1. Survey Research Presented by Ani Kitiashvili Department of Psychology Tbilisi State University

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3. Characteristics • Survey is most widely used research technique in social sciences • Data collected from surveys ranges from physical counts and frequencies to attitudes and opinions.

4. Survey data is used to: • To answer questions • To assess needs. • To set goals. • To analyze trends across time. • To describe what exists, in what amount, and in what context and etc. . . . .

5. Focus of survey research questions • Behaviors • Attitudes/beliefs/opinions • Characteristics • Expectations • Self classification • Knowledge

6. Five kinds of measures • What kind of informationmight be measured • - What people say that they do (behaviors) • – What people think is true (beliefs) • – What people are (attributes) • – What people say they want (their attitudes) • (Dillman, Don A. (1978). Mail and Telephone Survyes: The Total Design Method. NYC: John)

7. Four stages of the survey research method 1. Design and Planning. 2. Data collection 3. Data Analysis 4. Write up and communication

8. Stages … • Design and planning stage. • Decide on type of survey to use and type of respondent. • Type of survey method. • Mail. • Telephone. • Face-to-face. • E-mail • Type of respondent. • Adults over 18 years of age. • Native speakers only or all languages.

9. Stages … • Develop the survey instrument (questionnaire or interview schedule). • Organize the question sequence. • Design the questionnaire layout. • Develop a system to record answers. • Pilot test the questionnaire • Train the interweavers

10. Stages … • Drawing the sample. • Define the population of your interest • Decide on sample size and sample type • Develop the sampling frame. • Select the sample. • Data collection stage. • Contact the respondents. • Ask the questions and record the answers. • Thank the respondent for cooperating. • End data collection.

11. Stages … • Data analysis • Code data. • Enter data into a computer. • Statistical analysis. • Draw conclusions. • Write up and communication • Summarize your results and incorporate them into the results section of your report/thesis/paper.

12. Main Survey instruments’ features

13. Survey instruments’ features

14. Survey instruments’ featuresSources of bias

15. Guidelines to conducting a survey • Define the purpose and scope of the survey in explicit terms. • Avoid using an existing survey instrument. • designing a survey instrument • Field test the survey instrument to spot ambiguous or redundant items and to arrive at a format leading to ease of data tabulation and analysis.

16. Guidelines… • Use structured questions as possible as many as opposed to unstructured and open-ended ones for uniformity of results and ease of analysis. • Avoid questions that are redundant or have obvious answers. • Avoid loaded or biased questions by field testing and involving others in the wording process. • Keep the final product as brief, simple, clear as possible. • Think out the analysis needs to insure the clarity and comprehensiveness of the instrument.

17. Limitations of the survey method • May only tap respondents who are accessible and cooperative. • Surveys arouse “response sets” such as acquiescence or a proneness to agree with positive statements or questions. • Over-rater or under-rater bias - the tendency for some respondents to give consistently high or low ratings.