MODULE 3: SAMPLING AND DATA COLLECTION

UNIT 2: METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION

(For SEPTEMBER 7-9)

Learning Outcome: Discuss the different methods used to collect data.

After going through this unit, you should be familiar with the different methods of collecting
data and identify the advantages and disadvantages of each.

How is data collected from you by different organizations/businesses as you

perform your day-to-day transactions and activities?

DATA COLLECTION

Data Collection is an important aspect of any type of research study. Inaccurate data
collection can impact the results of a study and ultimately lead to invalid results. There are
four important points to consider when collecting data:

1. If measurements of some characteristic from people (such as IQ) are being

obtained, better results will be achieved if the researcher does the measuring
instead of asking the respondent for the value.
2. The method of data collection used may expedite or delay the process. Avoid a
medium that would produce low response rates
3. Ensure that the sample is large enough for the required purpose.
4. Ensure that the method used to collect data actually results in a sample that is
representative of the population.

The following are some of the most popular methods of collecting quantitative data:

1. Observation

Observation is the process in which one or more persons observe what is occurring in some
real life situation and they classify and record pertinent happenings according to some
planned schemes. It is used to evaluate the overt behavior of individuals in controlled or
uncontrolled situation. It is a method of research which deals with the external behavior of
persons in appropriate situations.

The observation method is a planned, purposive, systematic and deliberate effort to focus
on the significant facts of a situation.

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 According to Oxford Concise Dictionary, “Observation means accurate watching,
knowing of phenomena as they occur in nature with regard to cause and effect or mutual
relations”.

This definition focuses on two important points. Firstly, in observation the observer wants to
explore the cause-effect relationships between facts of a phenomenon. Secondly, various
facts are watched accurately, carefully and recorded by the observer.

2. Interview

Interview as a technique of data collection is very popular and extensively used in every
field of social research. The interview is, in a sense, an oral questionnaire. Instead of writing
the response, the interviewee or subject gives the needed information verbally in a face-
to-face relationship. The dynamics of interviewing, however, involves much more than an
oral questionnaire.

The interview method as a verbal method is quite significant in securing data about all
these aspects. In this method a researcher or an interviewer can interact with his
respondents and know their inner feelings and reactions. It is relatively more flexible as it
permits explanation, adjustment and variation according to the situation compared to a
written inquiry tool, the questionnaire method.

The interviewer is not the only one who asks the questions. Often, the interviewee may also
ask certain questions and the interviewer responds to these. But usually the interviewer
initiates the interview and collects the information from the interviewee.

Interview is not a simple two-way conversation between an interrogator and informant. It is

a mutual interaction of each other. The objectives of the interviewer are to penetrate the
outer and inner life of persons and to collect information pertaining to a wide range of their
experiences in which the interviewee may wish to rehearse his past, define his present and
canvass his future possibilities. These answers of the interviewees may not be only a
response to a question but also a stimulus to progressive series of other relevant statements
about social and personal phenomena.

There are four ways of conducting an interview. They are face-to-face interview,
telephone interview, video conferencing, and computer-assisted personal interview.

Face-to-face interviews have a distinct advantage of enabling the researcher to establish

rapport with potential participants and therefore gain their cooperation.These interviews
yield highest response rates in survey research.They also allow the researcher to clarify
ambiguous answers and when appropriate, seek follow-up information. Disadvantages

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 include impractical when large samples are involved time consuming and expensive.
(Leedy and Ormrod, 2001)

Telephone interviews are less time consuming and less expensive and the researcher has
ready access to anyone on the planet who hasa telephone.Disadvantages are that the
response rate is not as high as the face-to- face interview but, considerably higher than the
mailed questionnaire.

Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) is a form of personal interviewing, but

instead of completing a questionnaire, the interviewer brings along a laptop or hand-held
computer to enter the information directly into the database. This method saves time
involved in processing the data, as well as saving the interviewer from carrying around
hundreds of questionnaires. However, this type of data collection method can be
expensive to set up and requires that interviewers have computer and typing skills.

3. Schedule

Schedule is one of the very commonly used tools of data collection in scientific
investigation. P.V. Young says “The schedule has been used for collection of personal
preferences, social attitudes, beliefs, opinions, behavior patterns, group practices and
habits and much other data”. The increasing use of schedule is probably due to increased
emphasis by social scientists on quantitative measurement of uniformly accumulated data.

A schedule is a structure of a set of questions on a given topic which are asked by the
interviewer or researcher personally. The order of questions, the language of the questions
and the arrangements of the parts of the schedule are not changed. The interviewer,
however, can explain the questions if the respondents faces any difficulty.

Open-ended questions, which allows the respondent considerable freedom in answering,

and closed-ended questions, which are answered by choosing an answer from a given set
of answers, are contained in the schedule.

A schedule is similar to a questionnaire however, it takes more time to accomplish as

compared to a questionnaire. Also, it has more data collecting ability than a
questionnaire. A questionnaire can cover a wide field of data while a schedule is a
problem-oriented data collection method.

4. Questionnaire

Questionnaire provides the most speedy and simple technique of gathering data about
groups of individuals scattered in a wide and extended field. In this method, a

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 questionnaire form is sent usually by post to the persons concerned, with a request to
answer the questions and return the questionnaire.

Since the questionnaire is sent to a selected number of individuals, its scope is rather limited
but within its limited scope it can prove to be the most effective means of eliciting
information, provided that it is well formulated and the respondent fills it properly.

Paper-pencil-questionnaires can be sent to a large number of people and saves the

researcher time and money.People are more truthful while responding to the
questionnaires regarding controversial issues in particular due to the fact that their
responses are anonymous. But they also have drawbacks.Majority of the people who
receive questionnaires don't return them and those who do might not be representative of
the originally selected sample.(Leedy and Ormrod, 2001)

Web-based questionnaires: A new and inevitably growing methodology is the use of

Internet based research. This would mean receiving an e-mail on which you would click on
an address that would take you to a secure web-site to fill in a questionnaire. This type of
research is often quicker and less detailed. Some disadvantages of this method include the
exclusion of people who do not have a computer or are unable to access a computer.
Also the validity of such surveys are in question as people might be in a hurry to complete it
and so might not give accurate responses.

Questionnaires often make use of Checklist and rating scales. These devices help simplify
and quantify people's behaviors and attitudes. A checklist is a list of behaviors,
characteristics, or other entities that the researcher is looking for. Either the researcher or
survey participant simply checks whether each item on the list is observed, present or true
or vice versa. A rating scale is more useful when a behavior needs to be evaluated on a
continuum. They are also known as Likert scales. (Leedy and Ormrod, 2001)

A properly constructed and administered questionnaire may serve as a most appropriate

and useful data gathering device in many instances.

What are the qualities of a good questionnaire?

5. Experimentation

This method is used when the objective is to determine the cause-and-effect relationship of
certain phenomena under controlled conditions. In an experiment, data collection is done
in such a manner as to permit relatively unambiguous interpretation. In the realm of the
sciences, experiments determine and prove cause-and-effect relations. These are also

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 being used in marketing research efforts of the new century, although these were in use
during the last century as well.

Experimentation has become the basis of business and science of marketing. Further,
design of experiments allows a rational analysis of research findings. It also provides a role
model against which, other research designs can be compared.

6. Registration

Registration method refers to continuous, permanent, compulsory recording of the

occurrence of vital events together with certain identifying or descriptive characteristics
concerning them. It is the gathering of information enforced by law.

Examples are registration of births, fetal deaths, deaths, marriages, divorces, judicial
separations, annulments of marriage, adoptions, recognitions, and legitimations,
registration of licenses, registration of vehicles, etc.

Registered data (or registers) are particularly valuable for complete enumeration, but are
limited to variables that change slowly, such as number of affiliated companies and their
characteristics.

After knowing the positive and negative aspects of the different methods of data
collection, can you now identify which among them is the best?

Actually, there’s no single method to be considered as the best in all situations. One is the
best in a particular scenario and the others may be the best in other situations. Sometimes,
you need to combine two or even more methods for you to be able to get the desired
data needed.

Different ways of collecting data are useful for different purposes, and each has
advantages and disadvantages. Various factors will influence your choice of a data
collection method: the questions you want to investigate, resources available to you, your
timeline, and more. In business, however, the most common method is the usage of a
questionnaire. This is because it is less expensive and less time-consuming.

Learning Reinforcement Activity No. 3-1: SAMPLING AND DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUES
Accomplish by September 9, 2020

Find a journal article on any accounting or business-related research published within the
last ten years. Discuss the methodology of the research, particularly the type of sampling

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means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise of any part of this document, without the prior written permission of SLU, is strictly prohibited. 38
 technique and data collection method used. Enumerate also the variables of interest in
the study. Include the following information in your discussion: (1) Title of the article; (2)
Name and affiliation of the authors; (3) Name of the journal where the article was
obtained; (4) Date of publication; (5) Source of the article (from what website) and date
accessed. (20 points)

Submit a .docx file containing your discussion and required pertinent information. Please
use the following convention for the filename: LRA3-1<LASTNAME>.docx [For example:
LRA3-1MIRANDA.docx].

Congratulations! You just completed Module 3.

You are now ready to take your first long test, covering the topics
from Modules 1, 2, and 3.
Be confident and ace the test!

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means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise of any part of this document, without the prior written permission of SLU, is strictly prohibited. 39