One of the major reasons why survey research may not be effective is that the survey instruments are less useful than they should be. What would you say are the four possible major faults of survey instrument design?

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Q 13.5 Survey Instrument Design

 

Q 13.5 One of the major reasons why survey research may not be effective is that the survey instruments are less useful than they should be. What would you say are the four possible major faults of survey instrument design?

 

            Developing a useful survey is the aim of every research team, it is paramount to obtaining the correct and vital information to answer the research questions posed. Often surveys fall short of their mark for information collection because the purpose of the survey was not clearly defined or directed. There are many factors that’s can play into this, four of the major mistakes follow the flow of development on the instrument.

 

            In the initial development of the survey instrument there are some basic things that if done incorrectly can detour the survey direction and lead researchers to the wrong answers. In development of a research method the first major problem is determining if a survey is the correct instrument to use to answer the necessary questions. Surveys are tools that can help collect normally unquantifiable data, researchers have to determine if the construct they are focusing on lends itself well to being examined through the use of this method. This is essentially the first point at which researchers can make mistakes in the development of their method, this also will help researchers pinpoint the correct type of survey method to use. (Rikards, Magee & Artino, 2012)

 

              Once it has been determined that the survey is the right method to use there has to be great time and consideration given to how the survey will be put together and ultimately delivered. Second in the list of failures made during survey instrument design is the development of the survey items or questions. The development of questions requires great time and effort in order to be exact about the information researchers are looking for, this happens in three phases; defining research questions and hierarchy, constructing and refining the questions, and finally in sequencing the questions appropriately to address the topic (Cooper & Schindler, 2014). This process includes determining what is the priority, wording and individual item structure, and finally putting the questions together in the necessary way to ensure the subjects respond with meaningful information.

 

            A third problem arises when researchers try to determine the best conveyance for the survey, there are multiple ways in which to disseminate a survey, choosing the right method will help to ensure an appropriate response rate. Ease of communication is one of the big areas of focus when considering response strategies, the convenience test determines how easy the survey is o administer, in this case it needs to be appropriately convenient. Determining the best way to disseminate the survey, either through various phone communications, mailers, online questionnaires, or other methods will help return an acceptable response rate. (Cooper & Schindler, 2014)

 

            A final consideration must be made to pretesting the survey, pretesting allows for a reconsideration of the survey as a whole and will help the researcher to fine tune the survey but also obtain an understanding of what results will be acquired. Failure to pretest the survey can result in a number of issues that otherwise might be caught and corrected to increase the efficiency of the survey. Overall the ability to revisit the survey and make functional changes to it will ensure a better result, it is not an uncommon practice to rewrite questions numerous times during this crucial step in the process of developing the best instrument design possible (Cooper & Schindler, 2014).

 

            Determining if the use of a survey is best, lack of consideration given to item development, finding the best delivery method for the survey, and a failure to pretest the survey are major faults that can lead researchers to do things that will detract them from the original research questions. John 16:13 (ESV) declares the importance of truth and how it will lead, it is important for researchers to build their design in a way that allows for the determination and presence of truth. Misguiding design can lead to improper response which ca hide the truth that is being sought, care should be taken to ensure that survey designs are presented in their best form to provide the truth that researchers are looking for.

 

 

 

References

 

Cooper, D. R., & Schindler, P. S. (2014). Business research methods. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.

 

Rickards, G., Magee, C., & Artino, A. R. (2012). You Cant Fix by Analysis What Youve Spoiled by Design: Developing Survey Instruments and Collecting Validity Evidence. Journal of Graduate Medical Education,4(4), 407-410. doi:10.4300/jgme-d-12-00239.1