A variety of questionnaires are the most common methods of obtaining initial information in a particular direction. The main types of survey are characterized by the efficiency of obtaining results, profitability, simplicity. These parameters made such studies popular among politicians, entrepreneurs, and school teachers. To obtain reliable results of the survey, the types of questions in the survey are selected taking into account the age of the respondents and their level of education.
Forms of
Depending on the functions assigned to the survey, it can be carried out in two versions:
Features of a sociological survey
A sociological survey is a variant of primary sociological information. Its main types are based on an indirect or direct relationship between the respondent and the researcher. The purpose of this relationship will be to obtain specific data from the respondent in the form of answers to the questions posed.
The essence of the method consists in communicating directly or indirectly through a questionnaire with a group of people (respondents). Almost all types of sociological surveys suggest a question-answer dialogue. The specificity of such communication lies in the fact that it should not only clearly correspond to the algorithm, but also take into account that ordinary people will answer as participants, answering questions using their everyday experience. Types of sociological survey are selected depending on the objectives of the study, requirements for the reliability and reliability of the information being studied, and organizational and economic opportunities.
The Importance of Sociological Research
Such a survey plays a special role in a variety of case studies. Its main purpose is to obtain sociological information about the state of collective, personal, public opinion, as well as facts, assessments, events directly related to the activities of respondents. Scientists are convinced that almost 90 percent of important empirical information comes from sociological research. Various types of surveys are recognized as the leading method of conducting research on people's consciousness. They are especially important for the analysis of social processes, as well as those phenomena that are inaccessible with simple observation.
Classification of contacts with respondents
Currently, it is customary to subdivide survey types into several main groups:
- personal conversations (face-to-face polls);
- Housing (held at the place of direct residence of the respondents);
- street (spend on the streets, in shopping centers);
- option with a central location (hall-test).
Remote polls
They involve receiving information remotely. There is a certain classification of survey data:
- Online polls
- telephone conversations;
- self-filling questionnaire forms.
Let us analyze the features of remote forms: telephone conversation and Internet survey.
Telephone survey
Such types of surveys are indispensable in situations where installation research is carried out. Also, similar options are used for territories significantly remote from each other. How is telephone research done? First, you will need to create the maximum possible base of telephone numbers of candidates for respondents. Then, randomly from the created telephone base select several numbers that will become direct participants in this study.
The advantages of this survey option:
- speed of execution;
- low research costs;
- use in the survey is quite large in area;
- the possibility of involving different groups of respondents in research;
- absence of problems with the quality control of the work of interviewers.
Among the main disadvantages of telephone research, we note significant limitations on the duration of the interview. In addition, such an option is not always possible, since in many settlements of Russia there are problems with telephone lines. If we analyze the modern types of surveys, then the telephone option will be the most efficient. It makes it possible to elicit the opinion of different population groups on all issues. There is a subdivision of such survey options by the type of respondents used: interviews with legal entities, interviews with individuals.
In a telephone interview, certain stages are distinguished:
- questionnaire development;
- creating a sample.
Depending on the purpose of the study, the sample may be targeted when subscribers are selected according to certain criteria: age, position held. Such types of polls are carried out by trained interviewers in advance. They listen to the answers of the subscriber, enter them in a special electronic or printed form. Next, the processing of questionnaires, the creation of tables, the construction of graphs and charts. Experts conduct analytical processing of the received data, provide the customer with a report. In it, all the answers of the respondents are distributed in certain groups, the tables are accompanied by the main conclusions. Telephone surveys will be effective in those settlements in which more than 75 percent of the population is telephoned. Otherwise, it will be difficult to talk about the reliability of the information that will be obtained as a result of the survey.
Why do telephone surveys
These types of questionnaires are intended to identify the attitude of the population to certain brands, goods, companies. A telephone survey provides an opportunity to quickly receive information on how the market and consumers react to the actions of competitive companies. Such a study guarantees, without significant financial costs, to perform market analysis before, as well as after the completion of promotions, to identify the effectiveness of the measures taken.
Based on the results of the telephone questionnaire, it is impossible to collect in-depth material, since there are restrictions on the degree of complexity of the questions and the time of the conversation. Such a study is not suitable for studying the company's revenues, analysis of the work of the management team.
Online survey
We analyze the different types of online surveys that allow you to collect sociological information on specific facts and events online.
Given the multimillion-dollar army of Internet users, this research option is quite effective and gives good results. As the main advantages of such a survey, we note its efficiency. This testing also has its drawbacks, which should also be mentioned. The results are affected by the attendance of those sites on the basis of which the survey is conducted. It is difficult for developers to control the actions of the respondent, so the results are very doubtful.
By the end of the last century, the World Wide Web has been used by many sociologists to carry out serious research on topical issues. Information can be obtained from all countries of the world and even from different continents. Thanks to Internet technologies, the collection of initial information is accelerated to conduct research on various social processes. IT allows conducting expert surveys, personal interviews, and virtual focus groups. In our country, opinion polls conducted over the Internet are still considered a rare occurrence. In European countries, such surveys are carried out much more often, replacing them with an oral survey. The types of oral interviews used in a regular interview do not allow obtaining the desired results in a short period of time. Network research has certain advantages over traditional forms.
Benefits of Online Surveys
Such studies provide an opportunity to save material and human resources, as well as time, obtaining high quality data. The decisive factor is precisely the saving of resources in the implementation of Internet surveys. Traditional forms do not attract respondents, since they have to break away from current activities. If the questionnaire is presented on several pages, not all people have the patience to read it to the end. The minus of the paper questionnaire is that it does not allow the respondent to evaluate the intermediate results of testing.
Online tests provide individual feedback after the completion of the survey, encouraging the respondent to systematically participate in such surveys. Surveyed users of the Web are forming a positive attitude towards such studies, and there is a desire to attract friends and colleagues to them. Scientists also highlight the environmental validity of online surveys. When interviewing a person is in the usual comfortable conditions for him. You can take the survey at any convenient time, so the respondents do not have a desire to quickly get rid of the questionnaire. The methodology of this study involves visual direct contact between the respondent and the sociologist. As a result, a communicative situation is created in which there is no psychological discomfort. The absence of coercion, constraint, awkwardness, nervousness, characteristic of the classical survey, guarantees frank and complete answers to the questions proposed in the questionnaires.
Problems associated with the use of alcohol, drugs, suicide, it is difficult to identify the usual polls, as many see this as an attempt to invade privacy. Traditional methods do not guarantee the anonymity of respondents, therefore, the Internet copes with the problem of openness. Unlike paper interviews, electronic surveys have detailed and detailed answers. This technique opens up new horizons for empirical sociology. There are certain technical and methodological problems in the use of Internet questionnaires.
First of all, it should be noted the limited number of people with free access to the Internet. In addition, the types of survey questionnaires have a certain scope and are not suitable for global research. Among the technical problems, we note the limitations of the proposed answer options. When the respondent enters his own version, it is difficult to process the results of the survey. There are problems with the software, possibly a significant distortion of the results. Some respondents respond to the same questionnaire several times, especially if the questionnaire involves material compensation. As a result, the objectivity of the results is reduced, we can not talk about their reliability.
Comparison of telephone questionnaire and Internet survey
Comparing these types, methods of polling, sociologists give preference to Internet technologies. Telephone interviews are often accompanied by rejection by potential respondents. About 10-15 percent agrees to take part in research, the rest of the people just hang up. There is no interest in polls, as the people interviewed have no material interest. The Internet questionnaire faces technical problems; it is not accessible to villages remote from communications.
School polls
The most common types of interviews in the lesson: frontal, individual. Let us analyze the distinctive features of each variant of testing theoretical knowledge and practical skills of students used by teachers of educational institutions. Frontal polling is suitable for quick verification of homework. For example, a teacher can ask children questions, including the whole class in their work. Such types of interviews in the lesson allow the teacher to assess the students' knowledge and practical skills acquired over a short period of time.
For the lessons of chemistry and physics, thematic dictations are suitable. The teacher offers questions, the answers to which are formulas or units of measurement of physical (chemical) quantities. A dictation test can also be carried out frontally, calling to the board “in the chain” of each student in the class. Such a survey will take a matter of minutes, while allowing you to evaluate almost all students in the class. Teachers of humanitarian disciplines (history, social studies, the Russian language, literature) prefer individual surveys. Of course, questionnaires are used in their work not only by teachers, but also by the students themselves. Engaged in extracurricular activities, working on their own research, project, the guys use different types of interviews, types of interviews. First, the teacher explains to the child the specifics of the survey, and only after that the young sociologist begins his own research.
Among the nuances that are important to pay attention to when preparing for sociological surveys, one can single out their complete anonymity. For example, a child through a survey finds out which shampoos his classmates, teachers, parents prefer to buy. Further, the young scientist conducts his own research in a chemical laboratory, armed with scientific methods, he finds out the effectiveness of this product. At the next stage of work, he compares the results of the survey with the results of the experiment, compares them.
In a modern school, surveys have become commonplace; not a single event is complete without them. For example, to assess the degree of comfort in the classroom, the psychologist suggests that the children answer the questionnaire. Then the processing of the results is carried out, the psychological state of the team is analyzed. When a teacher passes qualification tests, a survey of parents, students, and work colleagues is also provided. The results obtained are drawn up in the form of a graph or diagram, are applied to the expert opinion on the teacher's compliance with the declared category. Among the latest innovations used in the learning process, final tests for graduates of primary and secondary schools, offered in the form of tests, can be noted.
Conclusion
Currently, in all spheres of human activity, various types of polling methods are used: telephone interviews, Internet polls, frontal conversations. Depending on the purpose, the optimal form, type, and duration of the survey are selected. The synthesis of interviewing and questionnaires is a telephone survey. It is mainly used during advertising and election campaigns. Surveys are used by science to solve practical problems. Statisticians have long been using similar methods to collect information on labor resources, structure, family expenses.
Journalists use a similar technique to determine the rating of programs and publications. Television journalists do not select respondents according to certain criteria, so the research results are significantly distorted. Teachers use a survey of pupils as an option to control acquired knowledge, to check homework. Doctors interview primary patients, finding out information about existing diseases. Asked questions should take into account the psychological characteristics of the respondents, the situation prevailing before the conversation. Thinking through the survey, the sociologist chooses one of the options: questionnaire or interview. Given that the interview can be individual and group, its form is pre-selected.
A common form of questioning is the distribution of questionnaires to respondents. You can conduct a similar survey at the place of residence, the work of respondents. Thus, an assessment of the quality and efficiency of the work of the public utilities involves surveys of residents. The questionnaire implies a specific set of questions, each of which reflects certain research objectives. The questionnaire has an introductory part, it contains an appeal to the respondent, explains the purpose and objectives of the survey, a brief description of the expected results, their benefits. The questionnaire should also indicate the degree of anonymity of the survey.
In order for the questionnaire to be complete, it must have detailed instructions for filling out, name, place and year of publication.
Full-fledged social and statistical diagnostics make it possible to obtain information about various social and economic transformations, the activities of municipal and state government bodies, and the impact of television and radio on young people.