Page 126 - DMGT404 RESEARCH_METHODOLOGY

Research Methodology

Notes Complex Questions?

In which of the following do you like to park your liquid funds?
i. Debenture
ii. Preferential share
iii. Equity linked MF

iv. IPO
v. Fixed deposit
If this question is posed to the general public, they may not know the meaning of liquid fund.
Most of the respondents will guess and tick one of them.
Are the Questions Too Long? Generally as a thumb rule, it is advisable to keep the number of
words in a question not exceeding 20. The question given below is too long for the respondent
to comprehend, leave alone answer.

Example: Do you accept that the people whom you know, and associate yourself have been
receiving ESI and P.F. benefits from the government accept a reduction in those benefits, with a
view to cut down government expenditure, to provide more resources for infrastructural
development?
Yes................... No................... Can't say...................

Participation at the Expense of Accuracy

Sometimes the respondent may not have the information that is needed by the researcher.

Example: The husband is asked a question "How much does your family spend on
groceries in a week"? Unless the respondent does the grocery shopping himself, he will not
know how much has been spent. In a situation like this, it will be helpful to ask a 'filtered
question'. An example of a filtered question can be, "Who buys the groceries in your family"?

Example: "Do you have the information of Mr. Ben's visit to Bangalore"? Not only
should the individual have the information but also s(he) should remember the same. The
inability to remember the information is known as "recall loss".

Task Give one example for each of the following type of the questions:

1. Leading question
2. Double-barreled question
3. Close-ended question
4. Fixed alternative question

5. Split-ballot question

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