Social Survey
A Social Survey is a research method used for collecting data from a pre-defined group of respondents to gain information and insights on various topics of interest. Surveys have a variety of purposes and can be carried out in many ways depending on the methodology chosen and the objectives to be achieved.
The data is usually obtained through standardized procedures whose purpose is to ensure that each respondent can answer the questions at a level playing field to avoid biased opinions that could influence the outcome of the research or study. A survey involves asking people for information through a questionnaire, which can be distributed on paper. However, with the arrival of new technologies, it is more common to distribute them using digital media such as social networks, email, QR codes, or URLs.
Survey Method
The Survey method is the technique of gathering data by asking questions to people who are thought to have desired information. A formal list of questionnaires is prepared. Generally, a non-disguised approach is used. The respondents are asked questions about their demographic interest opinion.
Advantages of Survey Method
Compared to other methods (direct observation, experimentation), surveys yield a broader range of information. Surveys effectively produce information on socio-economic characteristics, attitudes, opinions, motives, etc., and gather information for planning product features, advertising media, sales promotion, channels of distribution, and other marketing variables.
Questioning is usually faster and cheaper than observation.
Questions are simple to administer.
Data is reliable.
The variability of results is reduced.
It is relatively simple to analyze, quote, and interrelate the data obtained by the survey method.
Disadvantages of Survey Method
The unwillingness of respondents to provide information- This requires salesmanship on the interviewer's part. The interviewer may assure that the information will be kept secret or apply the technique of offering some presents.
The inability of the respondents to provide information- This may be due to
Lack of knowledge
Lapse of memory
Inability to identify their motives and provide “reasons why?” for their actions
The respondents' human biases are there, e.g., “Ego.”
Symantec difficulties are there - it is difficult, if not impossible, to state a given question so that it will mean exactly the same thing to each respondent. Similarly, two different wordings of the same question will frequently produce quite different results.
How to overcome the limitations of Survey Method
Careful framing and phrasing of questions.
Careful control of data gathering by employing specially trained investigators who will observe carefully report on subtle reactions of persons interviewed
Cautious interpretations by a clear recognition of the limitations of the data and understating of what exactly the data represents. This is especially true of responses to questions like - “What price would you be willing to pay for this product?”
Looking at facts in relative rather than absolute terms. For example, a survey by a dentist team showed that the number of families in the middle-income group used toothpaste taken by itself in the absolute sense. The results of the study are in some doubt. Even though the individual group readings shall differ, it could be 90%. Hence we should look at the facts in relative rather than absolute terms.
TYPES OF SURVEY
There are various types of surveys you can choose from. Basically, the types of surveys are broadly categorized into two: instrumentation and according to the span of time involved. The types of surveys, according to instrumentation, include the questionnaire and the interview. On the other hand, the types of surveys, according to the time used to conduct the study, are comprised of cross-sectional and longitudinal surveys.
According to Instrumentation
In survey research, the instruments that are utilized can be either a questionnaire or an interview (either structured or unstructured).
Questionnaires:
Typically, a questionnaire is a paper-and-pencil instrument that is administered to the respondents. The usual questions found in questionnaires are closed-ended, followed by response options. However, some questionnaires ask open-ended questions to explore the respondents' answers.
Questionnaires have been developed over the years. Today, questionnaires are utilized in various survey methods, according to how they are given. These methods include self-administered, group-administered, and household drop-off. Among the three, researchers often use the self-administered survey method. The self-administered questionnaires are widely known as the mail survey method. However, since the response rates related to mail surveys had gone low, questionnaires are now commonly administered online, as in the form of web surveys.
Advantages: Ideal for asking closed-ended questions; effective for market or consumer research
Disadvantages: Limit the researcher’s understanding of the respondent’s answers; requires a budget for the reproduction of survey questionnaires
Interviews:
Between the two broad types of surveys. Questionnaires do not provide the freedom to ask follow-up questions to explore the answers of the respondents, but interviews do.
An interview includes two persons - the researcher as the interviewer and the respondent as the interviewee. There are several survey methods that utilize interviews. These are the personal or face-to-face interview, the phone interview, and, more recently, the online interview.
Advantages: Follow-up questions can be asked, providing a better understanding of the respondents' answers.
Disadvantages: Time-consuming; many target respondents have no public-listed phone numbers or no telephones at all
According to the Span of Time Involved
The span of time needed to complete the survey brings us to the two different types of surveys: cross-sectional and longitudinal.
Cross-Sectional Surveys:
Collecting information from the respondents at a single period in time uses the cross-sectional type of survey. Cross-sectional surveys usually utilize questionnaires to ask about a particular topic at one point in time. For instance, a researcher conducted a cross-sectional survey asking about teenagers’ views on cigarette smoking as of May 2010. Sometimes, cross-sectional surveys are used to identify the relationship between two variables, as in a comparative study. An example of this is administering a cross-sectional survey about the relationship between peer pressure and cigarette smoking among teenagers as of May 2010.
Longitudinal Surveys:
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