methodology

Question 1

what are the 2 methods of the social approach?

Answer 1

Questionnaires
Interviews

Question 2

what is a questionnaire?

Answer 2

where respondents record their own answers. the questions are predetermined and are provided in written form

Question 3

what is an open question?

Answer 3

where respondents provide their own answers

Question 4

what are 2 strengths of open questions?

Answer 4

1. provide rich and in-depth data
2. participants can express their true feelings without restriction

Question 5

what are 2 weaknesses of open questions?

Answer 5

harder and more time-consuming to analyse

May lead to inconsistent answers which are hard to compare

Question 6

what type of data do open questions collect?

Answer 6

Qualitative data

Question 7

what is a closed question?

Answer 7

has a fixed number of possible answers

Question 8

what type of data do closed questions collect?

Answer 8

quantitative data

Question 9

what are 3 strengths of using closed questions?

Answer 9

1. standardised allowing replicability
2. clear comparison between results
3. easier & quicker to analyse

Question 10

what are 2 weaknesses of using closed questions?

Answer 10

1. response bias: participants may feel restricted to give options & may not fully expose their true opinion
2. limited depth in answers

Question 11

what type of question is a rating scale?

Answer 11

closed question

Question 12

what are the two types of rating scales?

Answer 12

Likert rating scale
semantic differential scale

Question 13

what is a likert rating scale?

Answer 13

Allows people to indicate how much they agree - disagree

Question 14

what is a semantic differential scale?

Answer 14

measures people’s attitudes to something

Question 15

what are the 3 strengths of rating scales?

Answer 15

1. participants can express degree of feelings
2. quantifiable data
3. easier to analyse May lead

Question 16

what are 2 weaknesses of rating scales?

Answer 16

-responses may be influenced by social desirabilities bias (choosing middle to avoid extremes)

-may be subjective, scale can be interpreted differently per person

Question 17

what are the 4 strengths of questionnaires?

Answer 17

1. standardised: everyone are asked the same questions

2.cost effective: low cost to make/send out questionnaires

3. large sample can be used = better generalisability
4. quick form of data collection

Question 18

what are 3 weaknesses of using questionnaires?

Answer 18

1. misleading questions could lead to misinterpretations which affects validity and bias
2. response bias: participants may answer in ways they feel is socially acceptable

3.No opportunity to clarify/extend answers

Question 19

what is an interview?

Answer 19

questions delivered to an individual in real-time presented face to face by an interviewer

Question 20

What is a structured interview?

Answer 20

Questions are predetermined and the interviewer doesn’t probe answers. The interview is conducted in the same standardised way each time

Question 21

What are 2 strengths of a structured interview?

Answer 21

1. can be easily repeated
2. easier to analyse than unstructured interviews because the answers are always predictable

Question 22

What are the 2 weaknesses of a structured interview?

Answer 22

1. Researcher effect: interviewers body language or the way they speak may influence the answers the interviewees give

2.Interviewer bias: interviewers expectations may influence the answers the interviewee gives because the researcher has already decided what is important

Question 23

What is an unstructured interview?

Answer 23

interviewer has freedom to vary the questions depending on what seems appropriate at the time and no questions are decided in advance

Question 24

What is a semi-structured interview?

Answer 24

Some questions are pre-determined but also new questions are developed as the interview proceeds

Question 25

What are the 3 strengths of a semi-structured and unstructured interview?

Answer 25

1. more detailed information can be obtained from each person than in a structured interview because questions are shaped to the participant 2. can access information that may not be revealed by pre-determined questions 3. encourages them to open up as it is less scary than a formal interview

Question 26

What are the 4 weaknesses of a semi-structured & unstructured interview?

Answer 26

1. more affected by interviewer bias than structured interviews because the interviewer is developing questions on the spot and may be prone to issues such as inadvertently asking leading questions 2. requires well trained interviewers which make it more expensive 3. less reliable: not standardised, each one is unique and so is harder to compare 4. harder to generalise