Deck 8: Methods of Collecting Primary Data

Question 1

Data is collected by means of one or more of the following: interviews, observation, and _____.

A) digital tracking
B) focus groups
C) projection techniques
D) scales
E) surveys

Answer 1

E

Question 2

The researcher is likely to collect narrative data through the use of focus groups, personal interviews, or by observing behavior or events if the study is _____.

A) exploratory
B) descriptive
C) causal
D) experimental
E) primary

Answer 2

A

Question 3

_____ data typically is obtained through large-scale surveys or by accessing existing electronic databases.

A) Exploratory
B) Qualitative
C) Quantitative
D) Subjective
E) Focus group

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Internet-based surveys alone now account for almost _____ of all data collection.

A) 14 percent
B) 44 percent
C) 56 percent
D) 60 percent
E) 75 percent

Question 5

Data collection approaches can be divided into two categories, which are _____.

A) observation and questionnaires
B) observation and interviews
C) qualitative and quantitative
D) primary and secondary
E) internal and external

Question 6

_____ data is collected by systematically recording observations of people, events, or objects.

A) Frequency
B) Causal
C) Secondary
D) Observational
E) Tracking

Question 7

A research study involved placing field researchers in cars in a restaurant parking lot every morning for a 4-week period to write down license plates of customers eating breakfast at the restaurant. The researcher wanted to learn how frequently regular customers eat at that restaurant. Which type of data is being collected?

A) causal
B) secondary
C) indirect
D) tracking
E) observational

Question 8

Observational data can be obtained by use of _____ observation.

A) human
B) mechanical
C) electronic
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 9

Which of the following statements is true regarding observational data collection?

A) An observational approach results only in narrative data.
B) Numerical data is typically collected in the form of written descriptions of behavior or behavior recorded on audio or videotape.
C) The most widespread use of collecting observational data is either through scanning of purchases at stores or over the Internet when companies observe an individual's click-through behavior.
D) An advantage of this approach is that characteristics such as attitudes and reasons for the behavior can be observed.
E) This approach violates the research participant's right to privacy.

Question 10

Ethnographic research and content analysis are two special forms of what type of data collection method?

A) surveys
B) panels
C) structured interviews
D) observational
E) experimental

Question 11

In this type of data collection, researchers generally prefer to interpret behavior through observation of actual life experiences. Researchers typically will spend long periods of time with a respondent and then write narratives that describe the respondent's behavior. This method is called _____

A) ethnographic research
B) content analysis
C) ethnosocial research
D) social interaction research
E) contextual research

Question 12

To really understand how consumers shop in stores, Bob, a market researcher, got a part-time job at a grocery store to observe first-hand how consumers shop. What type of researcher is Bob?

A) integrative researcher
B) ethnographic researcher
C) content analyst
D) contextual analyst
E) social interactive researcher

Question 13

_____obtains data by observing and analyzing the content or message of written text, such as reports, contracts, advertisements, letters, open-ended questions on surveys, and similar content.

A) Ethnographic research
B) Content analysis
C) Quantifying
D) Qualifying
E) Surveying

Question 14

Sam is analyzing the content of the written text in advertisements to get a better understanding of the general themes used in ads targeted to children. He is counting word or phrase frequencies. Sam is conducting a(n) _____.

A) ethnographic research
B) survey
C) content analysis
D) causal research
E) exploratory

Question 15

A(n) _____ is where the researcher speaks to the respondent directly, asking questions and recording answers.

A) survey
B) web-based survey
C) kiosk
D) interview
E) content analysis

Question 16

Which of the following are particularly helpful in gathering data when dealing with complex or sensitive issues?

A) content analyses
B) electronic surveys
C) experiments
D) focus groups
E) interviews

Question 17

In which type of interview does the interviewer use an interview sequence with predetermined questions for each interview and is required to use the same interview sequence and to conduct the interview in exactly the same way to avoid biases that may results from inconsistent interviewing practices?

A) ethnographic interviews
B) semistructured interviews
C) structured interviews
D) moderated interviews
E) programmed interviews

Question 18

Carolina is interviewing employees of a firm regarding team cohesiveness by using an interview sequence with predetermined open-ended questions. For each interview, Carolina is required to use the same interview sequence and to conduct the interview and cannot deviate from this sequence. Which type of interview is Carolina conducting?

A) ethnographic interview
B) formatted interview
C) structured interview
D) rigid interview
E) moderated interview

Question 19

In which type of interview are researchers free to exercise their own initiative in following up on an interviewee's answer to a question?

A) ethnographic interview
B) moderated interview
C) hybrid interview
D) semistructured interview
E) flexible interview

Question 20

A researcher is interviewing retail managers about customer and employee theft behaviors and was trained to follow a structured interview sequence but was encouraged to follow up with other questions based on what a respondent answers to the question on the interview sequence. What type of interview is this researcher trained to conduct?

A) semistructured interview
B) flexible interview
C) hybrid interview
D) secondary interview
E) moderated interview

Question 21

_____ are semi-structured interviews consisting of a moderator and 8-12 participants that uses an exploratory research approach and is considered a type of qualitative research.

A) Depth interviews
B) Panel surveys
C) Exploratory panels
D) Self-completed questionnaires
E) Focus groups

Question 22

The person guiding a focus group is called a(n) _____.

A) instigator
B) moderator
C) ethnographer
D) interviewer
E) catalyst

Question 23

Focus groups are guided by a moderator who encourages discussion and keeps the group from straying too far from the primary topic. To be effective, moderators should possess several characteristics. Which of the following is NOT one of those characteristics?

A) personable
B) attentive
C) objective
D) professionally trained
E) should be older than the participants

Question 24

Which of the following is FALSE regarding focus groups?

A) Making decisions based solely on focus group research is risky.
B) Researchers usually recommend a minimum of 10 focus groups to find consistent opinions.
C) The group's size is very small, so the results are less likely to represent those of the population.
D) Opinions are very dependent upon a particular group's chemistry.
E) Conclusions drawn from focus groups are best tested using another more confirmatory approach.

Question 25

Which type of interview is conducted without the use of an interview sequence, allowing the researcher to elicit information by engaging the interviewee in free and open discussion on the topic of interest?

A) focus group
B) structured interview
C) free-form interview
D) semi-structured interview
E) unstructured interview

Question 26

Which of the following is an unstructured one-to-one discussion session between a trained interviewer and a respondent?

A) depth interview
B) projective interview
C) case interview
D) primary interview
E) dyadic interview

Question 27

A manager at a manufacturing company wants to know why some employees don't work up to their potential in the company. Because the manager feels that a questionnaire cannot capture the information he needs and participants in a focus group might not be honest due to peer pressure, he decides to hire a research consultant to conduct one-to-one discussion sessions with the employee remaining anonymous. This unstructured one-to-one discussion between a trained interviewer and a respondent is called a _____.

A) dyadic interview
B) private interview
C) primary interview
D) projective interview
E) depth interview

Question 28

Sarah is conducting an interview with Tom. After one of Tom's responses, Sarah asked "why?" When he answered her, she asked "why?" again. Sarah is attempting to identify possibly hidden reasons for the particular behavior in Tom's response. Sarah is _____.

A) being nosey
B) straying from the interview sequence
C) probing
D) conducting confirmatory research
E) pinpointing

Question 29

In which type of interviewing does a researcher present the respondent with an ambiguous stimulus?

A) probing
B) projective interviewing
C) structured interviewing
D) unstructured interviewing
E) depth interviewing

Question 30

The ink-blot test in which respondents are given a card with an ink blot on it and expected to "see" something that reflects their inner personality is an example of _____.

A) probing
B) free-form interviewing
C) projective interviewing
D) thematic interviewing
E) a case study

Question 31

One exercise used in projective interviewing is _____, which is a picture completion exercise.

A) probing
B) graphing
C) dual-coding procedure
D) visual interviewing
E) thematic apperception

Question 32

A researcher was studying whether family pressures interfere with employee satisfaction, so she presented respondents with a picture of a man working in his office at night, shirt sleeves rolled up and tie loosened looking tired and frustrated. She asks respondents to "write this man's story." She believed that if family pressures are impacting a respondent, then his or her response will indicate that somehow in the story they tell. This is an example of using which type of exercise to encourage respondents to project their inner feelings and personalities in their stories?

A) thematic apperception
B) attribution focus
C) dual-coding procedure
D) probing
E) mental imagery

Question 33

Which of the following is true regarding focus groups?

A) helpful in forming hypotheses
B) appropriate when discussing sensitive issues
C) an economical form of exploratory research
D) effective in testing hypotheses
E) useful for identifying personal problems of respondents

Question 34

Which of the following is FALSE regarding depth interviews?

A) helpful in forming hypotheses
B) aids measurement in future studies by providing an operational definition of some concept
C) helpful in identifying key sources of difficulties for respondents
D) an economical form of exploratory research
E) useful for discussing sensitive issues

Question 35

Which of the following focuses on collecting information about a specific event or activity, often about a particular firm or industry?

A) thematic apperception
B) case study
C) probing
D) exhaustive interviewing
E) exclusive interviewing

Question 36

_____ involves gathering numerical data using structured questionnaires or observation guides to collect primary data from individuals.

A) Thematic apperception
B) Ethnographic data collection
C) Probing
D) Qualitative data collection
E) Quantitative data collection

Question 37

Methods of collecting quantitative survey data fall into three broad categories-self-completion, interviewer-completed, and _____.

A) observation
B) probing
C) sensing
D) monitoring
E) case studies

Question 38

_____ means each answer on a questionnaire has a separate response category.

A) Exhaustive
B) Mutually exhaustive
C) Mutually exclusive
D) Nonduplicated
E) Separated

Question 39

A questionnaire included a question on age and gave the following categories respondents could select: 0-10 years old, 10-20 years old, 15-30 years old, 25-40 years old, 35-50 years old, and over 50 years old. What is the problem with this?

A) The categories are not mutually exclusive.
B) The categories are too broad.
C) The last category is too broad and will include too many respondents.
D) The categories are not exhaustive.
E) The categories are not reliable.

Question 40

_____ means a response category has been included for every possible answer to a specific question on a questionnaire.

A) Exhaustive
B) Mutually exhaustive
C) Mutually exclusive
D) Nonduplicated
E) Complete

Question 41

Loss of researcher control and very low response rates are problems with _____.

A) interviewer-administered questionnaires
B) self-completed questionnaires
C) panel surveys
D) interviews
E) experiments

Question 42

Which of the following might impact the response rate of traditional mail surveys?

A) envelope
B) cover letter
C) length
D) incentive
E) all of these choices

Question 43

Generally speaking, researchers should allow at least how many weeks for individuals to respond to mail surveys?

A) 2 weeks
B) 3 weeks
C) 4-6 weeks
D) 8 weeks
E) 10-12 weeks

Question 44

Joni received an e-mail requesting her to complete a survey. There was a link to a Web site where the survey was located, so she clicked on it and completed the survey. This type of survey is called a(n) _____.

A) interview survey
B) third-party survey
C) e-mail survey
D) online survey
E) kiosk survey

Question 45

All of the following are ways to increase mail survey response rates EXCEPT _____.

A) preliminary contact
B) personalization
C) incentives
D) print only on one side of the paper
E) follow-ups

Question 46

Farah is conducting a study and she calls potential participants before she sends a survey in the mail. What approach is Farah using to increase the response rate?

A) personalization
B) preliminary contact
C) incentive
D) appeal
E) follow-up

Question 47

Which type of survey is located in a high-traffic area where respondents can walk up and complete the survey on a computer screen?

A) kiosk survey
B) stand-alone survey
C) mall intercept survey
D) touchpoint survey
E) place-based survey

Question 48

What is an advantage of administering survey questions in person?

A) easy and quick access
B) low cost
C) provides anonymity
D) can probe complex issues
E) fast capturing of data and analysis

Question 49

All of the following are advantages of administering survey questions over the telephone EXCEPT _____.

A) provides personal contact
B) wide geographic coverage
C) short interview time
D) easy and quick access
E) can be done with the aid of a computer

Question 50

All of the following are advantages of administering survey questions electronically EXCEPT _____.

A) easy to administer
B) low cost
C) global reach
D) fast capturing of data and analysis
E) can clarify respondents' queries

Question 51

Observational data is collected by systematically recording observations of people, events or objects.

Question 52

Ethnographic researchers interpret behavior in context through observation of actual life experiences.

Question 53

A content analysis does not rely on preexisting text, images or video as a data source.

Question 54

Interviews are helpful in gathering data when dealing with complex or sensitive issues.

Question 55

Semistructured interviews use an interview sequence with predetermined questions for each interview.

Question 56

Focus groups do not use a moderator to guide the group's discussion.

Question 57

An in-depth interview is a structured one-to-one discussion session between a trained interviewer and a respondent.

Question 58

Thematic apperception is when a researcher presents the respondent with ambiguous stimulus.

Question 59

Interviewer-completed methods involve no contact with the respondents either via interview, face-to-face or via telephone.

Question 60

Mobile data collection is the use of any mobile device for data collection.

Question 61

A kiosk survey is a self-completion interview conducted in a high traffic area.

Question 62

Observation is not used for quantitative research.

Question 63

What is ethnographic research and why would it be used? Explain whether this approach is considered "unobtrusive."

Question 64

What is content analysis? Describe an example in which it could be applied in business research.

Question 65

Why would researchers want to use an unstructured interview rather than a structured or semistructured interview? Give an example when each would be appropriate.

Question 66

Compare and contrast the three broad categories of collecting quantitative survey data and identify methods in which they are administered.

Question 67

Broadly speaking, data collection methods can be divided into two categories. Briefly describe these categories along with advantages and disadvantages of each.

Question 68

Explain how a company can use focus groups to understand consumers' perceptions of its brands and marketing activities. What role should the moderator play and what characteristics should he or she possess?

Question 69

Discuss three ways in which researchers can increase mail survey response rates.

Question 70

List the advantages and disadvantages of administering survey questions in person.

Question 71

List the advantages and disadvantages of administering survey questions over the telephone.

Question 72

List the advantages and disadvantages of administering survey questions electronically.