what is a self-report?
the participant reports information about themselves directly to the researcher.
how is a self-report different from experimental tests?
in experimental tests or observations, the researcher finds the data out from the participant while in self-reports the data is given from participant to researcher.
techniques of questionnaires? (2!)
questionnaires and interviews, of which both ask questions
questionnaires?
questions are presented to the participant in written form. (paper or online)
different types of questions. 2 most important are
- closed: fixed set of responses
- open: ask for descriptive answers in the participant’s own words.
closed questions?
have a fixed set of possible responses. can take the form of simple choices, such as those asking for yes or no answers, or items from a list.
rating scale?
a close-ended question that is typically a range of options between two extremes (such as excellent to terrible)
likert scale?
also known as a satisfaction scale, ranges from one extreme attitude to another and usually includes a moderate / neutral option in the scale.
open questions?
typically ask why, or to describe. prompts the respondent to give detailed answers, and could be a long response question and thus have more depth than closed questions. more likely to be able to explore the reasons behind behaviors, emotions, or reasoning.
questionnaire strengths? (3!)
- closed questions are easier to analyze because they can be used to produce totals of each category of answers.
- possible to work out averages
- open questions can produce detailed, in-depth information
questionnaire weaknesses? (4!)
- easy to ignore as people don’t feel obligated to answer for reasons such as time, meaning that return rate could be low and a full sample will not be achieved if some do fill out the questionnaire
- answers to open questions have to be interpreted, which can lead to a lack of reliability as a researcher may not be consistent in their interpretation.
- if more than one researcher is involved, there may be differences in them, which is a lack of inter-rater reliability.
- participants may lie to look more acceptable or because they figured out the aim
inter-rater reliability?
the extent to which 2 or more researchers interpreting qualitative responses will produce the same records
interviews?
researcher is typically face to face with the participant, or on the phone, zoom, ect.
the same kinds of questions are asked as in questionnaires, but usually more open questions are used.
structured interview?
questions asked are the same for every participant and the order of the questions are fixed. there may be instructions for the interviewer how to sit or dress to make sure the procedure is standardized each time data is collected.
unstructured interview?
questions asked depend on what the participant says, so the questions may be different for each participant.
unstructured interviews are flexible but:
it may be hard to compare data collected from different participants or by different researchers.
semi-structured interview?
some fixed questions, which make sure there is some similar information. in addition, it is possible to ask some questions that are specific to individual participants.
the fixed questions in semi-structured interviews mean that:
comparisons can be made between them and averages can be calculated if appropriate.
the specific questions that are possible in semi-structured interviews allow the researcher to:
develop ideas and explore issues that are particular to that person.
evaluating interviews:
- interviewees may lie either because they want to seem more acceptable (social desirability bias) or because they think they know the aim of the study
- interviewing can be time consuming.
