Questionnaires as a primary research method

Construct a questionnaire that could be used to identify the demographics of the local community 

When you create a questionnaire it is important that you give your questionnaire a title eg: Demographics of our local community and also have a 'blurb' about what the information is being used for. An example of this is below;

My name is Adrian James and I am conducting research as part of my Community and Family Studies (CAFS) course on the topic ‘What are the impacts of home schooling on children’s development and wellbeing?’ By completing this questionnaire you will assist me in this research. The questionnaires are confidential and you will remain anonymous at all times. Your responses will not be shared with anyone else and will be destroyed at the completion of this study. Thank you for your participation.

Collecting and recording data

Presenting quantitative data

Data that is collected in numerical form can be counted and then presented in;

• graphs - bar, line, column or pie

• tables with statistics and percentages

Tallying

Firstly, the data needs to be collated or tallied. It then can be converted into percentages so that valid comparisons can be made. Tallying can be done either with a simple table being drawn up or by using a spreadsheet program such as excel. 

Tables 

Tables include both written and numerical information. They should be neat and accurate so that they can be interpreted easily. Use concise titles and headings.

Graphs

Graphs provide a visual form of presentation. They need to be clear and easy to read, with appropriate labels and titles. The horizontal axis (x) runs from left to right and the vertical axis (y) runs from top to bottom.

• Bar and column graphs compare items or show changes in variables over time

• Line graphs show trends or changes in data over a period of time

• Pie graph shows the relationship or proportion of parts to the whole issue

Use tallying to record research data collected from questionnaires

Advantages and Disadvantages

ADVANTAGES

• Questions can be designed to collect both quantitative and qualitative data 

• It is quick to distribute to respondents

• Data can be collected from a large group of people in a reasonable timeframe

• Questions are completed by respondent and avoid interview bias

• Respondents have time to consider their responses at a convenient time and in private

• A written record of data is easy to access

• Closed questions are easy to tally and present statistically

• Quantitative data is easy to interpret

• Each respondent is given an equal opportunity to respond to each question, providing greater reliability

DISADVANTAGES

• Questions may be misinterpreted and cannot be explained to the respondent

• It requires respondents to have satisfactory literacy skills

• The amount of information collected can be limited

• It is time consuming to design questions and present them neatly

• If there are too many questions or too many details required, respondents may not participate or complete the questionnaire

• Missing responses to questions that the respondents do not understand can create bias

• The researcher has to wait for responses to be returned

• There is the possibility of low-response rate due to failure to complete and return the questionnaire

• Qualitative data may be difficult to compare