This week I
had it!
My
frustration with Master's level online classroom discussion quality had me at my limits, so
this week I thought I’d go on the offensive and challenge one of my classmates to spice things up a bit. The real kicker is professor's contribution at the end of the discussion, relevant? I'll leave it to you to decide.
Kevin
Hackett-One of the most popular survey methods today is the online
survey. Web based questionnaires can help decrease interviewer errors by
providing a consistent delivery of the questions and response based errors by
helping the respondent with required or validation fields Cooper & Schindler
(2014). Not only do digital surveys help the participant, but they can also
gather data that might be difficult for the respondent to recall or capture at
the moment. Things like recalling personal habits can be tracked by cookies and
used to find qualified participants, further reducing response errors (Fulgoni,
2014).
In addition to the low cost of delivering a digital survey, the
survey can also reach a large audience. Fulgoni (2014) warns however that
companies who use exclusively online surveys risk errors because the
demographic of online survey takers is too bias towards younger people
comfortable on the computer. Additionally, it’s not just online vs. offline to
consider, but also mobile vs. desktop vs. laptop and all the devices within. Cook
(2014) points out noticeable differences between surveys delivered to PCs vs.
mobile devices. Some of the differences included higher abandonment on mobile,
but also quicker results. Wells (2015) echoed that study and adds that tablet
results were more comparable to PCs than to phones, but many people, even on
their phone, chose to complete the surveys at home.
One factor noted by both Wells (2015) and Cook (2014) was the difficulty of completing the survey on the phone. The average time was much higher than on the desktop. Both of the research also pointed out that the surveys were not designed differently for mobile. In my experience as a web developer, the design for mobile has a huge impact on abandonment. People lose patience quickly and need to feel the work is worthwhile. Companies like SurveyMonkey have come a long way in making survey tools available to small businesses, where companies like Qualtrix cater to the larger organizations. The best tool I’ve found however is GetFeedback. From the standpoint of analytics, it leaves a lot to be desired, but from the standpoint of design and ease of use it’s hands down the best for designers.
References
COOK, W. A. (2014). Is Mobile a Reliable Platform For Survey
Taking? Defining Quality in Online Surveys From Mobile Respondents. Journal Of
Advertising Research, 54(2), 141-148. doi:10.2501/JAR-54-2-141-148
FULGONI, G. (2014). Uses and Misuses of Online-Survey Panels in
Digital Research. Journal Of Advertising Research, 54(2), 133-137.
doi:10.2501/JAR-54-2-133-137
Wells, T. (2015). What market
researchers should know about mobile surveys. International Journal Of Market
Research, 57(4), 521-532. doi:10.2501/IJMR-2015-045
Thomas- You
state that online survey methods are one of the most popular but although I am
not privy to the studies done that come up with that conclusion, I beg to
differ. I my opinion the popularity of a survey does not lie in method of
delivery such as online, other self-administered methods, telephone or personal
interview but in the quality and the interest generated in the subject matter
that is being researched. One other factor that may generate interest is the
offer of an incentive but there are a host of other variables that will affect
the popularity of a survey regardless of the method of delivery.
Since same sex marriages are in the forefront today let me use it to
demonstrate my point. If we were to do a survey to determine their opinion
negative or positive to same-sex marriage, many people would be inclined to
give a response regardless of the method of survey. However, if you choose 30
malls all over Florida and to each mall you send ten students, in my opinion
that survey may prove very popular because people could not be identified. Now
if you were to use a phone or the internet it would be more likely that their
identity could be known and it may not be as popular. Now if it were a matter
that was not of a sensitive nature, such as the type of car you would drive if
you could afford it; then it would not seriously matter which survey method was
being used and the popularity of the surveys used may vary according to
geographic location.
My point is if you select a method that isn't appropriate or doesn't fit
the context, you can doom a study before you even begin designing the
instruments or questions themselves (Trochim, 2006).
Reference
Trochim,
W. (2006). Selecting the Survey Method. Retrieved from
Kevin
Hackett - Thomas,
Thanks for replying to my question. As you admitted, you didn't read the
articles that I read. Fulgoni (2014) expressedly states that "43% of all
research surveys in the United States were conducted online". You stated
that the popularity of a survey can be affected by the offer of an incentive-
Cooper & Schindler (2014) note that incentives can increase the response
rates of a survey, but this has little to do with it's employement as a
research methodology. Trochim (2006) concludes "if you select a method that
isn't appropriate or doesn't fit the context, you can doom a study before you
begin", but also notes that cost, time, personnel and facilities are the
real life considerations a researcher must consider. For these reasons, Sincero
(n.d.) shows those are exactly the advantages of online surveys.
While there are studies where an online survey may be
inappropriate, it's increased employment (popularity) are a result of these
real world limitations and data collection advantages.
Reference
FULGONI, G. (2014). Uses and Misuses of Online-Survey Panels in
Digital Research. Journal Of Advertising Research, 54(2), 133-137.
doi:10.2501/JAR-54-2-133-137
Sincero,
S. (n.d.) Online Surveys - Pros and Cons of web-based questionnaires. Retrieved
from: https://explorable.com/online-surveys
Trochim, W. (2006).
Selecting the Survey Method. Retrieved
from http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/survsel.php
Thomas- You
are correct when you say that he made that statement but you are incorrect when
you said it was popular. The statement was made about the year 2013 and the
item goes on to state that there was concern about the quality of this method
(Fulgoni, 2014). Fulgoni (2014) went onto state that as far back as “2006, Kim
Dedecker, then vp/global consumer and market knowledge at Procter & Gamble,
first spoke publicly and persuasively about the online quality issues
experienced by P&G”. Therefore, please allow me to clarify the idea, it is
not a case of popularity here; it was a case of most widely used. May
I be allowed to suggest that it was actually unpopular because there was so
much concern about its accuracy? They were concerned about the inappropriate
use of the internet so in my opinion it was not exactly popular and although
when used properly it may be useful, it can still be skewed (Fulgoni, 2014).
May I suggest that you read the complete article? Or even the first paragraph
of the summary where Fulgoni (2014) points out that:-
“Online-survey
panels have brought the market-research industry the attractive benefits of
speed and lower cost, but questions of quality still dog the methodology. The
ARF is conducting seminal research into a variety of online-survey quality
issues, helping to improve researchers' understanding about how to boost the accuracy
and reliability of their use of such surveys”.
It
may be the most widely used but it is not yet popular, maybe when some of the
quirks have been resolved. (I did not reply to your question, I replied to your
post.)
References
FULGONI,
G. (2014). Uses and Misuses of Online-Survey Panels in Digital Research.
Journal of Advertising Research, 54(2), 133-137.
doi:10.2501/JAR-54-2-133-137
Kevin
Hackett -Thomas,
Perhaps you missed my citation in the original article where I acknowledged one
of the deficiencies of internet survey methods citing Fulgoni (2014)
"Fulgoni (2014) warns however that companies who
use exclusively online surveys risk errors because the demographic of online
survey takers is too bias towards younger people comfortable on the computer. "
Popular technologies will always be placed under
scrutiny. Online
survey technologies lower the barrier to administration, making them very
popular for small businesses (Martin, 2012). Your Fulgoni (2014) quote
states that the researchers themselves need to improve their understanding of
the medium to improve the accuracy and reliability. It reminds be of
when I gave my Grandma her first iPhone. She complained it was much more
difficult to operate than her old one. Does that make the iPhone unpopular
because it's new and not everyone understand how to use it properly? Have the
acknowledged shortcomings of online survey methodologies made their preference
and adoption any less?
Please
remember, we are talking about choosing an optimal survey method. The sources
that I've provided and you've borrowed, discuss a number of advantages that
online surveys provide over any other research method. Fulgoni (2014) lists a
huge benefit of being able to gather contextual information that the respondent
may not be able to provide. Fulgoni specifically describes cookies which can tell
if the visitor has been the the website or seen a particular ad before In an
in-person or written survey the respondent may not recall. Wells (2015) adds
GPS as another piece of context which can enrish the survey.
I'd
also offer that
when you connect a digital survey with Facebook or other login methodologies,
you may be providing a lot of supplemental information such as your date of
birth, friends, location, or gender. Access to this
information can shorten the survey, reducing survey abandonment or increase the
context over traditional surveys.
You offer that because an
article describes the shortcomings of web-based surveys that it must therefore
be unpopular, but you fail to bridge the logical gap between criticism and
popularity. The closest you've provided is the implication that criticism,
within a community of professional researchers, of the shortcomings is possibly
enough to render online surveys unpopular.
References
FULGONI, G. (2014). Uses and Misuses
of Online-Survey Panels in Digital Research. Journal Of Advertising Research, 54(2),
133-137. doi:10.2501/JAR-54-2-133-137
Martin, S. (2012) Small-business customer service tools: Social media, surveys. Retrieved from:
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/smallbusiness/story/2012-08-26/efficient-small-business-online-ecommerce/57291490/1
Wells, T. (2015). What market
researchers should know about mobile surveys. International Journal Of Market Research, 57(4),
521-532. doi:10.2501/IJMR-2015-045
Thomas
Well
Kevin, you may be correct and I do accept your opinion. Wikipedia is
popular but in doing research most professors do not accept the validity of
references to it, so most of us do not use or refer to it. As Michele has
correctly stated “It would seem that regardless of the expertise behind the
method of survey we must take into account that a margin of error will exist”.
This
is true in academia wikipedia is not considered a very authentic source of
reference. Please see below which I used for graduate or doctoral level
students when they used wikipedia for references.
June 12, 2006
Wikipedia Founder Discourages Academic Use of His Creation
Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia compiled by a
distributed network of volunteers, has often come under attack by academics as
being shoddy and full of inaccuracies. Even Wikipedia’s founder, Jimmy Wales,
says he wants to get the message out to college students that they shouldn’t
use it for class projects or serious research.
Speaking at a conference at the University of Pennsylvania on
Friday called “The
Hyperlinked Society,” Mr.
Wales said that he gets about 10 e-mail messages a week from students who
complain that Wikipedia has gotten them into academic hot water. “They say,
‘Please help me. I got an F on my paper because I cited Wikipedia’” and the
information turned out to be wrong, he says. But he said he has no sympathy for
their plight, noting that he thinks to himself: “For God sake, you’re in
college; don’t cite the encyclopedia.”
Mr. Wales said that leaders of Wikipedia have considered putting
together a fact sheet that professors could give out to students explaining
what Wikipedia is and that it is not always a definitive source. “It is pretty
good, but you have to be careful with it,” he said. “It’s good enough
knowledge, depending on what your purpose is.”
In an interview, Mr. Wales said that Wikipedia is ideal for many
uses. If you are reading a novel that mentions the Battle of the Bulge, for
instance, you could use Wikipedia to get a quick basic overview of the
historical event to understand the context. But students writing a paper about
the battle should hit the history books. —Jeffrey
R. Young
The Chronicle of Higher Learning. Retrieved on 29 Jul08 from:
http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/1328/wikipedia-founder-discourages-academic-use-of-his-creation
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