Question 1

The ease that online surveys can be dismissed is an example of

Accepted Answer

Online surveys can easily be dismissed or ignored by respondents, which is a potential drawback as it could lead to biases in the data collected. This is not necessarily due to respondent paranoia or an advantage of electronic software packages.

Question 2

The response rates for online surveys are ______________.

Accepted Answer

The response rates for online surveys are generally lower than those for telephone and in-person interviews. This is because online surveys can be easily overlooked, ignored, or filtered into spam folders, whereas telephone and in-person interviews require immediate attention and interaction.

Question 3

"Do you have children under 18" is an example of a __________question?

Accepted Answer

"Filter" questions are used to exclude certain respondents from a survey or study, and this question filters out participants without children under 18.

Question 4

How did Sudman and Bradburn describe the survey process?

Accepted Answer

Sudman and Bradburn described the survey process as a microsocial system, emphasizing the social interactions and dynamics involved in conducting surveys.

Question 5

The tendency to agree or disagree with a set of questions or items regardless of the content in order to please the researcher is known as

Accepted Answer

Acquiescence refers to the tendency of a respondent to agree with all questions or to respond positively to a statement regardless of the content, often in an attempt to be agreeable or to conform to what they believe the researcher wants.

Question 6

What is method for a researcher to test for acquiescence?

Accepted Answer

Including items that call for the opposite response can effectively test for acquiescence, as it checks whether the respondent is answering consistently or simply agreeing with all items. Unlike option A, probing for more information may not necessarily reveal acquiescence. Option B, asking questions in the same way for each item, may lead to a systematic response bias. Option C, shifting from questionnaire to structured interview, may not be feasible or necessary for all research studies.

Question 7

Dr. McCarthy is doing research on people's view on racial discrimination. She notices that respondents seem to be answering in a way that makes them look good do not reflect their actual opinions. This is called _____________.

Accepted Answer

Social desirability bias occurs when respondents answer in a way that they perceive to be socially acceptable or making them look good, rather than reflecting their true opinions or behaviors. Acquiescence refers to the tendency to agree with or accept statements without really thinking about them, and interviewer effects occur when the interviewer influences the respondent's answers. Lack of interest refers to a general disinterest or apathy towards the research topic.

Question 8

Respondents appear to be rushing through answering survey without reading the questions thoroughly. This is an indication of ____________.

Accepted Answer

Rushing through answering a survey without reading the questions thoroughly is a sign of lack of interest as respondents may not be invested in the survey or its outcomes. Social desirability refers to respondents giving socially acceptable answers, interviewer effects refer to how the interviewer may influence the respondent's answers, and acquiescence refers to respondents always answering "yes" or agreeing without much thought.

Question 9

Which is the best definition of response errors?

Accepted Answer

Response errors refer to distortions in survey results caused by participants providing false or inaccurate information, such as deliberate misrepresentation, misunderstanding or misinterpretation of questions, social desirability bias, satisficing, etc.

Question 10

Leshem and team discovered an issue with social desirability in their study of political attitudes about the future, peace, and conflict among Israelis and Palestinians. How did they test for this?

Accepted Answer

By administering half of the surveys as self-administered and half conducted by an interviewer, Leshem and team could test if participants were giving socially desirable answers in the interviewer-administered surveys. Self-administered surveys are often believed to elicit more truthful responses, as there is no social pressure to give socially desirable answers. Therefore, the use of both types of survey administration allows for a comparison of response patterns and can help identify potential issues with social desirability bias.

Question 11

Leshem and team found that when self-administered ____________.

Accepted Answer

Leshem and team found that when self-administered, participants expressed a greater willingness to work with Israelis.

Question 12

Interview or questionnaire items with a fixed set of possible answers to choose from are called___________________.

Accepted Answer

Closed-ended questions have a fixed set of answer options to choose from, and respondents must select one of those options. Open-ended questions, on the other hand, allow for more open and varied responses. Filter questions are used to sort respondents into different subgroups based on their answers to specific questions.

Question 13

Interview or questionnaire items that allow respondents to formulate their own answers are called___________________.

Accepted Answer

Open-ended questions allow respondents to provide their own answers and are often used in qualitative research to gather rich, detailed information. Closed-ended questions provide a set of response options for respondents to choose from, while filter questions are used to screen out respondents who do not fit the criteria for a particular study.

Question 14

"How do you feel about this class" is an example of which type of question?

Accepted Answer

"How do you feel about this class" is an example of an open-ended question, which allows for a wide range of possible responses and encourages discussion and elaboration. Closed-ended questions, on the other hand, typically only have specific answer options (e.g. "Yes" or "No"), filter questions are used to screen participants based on certain criteria, and contingent questions are dependent on previous answers.

Question 15

What type of question is the following: "How satisfied are you with this class? A. Very Satisfied B. Satisfied C. Somewhat Satisfied D. Not Satisfied "

Accepted Answer

This is a closed-ended question as it offers a limited number of answer options to choose from. The respondent can only choose one of the provided options.

Question 16

Which of the following is not an example of a benefit of using closed-ended questions?

Accepted Answer

This is not a benefit of using closed-ended questions. In fact, having all questions be the same can be a limitation as it does not allow for nuance or variation in responses. The other options (A, B, and C) are all benefits of using closed-ended questions.

Question 17

Which of the following is not an example of a limitation of closed-ended question?

Accepted Answer

Closed-ended questions actually increase comparability between responses since they provide structured and standardized options for respondents to choose from. The other three options are limitations of closed-ended questions.

Question 18

A researcher creates the following fixed-response categories for the question "What is your preferred political party?": Republican and Democrat. What is problematic about this question?

Accepted Answer

The fixed-response categories of Republican and Democrat are not exhaustive, as there are many other political parties that individuals may align with or prefer. This limits participants' ability to express their preferred political affiliations, potentially leading to incomplete or inaccurate data.

Question 19

A researcher creates the following categories for the question, "How many years have you worked full time? 0-2, 2-4, 4-6, 6-8, 8 or more" What is problematic about this question?

Accepted Answer

The categories are not mutually exclusive because there is an overlap at the boundaries (e.g., 2, 4, 6, 8), meaning a respondent could potentially fit into more than one category.

Question 20

Which of the following is not an advantage of open-ended questions?

Accepted Answer

This statement is actually a disadvantage of open-ended questions. Respondents may give long, rambling answers that are difficult to analyze and interpret. Closed-ended questions, on the other hand, typically produce shorter answers that are easier to code and analyze.

Quiz 8: How Do Researchers Study Patterns That Span Populations and Categories of Experience Questionnaires and Structured Interviews