake: Assumption; assumes a correlation between intelligence
and career success.

Question: "How often do you use social media, given its addictive
nature?"
Mistake: Leading; suggests that social media is inherently
addictive.

Question: "Do you agree that people are less happy now than in the
past due to technology?"
Mistake: Loaded and Leading; suggests a negative impact of
technology on happiness.
Question: "Given the importance of mental health, how often do you feel depressed?"
Mistake: Leading; implies that feeling depressed is a common occurrence.

Question: "Why do most people fail to understand their true potential?"

Mistake: Assumption; assumes that most people don't understand their potential.

Question: "Is it true that those who don’t practice mindfulness are more anxious?"
Mistake: Leading and Loaded; suggests that lack of mindfulness leads to anxiety.

Question: "Considering the high stress of modern life, how do you manage work-life
balance?"
Mistake: Leading; implies that modern life is inherently high in stress.

Question: "Do you think that people are generally less social because of online
interactions?"
Mistake: Leading; suggests that online interactions reduce social behaviors.

Question: "Given the benefits of exercise for mental health, do you exercise regularly?"
Mistake: Leading; implies that exercising is beneficial for mental health.

Question: "Do smart people always make rational decisions?"

Mistake: Assumption; implies that intelligence equates to rational decision-making.
Question: "Is it common for you to experience anxiety due to social media pressure?"
Mistake: Leading; suggests social media inherently causes anxiety.

Question: "Do you believe that modern education systems hinder creativity?"
Mistake: Leading; implies that education systems are detrimental to creativity.

Question: "How often do you feel lonely, considering the decline in community
interactions?"
Mistake: Leading; presupposes a decline in community interactions causing loneliness.

Question: "Is it true that video games lead to aggressive behavior in teenagers?"
Mistake: Leading and Loaded; implies a causal link between video games and
aggression.

Question: "Do you think that most people are not truly aware of their mental health
status?"
Mistake: Assumption; suggests a general lack of awareness about mental health.

Question: "Given the rise in technology use, do you feel more isolated than before?"
Mistake: Leading; implies that technology use leads to isolation.

Question: "Do you agree that the current generation is more prone to mental health issues
than previous ones?"
Mistake: Leading and Loaded; suggests an increase in mental health issues in the
current generation.
Thank
You!