EXP PSY - M4

• Surveys and Interviews are alternatives to Experimentation
• Most researchers in psychology consider the distinction between experimental and non-experimental research to be an extremely important one
• Experimental research can provide strong evidence that changes in an independent variable cause differences in a dependent variable, while non-experimental research generally cannot
• Non-experimental research is not less important than experimental research despite the inability to make causal conclusions
• Implementing survey research methods

  1. Decide survey questions

  2. Finalize a target audience

  3. Send out surveys via decided mediums

  4. Analyze survey results
• Survey research


  A useful way of obtaining information about people's opinion, attitudes, preferences, feelings and behaviors by asking
• Phone-survey research

  • Can be useful in collecting data from a larger section of the target population but there are chances that the money invested in phone surveys will be higher than other mediums and also that the time required will be higher
• Face-to-face survey research


  • The response rate of this method is the highest but it can be extremely expensive
• Longitudinal survey research


  Involves conducting survey research over a continuum of time, which may be spread across years and decades
• Cross-sectional survey research


  Conducted to collect insights from a target audience at a particular time interval
• Cross-sectional survey research


  • Can either be descriptive or analytical in nature, and is quick and helps researchers collected information in a brief time span
• Constructing a good survey


  1. Identify specific research objectives

  2. Decide on the degree of imposition of units (degree of response restriction)

  3. Decide how you will analyze the survey data
• Closed questions


  Answered by limited numbers of alternatives
• Open-ended questions

  Solicit information about opinions and feelings
• Content analysis


  A research method that is applied to the verbatim responses given to open-ended questions in order to code those answers into a meaningful set of categories that lend themselves to further quantitative statistical analysis
• Measurement scales

  • Nominal scale, ordinal scale, interval scale, and ratio scale
• Nominal scale


  The simplest level of measurement which classifies response items into two or more distinct categories on the basis of some common feature
• The only statistical analysis that can be performed on a nominal scale is the percentage or frequency count
• Types of political affiliation


  • Independent
  • Republican
  • Democrat
• Nominal Scale Data


  • Data collected by asking an open-ended question, the answers of which can be coded to a respective number of label decided by the researcher
  • Data collected by including a multiple choice question in which the answers will be labeled
• Analysis of nominal scale data

  Using percentages or mode (the most common answer received for the question)
• Ordinal Scale


  A rank ordering of response items, measuring the magnitude of the dependent variable using ranks but not assigning precise values
• Ordinal scale uses

  • Market research
  • Advertising
  • Customer satisfaction surveys
• Statistical analysis of ordinal scale data

  Median and mode can be used, but not mean. Other statistical alternatives to mean can be measured.
• Ordinal scale examples


  • How would you rate our app?
  • How satisfied are you with our services?
• Interval Scale


  Measures magnitude or quantitative size using measures with equal intervals between values, but has no true zero point
• Interval scale examples

  • Celsius/Fahrenheit temperature scale
  • Time
  • Calendar years
  • Likert scale
  • Net Promoter Score
  • Semantic Differential Scale
  • Bipolar Matrix Table
• Ratio Scale


  Highest level of measurement, has equal intervals between all values and a true zero point
• Ratio scale examples

  • Height
  • Weight
• Ratio scale accommodates the characteristics of nominal, ordinal, and interval scales, and also has a true zero value
• Mean, mode and median can be calculated using the ratio scale
• Self-administered questionnaire (SAQ)


  A questionnaire designed to be completed by a respondent without intervention of the researchers
• Considerations for SAQs

  • Simple and clear instructions
  • Possibility of reactivity (subjects altering responses due to awareness of observer)
  • Collect data anonymously to avoid social desirability response set
• Mail Survey


  A questionnaire mailed to potential respondents who fill it out and return it by mail
• Considerations for mail surveys

  • Include a polite and professional cover letter
  • Maintain subject's anonymity
  • Consider including a small gift to increase response rate
  • Keep surveys as short as possible
• Computer and Internet Survey (Online Survey) (Web Survey)


  Surveys that sample respondents and gather data via the Internet
• Advantages of online surveys

  • Most cost-effective
  • Can reach maximum number of people
• Mail surveys


  Keep as short as possible and include a convincing cover letter
• Internet surveys


  Surveys that sample respondents via the Internet, gather data from respondents via the Internet, or both
• Internet surveys

  • Provide a great many opportunities and a great many challenges to researchers