Pilot Survey

I decided to pilot a survey using survey monkey, I think the benefits of conducting a survey is the sheer amount of people you can reach, this allows for a range of views on a topic which is important when conducting research.

I decided to use Survey Monkey to consider how I would source the survey to the right applicants. The question I found difficult was where to go to publish a survey requiring students participation, taking into account correct moral conduct. Posting my survey on Facebook did not increase the response either. I think gaining consent from a school is the most productive way in conducting a survey as face to face has more of an impact.

I found wording the survey questions difficult in the attempt to make them clear they became wordy essays. I chose to have short questions and multiple choice answers. Stephanie made a comment on my blog about including an open question. We both agreed that this often throws you; personally I think surveys should be quick multiple choice and interviews should be conducted to have open discussions on a subject. Although I felt it was important to allow the participant to define the word as it affected the way in which they answered the next question. It allowed me to analyse the data of the two questions, to see if there were any comparisons in the way the word was defined and the next question. Ideally I want to avoid open questions but sometimes it is necessary when considering analysing the data. I like the idea that ‘attitudes can...be ascertained by presenting a list of statements and asking respondents to rate them in terms of agreement and disagreement’ (black 1999, p.227) If I conduct an interview using this method, I will follow up with interviews to investigate further providing density to my research.

I think you have to take into consideration what you want to find out when planning a survey, as they are unlike interviews and observations where you can have topics or vague ideas. Surveys require more preparation before and I assume less when analysing as it is clearly shown in the gathering of data. Stephanie made a good point about including a financial question in her survey; I completed the survey not having questioned giving away such personal information as I could do so anonymously. This is something to consider when conducting a survey, had it been an interview situation I would have felt uncomfortable in sharing this information.

I consider surveys a significant inquiry tool as you are able to reach a wider audience, offering statements will be an effective way in gaining attitudes without making the survey full of open questions, insuring correct preparation and being clear on what I what to discover from the questions will aid in surveys being an effective research tool for my inquiry.