Chapter 1 Introduction

This chapter introduces the book and describes in more detail some of the tools that the book features. Chapter 2 provides an overview of errors in surveying, and gives some practical examples of how to prevent them. Chapter 3 touches on sampling methods in programs and evaluations, with a case study example provided. Chapter 4

1.1 What is a survey?

Survey researchers sometimes distinguish survey research from the survey instrument itself. Pinsonneault and Kraemer (1993) identify the difference between to be that the survey instrument is the data collection tool itself, whereas survey research is the broader overall approach of “quantitatively describing aspects of a given population” which includes the entire survey process such as the survey design, analysis, and representation of results Glasow (2005). Likewise, in their 6-part series written between 2001 and 2003, Software Engineers Shari Pfleeger and Barbara Kitchenham make the clear distinction that a survey is more than the instrument itself, it is “a comprehensive system for collecting information to describe, compare or explain knowledge, attitudes and behaviour” Pfleeger and Kitchenham (2001).

Floyd Fowler Jr., defines two fundamental premises about the surveys: First, that the survey process is “that by describing the sample of people who actually respond, one can describe the target population” and second, “that the answers people give can be used to accurately describe characteristics of the respondents” (Fowler 2014).

In this light, I understand a survey to be more than the instrument itself. A survey is the entire process itself, from survey design to analysis to presenting findings.

1.1.1 Survey Components

Some researchers see a research as being a process consisting of several steps in order to be successful or effective. For example, Pfleeger and Kitchenham (2001) identify 10 steps in the surveying process:
1. Setting specific, measurable objectives
2. Planning and scheduling the survey
3. Ensuring that appropriate resources are available
4. Designing the survey
5. Preparing the data collection instrument
6. Validating the instrument
7. Selecting participants
8. Administering and scoring the instrument
9. Analyzing the data
10. Reporting the results.

(???) similarly defines four steps in the survey process: survey design (sample selection, sample size, survey instrument selection), survey instrument development, survey execution, and data analysis and reporting survey results.

Groves (2009) depart from the idea that “if step-by-step instructions were followed, high quality would be guaranteed” and instead see surveys as “requiring the implementation of principles in unique ways to fit a particular substantive purpose for a particular target population” (Groves 2009, 17).

Fowler (2014) identifies three methodologies within the survey itself: sampling, question design, interviewing (when applicable), and the mode of data collection, which when combined with the decision-making necessary in each component, comprise what he calls total survey design.

1.2 Prerequisite tools used and skills required

To make the most of this book, it’s recommended that you have a working knowledge of the R programming language, and have some experience with digital surveying instruments such as SurveyMonkey or Limesurvey. That being said, there is much to be gained from the book even if you don’t use any of these tools in your work.

1.3 Intended Audience

References

Fowler, Floyd. 2014. “Types of Errors in Surveys.” In Survey Research Methods, edited by Floyd Fowler, 4th ed., 11–17. Sage Publications. https://methods.sagepub.com/book/survey-research-methods.

Glasow, Priscilla A. 2005. Fundamentals of Survey Researchmethodology. Mitre Washington C3 Center.

Groves, Fowler, R. M. 2009. Survey Methodology. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley.

Pfleeger, Shari Lawrence, and Barbara A. Kitchenham. 2001. “Principles of Survey Research: Part 1: Turning Lemons into Lemonade.” SIGSOFT Softw. Eng. Notes 26 (6): 16–18. https://doi.org/10.1145/505532.505535.