MRA Data Collection & Sampling 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A researcher wants to study customer satisfaction across 5 regional offices, selecting 20 respondents from each office regardless of office size. Which sampling method is being used?
- Proportionate stratified sampling
- Disproportionate stratified sampling (Correct answer)
- Cluster sampling
- Systematic sampling
Correct answer: Disproportionate stratified sampling
Disproportionate stratified sampling selects equal or fixed numbers from each stratum regardless of stratum size, unlike proportionate sampling which reflects stratum proportions.
Question 2: Which type of bias occurs when survey respondents answer questions in a way they believe the researcher expects rather than their true opinions?
- Nonresponse bias
- Social desirability bias
- Acquiescence bias
- Demand characteristics bias (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Demand characteristics bias
Demand characteristics bias occurs when respondents pick up on cues about the study's purpose and alter their behavior or answers accordingly.
Question 3: In a telephone survey, what is the 'incidence rate'?
- The percentage of calls that result in a completed interview
- The number of calls made per hour by each interviewer
- The proportion of the population that qualifies for the study (Correct answer)
- The rate at which respondents drop out mid-survey
Correct answer: The proportion of the population that qualifies for the study
Incidence rate is the percentage of the general population that meets the eligibility criteria for a given research study.
Question 4: A researcher conducts in-depth interviews until no new themes emerge. This approach is best described as sampling to:
- Statistical significance
- Theoretical saturation (Correct answer)
- Random adequacy
- Confidence interval closure
Correct answer: Theoretical saturation
Theoretical saturation is the qualitative research principle of continuing data collection until additional data yields no new insights or themes.
Question 5: Which data collection mode typically achieves the highest response rates for employee satisfaction surveys within large organizations?
- Mail surveys
- Online surveys distributed via company intranet (Correct answer)
- Random digit dialing telephone surveys
- Intercept surveys at company entrances
Correct answer: Online surveys distributed via company intranet
Online surveys distributed through internal channels leverage organizational trust and convenience, typically yielding higher completion rates for employee studies.
Question 6: What is the key distinction between a 'panel' survey and a 'cross-sectional' survey?
- Panel surveys use probability sampling; cross-sectional surveys do not
- Panel surveys measure the same respondents over time; cross-sectional surveys measure different respondents at one point in time (Correct answer)
- Panel surveys are always conducted online; cross-sectional surveys use multiple modes
- Panel surveys focus on qualitative data; cross-sectional surveys focus on quantitative data
Correct answer: Panel surveys measure the same respondents over time; cross-sectional surveys measure different respondents at one point in time
Panel surveys track the same individuals across multiple time points to measure change, while cross-sectional surveys capture a snapshot of different respondents at one moment.
Question 7: A market researcher selects every 10th household from a neighborhood list, starting from a randomly chosen household between 1 and 10. What sampling method is this?
- Simple random sampling
- Cluster sampling
- Systematic sampling (Correct answer)
- Quota sampling
Correct answer: Systematic sampling
Systematic sampling selects every kth element from a list after a random starting point, making it efficient for large populations with ordered lists.
MRA Data Collection & Sampling 2
A researcher wants to study customer satisfaction across 5 regional offices, selecting 20 respondents from each office regardless of office size.
Which sampling method is being used?