Page 189 - DMGT209_QUANTITATIVE_TECHNIQUES_II

Quantitative Techniques-II

Notes
Examples:
1. A respondent indicated that he doesn’t drink coffee, but when questioned about his
favourite brand, he replied “Bru”.
2. A rating scale given to a respondent states Semantic Differential Scale with 10 items.
The respondent has ticked “strongly agree” to the 10 items.
3. “What is the most expensive purchase you have made in the last one year?” is the
question. Two respondents answer (1) LCD TV and (2) Trip to USA.
In example-1 above, there is inconsistency. There are two possibilities which an editor
need to consider. (1) Was the respondent lying? (2) Did the interviewer record wrongly?
The editor has to look into the answers to other questions on beverages, and interpret the
right answer.
In example-2 above, it is to be remembered that Semantic Differential scale consists of
items which has alternately positive and negative connotations. If a respondent has marked
both positive and negative as ‘agreed’, the only conclusion the editor can draw is that the
respondent filled the questionnaire without knowledge. The editor will have to discard
this questionnaire, since there are no alternatives.
In example-3 above, both the respondents have answered correctly. The frame of reference
is different. The main problem is, one of them is a product, whereas the other is a service.
While coding the data, the two answers should be put under two different categories.
Answers to open-ended questions pose great difficulty in editing.

Coding

Coding refers to those activities which helps in transforming edited questionnaires into a form
that is ready for analysis. Coding speeds up the tabulation while editing eliminates errors.
Coding involves assigning numbers or other symbols to answers so that the responses can be
grouped into limited number of classes or categories.

Example: 1 is used for male and 2 for female.
Some guidelines to be followed in coding which is as follows:

1. Establishment of appropriate category.
2. Mutual exclusivity.
3. Single Dimension.

1. Establishment of appropriate category:

Example: Suppose the researcher is analysing the “inconvenience” that a car owner is
facing with his present model. Therefore, the factor chosen for coding may be “inconvenience”.
Under this there could be 4 types (1) Inconvenience in entering the backseat (2) Inconvenience
due to insufficient legroom (3) Inconvenience with respect to the interior (4) Inconvenience in
door locking, and opening the dickey. Now the researcher may classify these four answers
based on internal inconvenience and other inconveniences referring to the exterior. Each is
assigned a different number for the purpose of codification.
2. Mutually exclusive: This is important because the answer given by the respondent should
be placed under one category. Example: Occupation of an individual may be responded to
as (1) Professional (2) Sales (3) Executive (4) Manager etc.

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