Qrm Methodolgy

Quantitative Method and Surveys

Examining the relationship between and among variables is central to answering questions and hypotheses through surveys and experiments.

A survey design provides a quantitative or numeric description of trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population. From sample research, the researcher generalizes or makes claims of knowledge about the population.

Components of a Survey Method Plan:

To design a survey method section follows a standard format. In preparing to design these components into a proposal, consider the questions on the checklist shown in the table:

[pic]

Source: Creswell (2003), Page 155

The basic components of a survey design are given below:

• In a proposal first part of the method section can introduce readers to the basic purpose and rationale for survey research.

• This purpose is to generalize from a sample to a population so that inference can be made about some characteristic, attitude, or behaviour of this population.

• Indicate why a survey is the preferred type of data collection procedure for the study. In this rationale consider the advantages of survey design, such as the economy of thee design and the rapid turnaround in data collection. Discuss the advantage of identifying attributes of a large population from a small group of individuals.

• Indicate whether the survey will be cross-sectional, with the data collected at one point in time, or whether it will be longitudinal, with data collected over time.

• Specify the form of data. Fink (1995) identifies four types: self-administered questionnaires; interviews; structured record reviews to collect information (financial, medical, school, etc.); and structured observations. The data collection may also involve creating an internet-survey and administrating it online. Provide a rationale for the data collection procedure using arguments based on its strengths and weaknesses,...