Quantitative Research

Non-Experimental ---SURVEY

Experimental CAUSE AND EFFECT

PRE-TEST/POST-TEST

LABORATORY

Quantitative ResearchSurvey- quantitative or numeric description of some part of a population

A “sample” via questionnaire (if people are involved)Results enables researcher to generalize the findings from a sample of responses.

Experimental- TESTS cause and effect relationships between groups.

Researcher manipulates one or more independent variablesDetermines if manipulations cause an outcome

Quantitative Methods

Non-Experimental Experimental

Survey

Provides numeric

description of some part of

the population

Survey Design

cross sectional

longitudinal

collected at one point in

time

collected over a period of

time

Population and Sample

Describe the population

Describe the sampling Design

single stage

multistage

Instrumentation

What survey instrument

used?

Self designed

modified

Intact

Validity

Reliability

Pilot Study/testing

Data Analysis

Variables in Study

Sampling

Probability

Non probablity

Size of sample

Subjects

Design

Instrumentation and materials

Procedure

Variables

Selection, assignment

and number of subjects

Statistical Analysis

Random selection

Random Sampling

Convenience Sample

Independent

Dependent

Describe instrument/s to be used in experiment

discuss materials used to create

treatment conditions

Overall Design

discussion

Specific use of

Independent variables

Provide diagram to illustrate research

design

Step-by-step approach

Describe descriptive statistics calculated

Describe inferential statistics

used to test hypothesis

Social Science (Sample) Surveys

When we “survey” something, we inspect it in detail

A “social survey”, therefore, is an inspection of a particular society or part of society and a collection of facts about that society, institution or group

Social Surveys: History

Two developments in the early 20th century paved the way for modern social science surveys:

Ideas underlying random sampling, used first in agriculture, were applied to the collection of social factsTechniques of structured interviewing, standardized question wording

Social Surveys: 1930s-1940s

The 1930s: advent of modern survey research in the U.S.(Gallup and Roper polls)

The Depression: Federal government sponsored research into unemployment.

World War II: surveys were widely used to study war bond purchases, troop morale, attitudes toward integration.

Social Surveys: 1960s-1970s

Several developments contributed to widespread use of survey data:

development of high-speed computers for processing datawidespread ownership of phones made interviewing easier

Results: business and government decisions increasingly based on surveys

Survey Design

Provides a quantitative or numeric description of some fraction of the population - the sample- through the data collection process of asking questions of people.

…..always “people”?

Typical Components of a Survey Method Plan

Design

Population and Sample

Instrumentation

Variables in the Study

Data Analysis

Survey Design Begin by reviewing the purpose of a survey and the rationale for its selection

What is the purpose of survey research?Indicate why a survey is the preferred type of data collection.Indicate whether the survey is cross-sectional (collected at one point in time) or longitudinal( collected over a period of time)Specify the form of data collection - mail, interview, and provide a rationale for the procedure (cost, availablility, convenience)

Population and Sample

Specify the characteristics of the population and sampling procedure.

Describe the population in the study

Identify whether the sampling design for this population is single stage or multistage.

• Single - research has access to names in the population and can sample directly

• Multistage - researcher first samples groups (clusters) obtains names of individuals within each group (cluster) and then samples within the cluster.

Populuation and Sample (cont)

Identify how indiviuals will be selectedRandom, judgemental, snowball

Discuss whether this sample was stratified….procedures for selecting the sample……number of people in the sample and how this number was determined…etc…etc…etc….

Instrumentation

Identify the survey instrument usedSelf designed??? Modified??? Intact???

Validity and Reliability -

Include sample items so readers can see actual items used (appendix)

Pilot testing or field testing procedures

Steps used in administering

Surveys and Questionnaires

The design of surveys and questionnaires

How to frame questions

Kinds of scales: Likert, Semantic Differential etc.

Analyzing survey data: which items are useful,

Item Response Theory

Forming a scale to measure an attribute, e.g.,

satisfaction. Reliability, validity of scale

Variables

Identify the INDEPENDENT variablesAlso called treatment conditions or factors

These are under the control of the researcher and typically are manipulated in an experiment

Independent variables lead to changes in the dependent variable.

Dependent Variables

Identify the dependent variable or variables to be used in the study

The dependent variable is the response or the criterion variable presumed to be CAUSED or influenced by the independent treatment conditions.

Data Analysis

Present data analysis in a series of steps

Step 1; step 2; step 3, etc.