Survey Method and Secondary Data

Transcription

1 Topic 6 Survey Method and Secondary Data LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this topic, you should be able to: 1. Discuss the importance of surveys to collect data; 2. Explore the types of personal interviews, telephone interviews and self-administered surveys; 3. Appraise the advantages and disadvantages of the different survey methods; 4. Discuss the types and uses of secondary data; 5. Assess the advantages and disadvantages of secondary data; and 6. Explore the sources of secondary data. INTRODUCTION The type and amount of data collected depends on the nature of the study together with its research objectives. If the study is exploratory, the researcher is likely to collect narrative data through the use of focus groups, personal interviews or observation of behaviour or events. These types of data are known as qualitative. Qualitative approaches to data collection are typically used at the exploratory stage of the research process. Their role is to identify and/or refine research problems that may help to formulate and test conceptual frameworks. Such studies normally involve the use of smaller samples or case studies.

2 78 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA If the study is descriptive or causal in nature, the researcher requires a relatively large amount of quantitative data obtained through large-scale surveys or existing electronic databases. Quantitative data typically are obtained through the use of various numeric scales. Quantitative data collection approaches are typically used when the researcher is using well-defined theoretical models and research problems. Validation of the concepts and models usually involves the use of quantitative data obtained from large-scale questionnaire surveys. 6.1 SURVEY RESEARCH Survey research is a common tool for applied research. Surveys can provide a quick, inexpensive and accurate means to obtain information for a variety of objectives. The typical survey is a descriptive research study that has the objective of measuring awareness, knowledge, behaviour, opinions and the like. Surveys can also be used to collect data for explanatory or analytical research to enable researchers to examine and explain relationships between variables; in particular cause and effect relationships. The term sample survey is often used because a survey is expected to obtain a representative sample of the target population. Surveys are popular because they allow the collection of a large amount of data from a sizeable population in a highly economical way. This data is standardised and often obtained by using a questionnaire to allow for easy comparison. In addition, the survey strategy is perceived as authoritative by people in general. Every day, a news bulletin or a newspaper article reports the results of a new survey indicating a certain percentage of the population that thinks or behaves in a particular way. The reliability and validity of the findings in survey depends on the quality of the instrument used. Among the popular instruments in survey research are questionnaire and observation inventory. Methods of collecting survey data fall into two broad categories: self-completion and interviewer-administered. Self-completion methods include mail and electronic surveys. Intervieweradministered methods involve direct contact with the respondents through personal interviews, including face-to-face, telephone and computer dialogue.

3 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 79 Personal interviews, whether structured or unstructured, are typically used to obtain detailed qualitative information from a relatively small number of individuals. The approach sometimes is referred to as an in-depth survey. On the other hand, questionnaires are used to collect quantitative data from a large number of individuals in a quick and convenient manner. In this topic, the focus will be on the survey technique used for data collection. SELF-CHECK 6.1 Explain the difference between questionaire and observation inventory. Explain the use of these instruments by providing appropriate examples. 6.2 PERSONAL INTERVIEW Interviewer-administered questionnaires are completed either face to face, over the telephone or via computer dialogue. Face-to-face and telephone interviews are the most prevalent but computer dialogue is the fastest growing mode of communication. Computer dialogue approaches use digital technology and can obtain information easily from large groups of individuals. An interview is where the researcher speaks to the respondent directly, asks questions and records answers. Interviews are particularly helpful in gathering data when dealing with complex and/or sensitive issues, and when open-ended questions are used to collect data. For example, face to face interviews also enable the researcher to obtain feedback and to use visual aids. Respondents might be shown a new corporate logo, a new corporate mission statement, building designs, automobile styles and colours might be and, asked to comment. Finally, interviews are flexible as they can be conducted at work, home, or in malls, etc. Researchers can increase participation rates by explaining the project and its value to the respondents Types of Personal Interviews There are four types of personal interviews: (a) Structured Interview In a structured interview, the interviewer uses an interview sequence with predetermined questions. For each interview, the interviewer is required to use the same interview sequence and to conduct the interview in the same

4 80 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA way to avoid biases that may result from inconsistent interviewing practices. Additionally, a standardised approach will ensure responses are comparable between interviews. Each respondent is provided with an identical opportunity to respond to the questions. The interviewer may collect the responses in the form of notes or may tape record the interview. Taping should only be done with the permission of the interviewee. If the interview is not recorded on tape, it is a good practice to provide the interviewee with a copy of the interviewerês notes after they have completed the session as this will help ensure the interview is captured accurately. (b) Semi-structured Interview In this approach, the researcher is free to exercise his or her own initiative to follow up with the interviewee for his or her responses. The interviewer may want to ask related, unanticipated questions that were not originally included in the interview. This approach may result in discovers of unexpected and insightful information, thus it may enhance the findings. The semi-structured interview has an overall structure and direction but allows more flexibility to include unstructured questioning. Perhaps the best-known semi-structured interview approach is the focus group. Focus groups are semi-structured interviews that use an exploratory research approach and are considered as part of qualitative research. Focus groups are structured within a list of topics and/or questions prepared by moderator. However, they can be unstructured if the moderator allows participants to answer questions in their own words and encourages them to elaborate on their responses. (c) Unstructured Interview An unstructured interview is conducted without an interview sequence. This allows the researcher to elicit information by engaging the interviewee in an open discussion on the topic of interest. A particular advantage of this approach is that the researcher has the opportunity to explore in-depth issues raised during the interview. Unstructured interviews are used when a research is directed towards an area that is relatively unexplored. By obtaining a deeper understanding of the critical issues involved, the researcher is in a better position to not only better define the research problem but also to develop a conceptual framework for the research. This will then form the basis for subsequent empirical research to test the ideas, concepts and hypotheses that emerge.

5 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 81 (d) In-depth Interview An in-depth interview is an unstructured one-to-one discussion session between a trained interviewer and a respondent. Respondents are usually chosen carefully because they have some specialised insight. For example, a researcher exploring employee turnover might conduct an in-depth interview with someone who has worked for five different restaurants in two years. Like a focus group, the interviewer first prepares an outline that guides the interview (this is the structured part of an in-depth interview). The responses are usually unstructured. Indeed, an in-depth interview allows deeper probing than a focus group. The researcher probes into a response to identify possibly hidden reasons for a particular behaviour. Indepth interviews can be very useful in clarifying concepts. Administering in-depth interviews is similar to coordinating a focus group. SELF-CHECK 6.2 You have been asked by the management to carry out a study on sexual harassment at the workplace after the female employees expressed their concerns on the matter. Which method would you choose to collect data? Advantages of Personal Interviews There are several advantages of using personal interviews in business research. To help researchers obtain complete and precise information, several characteristics of the process are elaborated below: (a) The Opportunity for Feedback Personal interviews provide the opportunity for feedback from the respondents. For example, a head of household who is reluctant to provide sensitive information about his family can be assured that his answers will be strictly confidential. The interviewer may also provide feedback to clarify any questions which a respondent has about the interview. After the interview is terminated, circumstances may dictate that the respondent be given additional information concerning the purpose of the study. This can be easily accomplished with the personal interview.

6 82 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA (b) Probing Complex Answers An important characteristic of personal interviews is the opportunity to follow up. If a respondentês answer is unclear, the researcher may probe for a more comprehensive explanation. Asking, Can you tell me more about what you had in mind? is an example of a probing question. Although interviewers are expected to ask questions exactly as they appear on the questionnaire, probing allows the interviewer some flexibility. Depending on the research purpose, personal interviews vary in the questions structured and in the amount of probing allowed. Personal interviews are especially useful for obtaining unstructured information. Questions that are difficult to ask during telephone or mail surveys can be addressed by skilful interviewers in the personal interviews. Example 6.1 Probing questions can be used to explore responses that are of significance to the research topic. They can be worded like open questions but can also require a particular focus or direction. Examples of this type of question include: How would you evaluate the success of this new marketing strategy? Why did you choose a compulsory method to make redundancies? What external factors caused the corporate strategy to change? These questions can begin with, for example, ThatÊs interesting... or Tell me more about... Probing questions can also be used to seek an explanation when you do not understand the intervieweeês meaning or the response given does not reveal the reasoning involved. Examples of this type of question include: What do you mean by bumping as a means to help to secure volunteers for redundancy? What is the relationship between the new statutory requirements that you referred to and the organisationês decision to set up its corporate affairs department? (c) Length of Interview If the research objective requires a lengthy questionnaire, personal interviews may be the only alternative. Generally, telephone interviews last fewer than 10 minutes, whereas a personal interview can be much longer,

7 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 83 perhaps an hour and a half. A rule of thumb for mail surveys is that they do not exceed more than six pages. (d) (e) (f) Complete Questionnaires Social interaction between a well-trained interviewer and a respondent in a personal interview increases the likelihood that a response will be given to all items on the questionnaire. The respondent who is bored with a telephone interview may terminate the interview at his or her discretion by hanging up the phone. A respondentês self-administration of a mail questionnaire requires more effort. Rather than writing a long explanation, the respondent may fail to complete some of the questions on the selfadministered questionnaire. Failure to provide the answer to a question is less likely to occur with an experienced interviewer and face-to-face interaction. Props and Visual Aids Interviewing a respondent face to face allows the investigator to show the respondent a resume, a new product sample, a sketch of a proposed office or plant layout or some other visual aid. In a telephone interview, the use of visual aids is not possible. High Participation While some people are reluctant to participate in a survey, the presence of an interviewer generally increases the percentage of people willing to participate in the interview. Respondents are generally not required to do any reading or writing. All they have to do is talk. Most people enjoy sharing information and insights with friendly and sympathetic interviewers. Personal interviews can be conducted at the respondentês home or office or other places. The locale for the interview generally influences the participation rate. Interestingly, personal interviews are being conducted in shopping malls even though research has shown that the refusal rate is highest when respondents are shopping in a mall Disadvantages of Personal Interviews There are numerous advantages to personal interviews but there are some disadvantages as well. Respondents are not anonymous and therefore are reluctant to provide confidential information to another person. There is some evidence that the demographic characteristics of the interviewer influence respondentsê answers. For example, one research study revealed that male interviewers produced a larger variance than females in a survey where 85 percent of the respondents were female. Older interviewers and interviewing older respondents produced more variance than other age combinations,

8 84 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA whereas younger interviewers and interviewing younger respondents produced the least. Different interview techniques may be a source of interviewer bias. The rephrasing of a question, the interviewerês tone of voice and the interviewerês appearance may influence the respondentês answer. Consider the interviewer who has conducted 100 personal interviews. During the next one, the interviewer may selectively perceive the respondentês answer so that the interpretation of the response can be somewhat different from the intended response. Our image of the person who does business research is a typical dedicated scientist. Unfortunately, interviewers who are hired as researchers do not necessarily conjure the perceived image. Sometimes, interviewers may cut corners to save time and energy. They may fake parts of their reporting by dummying up part of or the entire questionnaire. Control over interviewers is important to ensure that difficult and time-consuming questions are handled properly. (a) (b) (c) Cost Personal interviews are generally more expensive than mail and telephone interviews. The geographical proximity of respondents, the length and complexity of the questionnaire, and the number of non-respondents can affect the cost of the personal interview. Anonymity of Respondent A respondent is not anonymous and may be reluctant to provide confidential information to another person. Researchers often spend considerable time and effort to phrase sensitive questions so that social desirability bias will not occur. For example, the interviewer might show a respondent a card that lists possible answers and ask him or her to read a category number rather than verbalise sensitive answers. Callbacks When a person selected to be in the sample cannot be contacted on the first visit, a systematic procedure is normally initiated to call him or her back at another time. Callbacks, are the major means of reducing non-response error. The cost of an interviewer calling back on a sampling unit is more expensive (per interview) because subjects who were initially not at home are generally more dispersed geographically than the original sampling units.

9 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 85 Callbacks are important because individuals who are away from home at point of call (working women) may vary from those who are at home (nonworking women, retired people, etc). ACTIVITY Is personal interview the best survey method to obtain information? Why? 2. Consider this question posed to a top executive in a firm: Do you see any major instabilities or threats to the achievement of your departmentês objectives? Would a personal interview lead to a biased answer? 6.3 TELEPHONE INTERVIEW Telephone interview has become the primary method of commercial survey research in the last two decades. The quality of data obtained by telephone are comparable to personal interviews. Using the telephone to ask the respondents may encourage the respondents to provide detailed and reliable information on a variety of personal topics willingly. Telephone surveys can provide representative samples of the general population in most industrialised countries Types of Telephone Interviews There are two types of telephone interviews: (a) Central Location Interviewing Research agencies and interviewing services typically conduct all telephone interviews from a central location. Wide-Area Telecommunications Service (WATS) lines are purchased from a long-distance telephone service at fixed charges so that unlimited telephone calls can be made throughout the entire country or within a specific geographic area. Such central location interviewing allows firms to hire a staff of professional interviewers and to supervise and control the quality of interviewing more effectively. When telephone interviews are centralised and computerised, the research becomes even more cost-effective.

10 86 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA (b) Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing Advances in computer technology allow telephone interviews to be directly entered into a computer using an online computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) process. Telephone interviewers are seated at a computer terminal. A monitor displays the questionnaire, one question at a time, along with pre-coded possible responses to each question. The interviewer reads each question as it is shown on the screen. When the respondent answers, the interviewer enters the response into the computer and it is automatically stored into the computerês memory when the computer displays the next question on the screen. A computer-assisted telephone interview requires that answers to questionnaires be highly structured. For instance, if a respondent gives an answer that is not acceptable (not pre-coded and programmed), the computer will reject the answer. Computer-assisted telephone interviewing systems include telephone management systems that handle telephone number selection, perform automatic dialling and provide other labour-saving functions. One such system: automatically control sample selection, randomly generating names or fulfilling a sample quota. Another call management feature is automatic callback scheduling. The computer is programmed to time re-contact attempts (recall no-answers after two hours, recall busy numbers after ten minutes) and allow the interviewer to enter a time slot (a later day or another hour) when a busy respondent indicates that he can be interviewed. Still, another feature supplies daily status reports on the number of completed interviews relative to quotas (Zikmund, 2000) Advantages and Disadvantages of Telephone Interviews The advantages and disadvantages of telephone interviews when compared to personal interviews are viewed from the following aspects: (a) Speed In telephone interviewing, the speed of data collection is a major advantage. For example, union officials who wish to conduct a survey on membersê attitudes towards a strike may conduct a telephone survey during the last few days of the bargaining process. Rather than taking several weeks for data collection by mail or personal interviews, hundreds of telephone interviews can be conducted overnight. When the interviewer enters the residentsê answers directly into a computerised system, the rate of data processing escalates.

11 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 87 (b) (c) (d) (e) Cost As the cost of personal interviews continues to increase, telephone interviews are becoming relatively inexpensive. Telephone interviews cost approximately 40 percent less than the cost of personal interviews. Costs are further reduced, when travelling costs are eliminated and the interviews are centralised and computerised. Absence of Face-to-face Contact Telephone interviews are more impersonal than face-to-face interviews. Respondents are more willing to answer sensitive questions in a telephone interview rather than in a personal interview. There is some evidence that respondents are unlikely to share their income and other financial information even with telephone interviews due to security reasons. High refusal rates for this type of data occur in all forms of survey research. Although telephone calls can be less threatening, the absence of face-to-face contact can be harmful as well. The respondent cannot detect it the interviewer has completed the interview. If the respondent pauses to think, the interviewer may skip writing down the complete response and move on to another question. Hence, there is a greater tendency for incomplete answers in telephone interviews than in personal interviews. Cooperation In some neighbourhoods, people are reluctant to allow a stranger to come even to the doorstep. The same individual, however, may be willing to cooperate in a telephone survey. Likewise, interviewers can be reluctant to conduct face-to-face interviews in certain neighbourhoods, especially during evening hours. Some individuals will refuse to participate and the researcher should be aware of potential non-response bias. The likelihood of an unanswered call and not-at-home respondent varies by the time of day, the day of the week and the month of the year. Callbacks Situations like an unanswered call, a busy signal or a respondent who is not at home require a callback. Telephone callbacks are less expensive than personal interview callbacks. Houses with telephone answering machines are more common nowadays. Although their effect has not been studied extensively, it is clear that many individuals will not return a call to help someone conducting a survey. Some researchers argue that leaving a proper message on an answering machine will produce return calls. The message left on the machine should explicitly state that the purpose of the call is not sales-related. Others believe no message should be left on the machine because respondents can be reached eventually if the researcher calls back. Many people do not allow their answering machines to record

12 88 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 100 percent of their calls. If enough callbacks are made at different times many respondents can be reachable through the telephone. (f) (g) (h) Representative Samples When the study group consists of the general population, researchers may face difficulties in obtaining a representative sample based on listings in the telephone directory. In most developed countries, the majority of the households have telephone connections. The poor and those in rural areas may be a minor segment of the market but unlisted phone numbers and new numbers not printed in the directory are a greater problem. Unlisted numbers fall into two groups: those unlisted because of mobility and those unlisted by choice. Lack of Visual Medium Since visual aids cannot be utilised in telephone interviews, a research that requires visual material cannot be conducted by phone. Certain attitude scales and measuring instruments, such as the semantic differential, cannot be used easily because a graphic scale is needed. Limited Duration One major disadvantage of the telephone interview is the length of the interview is limited. Respondents who feel they have spent too much time in the interview will simply hang up. Refusal to cooperate with interviews is directly related to interview length. A major study on survey research found that for interviews of 5 minutes or less, the refusal rate was 21 percent. For interviews of 612 minutes, the refusal rate was 41 percent. For interviews of 13 minutes or more, the refusal rate was more than 47 percent. A thirty minutes frame is the maximum time most respondents will spend, unless they are interested in the survey subject. (In unusual cases, a few interested respondents may put up with longer interviews.) A good rule of thumb is to plan telephone interviews for a ten-minute period long (Struebbe, 1986). ACTIVITY 6.2 Do you think that the interviewers can get accurate information from telephone interviews? What if the respondents give biased answers? How can the interviewers be certain?

13 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 89 SELF-CHECK 6.3 What are the major advantages and disadvantages of the telephone interview method? 6.4 SELF-ADMINISTERED SURVEY A self-administered questionnaire such as a mail questionnaire is filled in by the respondent rather than an interviewer. Business researchers distribute questionnaires to respondents in many ways. They insert questionnaires in packages and magazines. They may distribute questionnaires at points of purchase or in high-traffic locations. Questionnaires can also be distributed via fax machines. These fax surveys eliminate the senderês printing and postage costs and are delivered and/or returned faster than traditional mail surveys. Of course, most households do not have fax machines. However, when the sample consists of organisations that are likely to have fax machines, the sample coverage may be adequate. Questionnaires are usually printed on paper but they can be programmed into computers and distributed via or on the Internet. No matter how a selfadministered questionnaire is distributed to the members of the sample, it is different from interviews because the respondent takes responsibility for reading and answering the questions. Self-administered questionnaires present a challenge to the business researcher because they rely on the efficiency of the written word rather than the interviewer. The nature of self-administered questionnaires is best illustrated by the mail questionnaires. ACTIVITY 6.3 Suggest a good approach to attract a respondent to do a selfadministered survey. Why do you think it is good?

14 90 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA Types of Self-administered Surveys Below are the types of self-administered surveys: (a) Mail Survey A mail survey is a self-administered questionnaire sent to respondents through the mail. This method presents several advantages and disadvantages. (i) Geographical Flexibility Mail questionnaires can reach a geographically dispersed sample at the same time and incur a relatively low cost because interviewers are not required. Respondents in isolated areas (like farmers) or those who are otherwise difficult to reach (like executives) can be easily contacted by mail. Self-administered survey questionnaires can be widely distributed to a large number of employees, allowing the diagnose of organisation problems to be accomplished quickly at a low cost. Questionnaires can be administered during group meetings. An hour long period may be scheduled during the working day so that employees can complete a self-administered questionnaire. These meetings generally allow the researcher to provide basic instructions to a large group (generally fewer than 50 people) and to minimise data collection time. They also give the researcher the opportunity to debriefê subjects without spending a great deal of time and effort. (ii) Cost and Time Mail questionnaires are relatively low in cost compared to personal interviews and telephone surveys. However, mail surveys are not cheap. Most include a follow-up mailing, which requires additional postage and printing of questionnaires. Questionnaires of poor quality have a greater likelihood of being thrown in the wastebasket than a more expensive, higher quality questionnaires. If research results are needed in a short time frame or if attitudes are rapidly changing (towards a political event), mail surveys may not be the best communication medium. Usually, a time frame of about two to three weeks is given in order to receive the majority of the responses. Follow-up mailings, which are usually sent when returns begin to trickle in, require an additional two or three weeks. The time between the first mailing and the cut-off date (when questionnaires will no longer be accepted) is usually six to eight weeks.

15 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 91 (iii) Respondent Convenience When respondents receive self-administered questionnaires, they can fill up the questionnaires whenever they have the time. Thus, there is a better chance that respondents will take time to think about their replies. In some situations, particularly in organisational research, mail questionnaires allow respondents to collect facts (such as records of absenteeism) that they may not recall accurately. Checking information by verifying records (e.g. consulting with family members) should provide more valid, factual information than either personal or telephone interviews. Furthermore, with the absence of the interviewer, the respondent may incline to reveal sensitive information. On the other hand, the respondent will not have the opportunity to ask the interviewer questions. Problems or misunderstandings will remain in a mail survey. Unlike face-to-face interview, probing cannot be done to get additional information or clarification of an answer. (iv) Length of Mail Questionnaire and Response Rates Mail questionnaires vary considerably in length, ranging from short questionnaires in postcards to multi-paged booklets requiring respondents to fill in thousands of answers. As previously mentioned, a general rule of thumb for a mail questionnaire is it should not exceed six pages. When a questionnaire requires a respondent to put in more effort, an incentive should be given to motivate the respondent to return the questionnaire. A poorly designed survey will probably have a 15 percent response rate. A major limitation of mail questionnaires relate to response problems. Respondents who answer the questionnaire may not represent all people in the sample. Individuals with a special interest in the topic are more likely to respond to a mail survey. A researcher has no assurance that the intended subject will fill out the questionnaire. When corporate executives, physicians and other professionals are the respondents, problems may arise if the wrong person answers the questions. (A subordinate may be given the mail questionnaire to complete). (b) Surveys Questionnaires are now being distributed electronically via electronic mail ( ). is a relatively new method of communication, however, there are still so many individuals who have no access to it yet. Yet, certain circumstances allow for surveys, such as internal employee surveys

16 92 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA or surveys of retail buyers who regularly deal with the organisation via e- mail. The benefits of this method include cheaper distribution and processing fees, faster turnaround time, more flexibility, and less paper chasing. (c) Internet Surveys A typical Internet survey appears when a computer user intentionally navigates a particular website. Questions are displayed on the website. The respondent typically provides an answer by highlighting an answer or by clicking an icon. In some instances, the visitor cannot venture beyond the survey page without providing information for the organisationês registration questionnaire. When cooperation is voluntary, response rates are low and participants tend to be more deeply involved with the subject of the research than the average person. SELF-CHECK A self-administered survey can be done either by postal delivery or personal interview methods. In what circumstances would you choose to use the latter? 2. What can a researcher do to ensure that the questionnaire used will reduce errors in the data collected? 6.5 TYPES AND USES OF SECONDARY DATA Secondary data include both raw and published summaries and can include both quantitative and qualitative data. They are used in descriptive and explanatory research. The secondary data may be raw data, where there has been little or no processing at all, or it can be compiled data that has been processed or selected and summarised. Secondary data is mostly used in business and management case studies Documentary Secondary Data This type of secondary data is used with primary data collection methods or with other secondary data and is often used in historical research. If the researcher uses secondary data exclusively, then it is called archival research. However historical research may also use recent data as well as historical data.

17 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 93 Documentary data may include written and non-written documents. Written documents include notices, correspondence, minutes of meetings, reports to shareholders, diaries, transcripts of speeches and administrative and public records. Other examples include books, journal and magazine articles and newspapers. Written documents can be used as a storage medium and to provide qualitative data. They can also be used to generate statistical measures such as profitability from company records. Non-written documents may include tape and video recordings, pictures, drawings, film and television programmes. Recent forms of non-written documents are digital versatile disks (DVD) and CD-ROMs. Data from these sources can be analysed both quantitatively and qualitatively Types of Documents Various types of documents can be used as sources of data: (a) (b) (c) Personal Documents Personal documents such as diaries, letters, notebooks and personal files in computers can be used as a primary source of data. Personal documents can be used to trace history or events that happened in the past as well as the opinions and feelings of individuals. Public Documents Public documents are good sources of data. A great deal of information can be obtained from public documents such as government reports, economic growth of a sector, official statistics on manufacturing growth, investor records, etc. Public documents not only provide a large amount of quantitative data but also a potential source of a lot of textual material. Internal Documents Internal documents are available from most organisations. Some of the internal documents are widely available in public such as a companyês annual reports, press releases, catalogues and product brochures, advertisements and other information on the company website. Other internal documents that are not publicly available are minutes of meetings, newsletters, companyês notice board, memos, letters, working procedures, technical drawings, production and maintenance schedules, quality reports, and inventory records. Internal documents can be used to describe the company performance and to analyse its performance, strength and weaknesses. However, the most difficult part of data collection is to get access to the company.

18 94 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA (d) (e) Mass Media Mass media source of data can be categorised as newspapers, magazines, radio broadcasting, television programmes, films and banners. Using mass media as a source of data, credibility and authenticity is frequently an issue of debate. This is mainly because the evidence is usually an issue. Articles written in the newspaper or magazine are usually unclear, biased and without proper justification. Researchers have to make sure that they always follow the proper scientific process in doing research. Internet The Internet is a rapidly growing source of information. More people are getting access to the Internet today and are using it as a quick reference. However, like mass media, information from the Internet can be questionable. The authenticity and credibility of the Internet source is an issue. This is mainly because anyone could put up anything on the Internet Survey-based Secondary Data These are data collected by questionnaires that have been analysed for their original purpose. The data may be compiled in the form of data tables or as a computer-readable matrix of raw data. Survey-based secondary data may be obtained by census, regular surveys or ad-hoc surveys. The government usually carries out censuses where participation is obligatory. The purpose is to collect data on the population to meet the needs of government departments and local departments. The data collection is usually well-defined, well-documented and of high quality. Individual researchers and organisations can access these data for their own researches. Regular surveys are those undertaken repeatedly over time or at regular intervals by various organisations. They may be used for comparative purposes, monitoring purposes or general purposes by public organisations, nongovernmental organisations or private firms. The data may have gone through detailed analyses and the results of the surveys may be kept in many different forms. Data collected by certain private firms or organisations may not be accessible to individual researchers if the information produced from the surveys is sensitive in nature. If secondary survey data is available in sufficient detail, it can be used to answer research questions and meet the objectives of the studies. In many cases, the data may need to be rechecked because results from some of the survey-based secondary data take at least a couple of years to be published.

19 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 95 Ad-hoc surveys are usually one-off surveys and undertaken for specific purposes. Organisations, government and independent researchers may carry out the surveys on an ad-hoc basis. To get the relevant data requires substantive search because of the nature of the ad-hoc surveys. The data from ad-hoc surveys may be kept in aggregate form, thus the data may have to be reanalysed Multiple Source Secondary Data This data is obtained from documents, surveys or from a combination of both. Data from various sets are combined to form another data set before the researcher uses it. The way the data is compiled in the multiple source set will dictate the kinds of objectives or research questions that can be established. For instance, time series data is compiled from surveys that are carried out over a period of time, thus the kind of study that can be done using the compiled data is the longitudinal study. Secondary data from different sources can also be combined from different geographical areas to form area-based data sets (Hakim, 2000) Triangulation Triangulation entails using multiple source of data to study the same phenomena. The concept is similar to the concept in physical science whereby multiple reference points are used to locate an objectês exact location. The concept has been adopted in research whereby more than one data collection method would be employed in order to increase confidence about the findings. Triangulation can be used in either quantitative or qualitative research. Furthermore, combining quantitative and qualitative methodologies in one research study is actually a way to triangulate the research findings. ACTIVITY What is secondary data? 2. What is the purpose of collecting secondary data? 3. Give three examples of different situations where secondary data might be used.

20 96 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 6.6 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF USING SECONDARY DATA There are a few advantages and disadvantages of using secondary data in a research study. Table 6.1 shows these advantages and disadvantages. (a) Table 6.1: Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Secondary Data Advantages Have fewer resource requirements Save cost and time Less expensive (b) Unobtrusive Quickly obtained and of higher quality. (c) Feasible longitudinal study Compiled and recorded data is used using comparable methods on regional and international bases. (d) Comparative and contextual data Collected data is compared with secondary data to determine the representativeness of the population (e) (f) Unforeseen discoveries May lead to unexpected new discoveries. Permanence of data Permanent and available data can be easily checked by other researchers and is open to public scrutiny. Secondary Data Disadvantages (a) Does not meet the purpose of study Data collected may differ, be inappropriate or irrelevant for the present study (outdated). (b) Difficult or costly access Data mining for commercial purposes uses a lot of time and money. (c) Unsuitable aggregations and definitions Aggregation and inappropriate definition of data cause difficulties in combining different data sets. (d) No real control over data quality Data sets are not always of higher quality. Predispositions, culture and ideals of original collector influences the nature of the data. Consider the following examples that indicate the weaknesses or disadvantages of using secondary data: (a) A researcher interested in small farm tractors finds that the secondary data on the subject is broader, less pertinent in category and encompasses all agricultural tractors. Moreover, the data was collected five years ago.

21 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 97 (b) (c) (d) An investigator wishing to study those who make more than RM100,000 per year finds the top-end category in a secondary study reported at RM75,000 or more per year. A researcher who wants to compare the dividends of several industrial steel manufacturers finds that the units of measure differ due to stock splits. The Daily Gold Index reports the stock market indicator series. This secondary data source reflects the prices of 50 non-randomly selected blue chip stocks. This data is readily available and inexpensive, thus the source of information may not suit the needs of individuals concerned with the typical companies listed on the KLSE. ACTIVITY Come up with another two advantages and disadvantages of using secondary data. 2. Sometimes, secondary data is the only kind of data that can be used in research. Give some examples of management research questions for which secondary data sources are probably the only ones feasible. 6.7 SOURCES OF SECONDARY DATA There are two sources of secondary data: (a) Internal Sources There is an endless list of potential sources for secondary data. Internal sources may be a good start for the researcher to begin searching secondary data. Internal sources refer to data previously collected by or for the organisation itself. The data are compiled in the form of previous primary data collection as well as routine record inventories. Other useful internal sources can be found in employee annual evaluation reports, salesperson itineraries, sales invoices, company financial reports and records, customer complaints, billing records, bank ledgers and previous strategic planning documents.

22 98 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA (b) External Sources After the potential sources of internal secondary data are looked through, the researcher must consider the external data sources. Countless volumes of secondary data are available from both non-profit and profit organisations. With advanced technologies for data searching, these sources can be easily accessed and searched with an electronic search engine. The key to a successful computer search is using useful key words in a search engine. Most libraries have access to several search engines that can identify potentially relevant research studies and/or data. Individuals and private companies may also subscribe to an online database vendor for a fee. Some provide access to print articles from trade periodicals, academic journals and general business magazines. Others provide access primarily to statistical data. Secondary data is abundant online. All one needs is a good search engine and a little imagination. Many libraries have access to many search engines that charge a fee to use them. Table 6.2 shows a few examples. Table 6.2: Examples of Online Sources of Secondary Data Sources Ministry of Agriculture Department of Statistics, Malaysia Bank Negara Malaysia Malaysia Industry, Investment, Trade and Productivity (MITI) Summary of Annual Fisheries Statistics Tourism Malaysia Department of Civil Aviation Malaysia Malaysian Key Economic Indicators Websites of National Statistical Offices and other national bodies dealing with statistics Department Of Statistics, Ministry of International Trade Yale University: Economic Growth Centre Collection Malaysia Addresses ml agrolink.moa.my/dof/statdof.html tistics/statistics.asp jpbpo@stats.gov.my, hadi@stats.gov.my html

23 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 99 Economic statistics agencies listed by country, economic indicators, statistical agencies, foreign data and economic data Colombia National Administrative, Department of Statistics (DANE), Macau Census and Statistics Department Malaysia Malaysian Economy Indicators and Statistics. Malaysia: Economic Plans... Washington Post. Malaysia: Indicators and Statistics MalaysiaÊs most comprehensive centre for research resources. An excellent research starting point for serious researchers, students and academicians doing research on Malaysia. Research Department, Government Department, Matrade Search Malaysia Directory Malaysia, WWW Directory Altavista Central index of economics institutions (academic, governmental and nonprofit) in Malaysia. (Malaysia Agricultural Bank) Economic Planning Unit. Inland Revenue Board. Jabatan Perangkaan (Department of Statistics, University Kebangsaan Malaysia members.tripod.com/pugahome/diario. htm irb11.tripod.com/irbhome ideas.uqam.ca/edirc/malaysia.html SELF-CHECK 6.5 What are the differences between internal sources and external sources? ACTIVITY 6.6 Suppose you are interested in a statistical overview of aquaculture (fish farming) as part of an environmental analysis for a prospective entrepreneurial business venture. How would you search for information?

24 100 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA SELF-CHECK 6.6 Tick True or False for each statement below: No. Question True False 1. Secondary data are data collected for some other purposes and reanalysed for the present purpose. 2. A major disadvantage of secondary data is that the information often does not fit the researcher Ês needs. 3. To forecast sales by constructing models based on past sales figures is an example of use of secondary data. 4. The use of secondary data as the sole source of information has the drawback of becoming obsolete. 5. Secondary data is only available from external sources of the organisation. 6. A disadvantage of the secondary data over the primary data is that the process of getting the data is usually more expensive. 7. Even if the definitions of variables being studied are not the same, research can be modified according to the secondary data available. Interviews and self-administered questionnaires are used to collect survey data. Interviews can be categorised based on the medium used to communicate with respondents, such as door-to-door, mall intercept or telephone interviews. Traditionally, interviews have been printed on paper but survey researchers are increasingly using computers.

25 TOPIC 6 SURVEY METHOD AND SECONDARY DATA 101 Personal interviews give researchers a flexible survey method in which they can use visual aids and various kinds of props. Door-to-door personal interviews get high response rates but they are also more costly to administer than the other forms of surveys. The presence of an interviewer may influence subjectsê responses. Obtaining a sample that is representative of the entire country is not a primary consideration, mall intercept interviews may be conducted at lower costs. Telephone interviewing has the advantages of speed in data collection and lower cost per interview. However, not all households have telephones and not all telephone numbers are listed in directories; this causes problems in obtaining a representative sampling frame. Absence of face-to-face contact and inability to use visual materials are other limitations of telephone interviewing. The self-administered questionnaire has most frequently been delivered by mail. However, these may be delivered personally, administered at a central location, sent by or administered via computer. Mail questionnaires are generally less expensive than telephone or personal interviews; however, there is a much larger chance of low response with mail questionnaires. Several methods can encourage a higher response rate. Mail questionnaires must be more structured than other types of surveys and cannot be changed if problems are discovered in the course of data collection. Questionnaires are now distributed electronically via , fax machine and by sending computer disks by mail. Surveys are also conducted using the Internet and interactive kiosks. These are relatively new methods of communication and many individuals cannot be accessed by these media. Pre-testing a questionnaire on a small sample of respondents is a useful way to discover problems while they still can be corrected.