Question 1

____ is the technical term for items left blank.

Accepted Answer

Item nonresponse refers to items on a survey that are left blank or unanswered by a respondent. Imputation refers to the process of filling in missing data, item plug is not a technical term in this context, and item inconsistency refers to responses that conflict or contradict each other.

Question 2

Assigning a "1" or "0" code where each number represents an alternate response such as "yes" or "no," is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Dummy coding is the process of assigning numerical values to variables so that they can be used in statistical analysis. In this case, assigning a "1" or "0" code to represent "yes" or "no" respectively is an example of dummy coding.

Question 3

When a field interviewer records an impossible answer (e.g.birthdate: 1861),this means that the data need to be:

Accepted Answer

Editing the data is the best choice in this situation, as the recorded answer is clearly an error and impossible to be correct. The interviewer should check with the respondent for the correct information or remove the response if the correct information cannot be obtained. Transforming the data using a plug value or coding it would not be appropriate in this case, as it would distort the accuracy of the data. Deleting the data should only be considered as a last resort, after all attempts to obtain the correct information have been exhausted.

Question 4

All of the following are choices available when dealing with missing data EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

Tabulating the data is not a method for handling missing data; it is a process for organizing and summarizing data.

Question 5

Kelsea is an interviewer and incorrectly entered respondents' choices on ten surveys.This type of error is called:

Accepted Answer

The answer of Kelsea is an interviewer and incorrectly entered...

Question 6

A data sheet documents the location of each variable in a data matrix.

Accepted Answer

This is called a coding sheet.

Question 7

Many researchers use a statistical process to provide an educated guess for missing responses in data based on the respondent's choices to other questions.Which method of dealing with missing data does this represent?

Accepted Answer

Imputing a missing value is a common method for dealing with missing data, where researchers use statistical techniques to fill in missing values based on patterns in the data. This allows for more complete data analysis and reduces bias in the results. Plugging in neutral responses or alternative choices could introduce bias, and randomly selecting an answer may not accurately reflect the missing data.

Question 8

The purpose of coding open-ended questions is to reduce the large number of individual responses to a few general categories of answers that can be assigned numerical codes.

Accepted Answer

Coding open-ended questions allows for simpler analysis and organization of responses by assigning codes to common themes or categories.

Question 9

Assigning males the value of zero and females the value of one in a database to record the gender of the respondents is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Assigning numerical or alphabetical codes to different categories or attributes in a database, such as assigning "0" to males and "1" to females, is known as coding. This helps to simplify the data and facilitate analysis. Test tabulation is the process of summarizing and organizing data in tables or graphs, editing is the process of checking the data for accuracy and completeness, and verification is the process of double-checking the data for errors. However, none of these processes involves assigning numerical or alphabetical codes to categories.

Question 10

Which of the following need to be corrected as part of the editing process?

Accepted Answer

All of the options listed- omissions, legibility, and consistency- are typical areas that require correction during the editing process. Omissions refer to missing information, such as a sentence that abruptly ends without proper closure. Legibility refers to the readability of the text, such as font size or spacing between lines. Consistency relates to ensuring that the language and style used in the writing remains uniform throughout. Therefore, all options- A, B, and C- need to be considered during the editing process.

Question 11

The assignment of numbers to edited data is known as:

Accepted Answer

The assignment of numbers to edited data is known as coding. Editing refers to the process of reviewing and correcting data for accuracy and completeness, while adjusting with a plug value involves replacing invalid data with a predetermined value. Therefore, choice C is the best answer.

Question 12

When Arbitron has its own staff verify the accuracy of radio-station call letters (e.g.KMOX)to ensure that they are possible radio call letters in the geographical area of the respondent,this is an example of:

Accepted Answer

In-house editing refers to the process of checking the accuracy of data by the research company's own staff. In this case, Arbitron's staff is verifying the accuracy of radio-station call letters, which is a part of in-house editing. External editing involves hiring an outside firm to check for errors, while in-house coding and external coding refer to the process of assigning codes to data for analysis.

Question 13

The unedited responses from a respondent exactly as indicated by that respondent are referred to as:

Accepted Answer

Raw data refers to the unedited, original responses from a respondent which have not been organized, processed, or interpreted in any way. It is the most basic form of data and is used as the starting point of any analysis. Codes, files, and strings are all different types of data processing and are not the same as raw data.

Question 14

When a coding method produces more categories than are deemed important during a later stage of the research,the categories can be reduced to a smaller number of categories by combining categories.

Accepted Answer

When there are more categories produced than necessary, they can be combined to reduce them to a smaller number of categories. This process is called category reduction.

Question 15

Precoding is the tallying of a small sample of the total number of replies to a particular question,

Accepted Answer

This is called test tabulation.

Question 16

A method of handling missing data in which only the actual variables for a respondent that do not contain information are eliminated from use in statistical analyses is called:

Accepted Answer

Pair-wise deletion is a method of handling missing data in which only the actual variables for a respondent that do not contain information are eliminated from use in statistical analyses. This means that only the missing data points are excluded, while the rest of the data can still be used for analysis. List-wise deletion, on the other hand, eliminates entire rows with missing data, which can result in a loss of valuable information. Selective and partial deletion are not commonly used methods for handling missing data.

Question 17

Which of the following refers to the notion that the data file actually contains the information that the researcher is trying to obtain to adequately address research questions?

Accepted Answer

Data integrity refers to the accuracy and completeness of data, including the notion that the data file actually contains the information that the researcher is trying to obtain to adequately address research questions. Data reliability refers to the consistency with which the same results are obtained from multiple measurements of the same phenomenon. Data verification refers to the process of checking the accuracy and validity of data. Data completeness refers to the extent to which all necessary data is present in a dataset.

Question 18

When a survey is highly unstructured,it is possible to precode the response categories before the data are collected.

Accepted Answer

Questionnaires need to be highly structured for precoding before the data are collected to be possible.

Question 19

Codes are rules for ____ data.

Accepted Answer

Codes are rules that are applied to data to interpret, classify, and record them. Therefore, the correct answer is D - all of the above.

Question 20

A researcher has decided to insert a response for items not answered by respondents.This answer the editor inserts is referred to as a(n):

Accepted Answer

The answer of A researcher has decided to insert a...

Quiz 19: Editing and Coding: Transforming Raw Data Into Information