DMGT404 As 1
DMGT404 As 1
DMGT404 As 1
Maximum Marks: 20
Ques 1: Answer the following
(a)
(b)
Define sample?
(d)
It reduces inaccuracy;
Helps to get maximum efficiency and reliability;
Eliminates bias and marginal errors;
Minimizes wastage of time;
Helpful for collecting research materials;
Helpful for testing of hypothesis;
Gives an idea regarding the type of resources required in terms of money, manpower, time, and
efforts;
Provides an overview to other experts;
Guides the research in the right direction.
Exploratory Research
Exploratory research is an important part of any marketing or business strategy. Its
focus is on the discovery of ideas and insights as opposed to collecting statistically
accurate data. That is why exploratory research is best suited as the beginning of your
total research plan. It is most commonly used for further defining company issues, areas
for potential growth, alternative courses of action, and prioritizing areas that require
statistical research.
When it comes to online surveys, the most common example of exploratory research
takes place in the form of open-ended questions. Think of the exploratory questions in
your survey as expanding your understanding of the people you are surveying. Text
responses may not be statistically measureable, but they will give you richer quality
information that can lead to the discovery of new initiatives or problems that should be
addressed.
Descriptive Research
Descriptive research takes up the bulk of online surveying and is considered conclusive
in nature due to its quantitative nature. Unlike exploratory research, descriptive research
is preplanned and structured in design so the information collected can be statistically
inferred on a population.
The main idea behind using this type of research is to better define an opinion, attitude,
or behaviour held by a group of people on a given subject. Consider your everyday
multiple choice question. Since there are predefined categories a respondent must
choose from, it is considered descriptive research. These questions will not give the
unique insights on the issues like exploratory research would. Instead, grouping the
responses into predetermined choices will provide statistically inferable data. This allows
you to measure the significance of your results on the overall population you are
studying, as well as the changes of your respondents opinions, attitudes, and
behaviours over time.
(e)
5. The Consequences of
Alternative Courses of Action
elements
sampling units
extent
time.
The sampling unit is the basic unit containing the elements of the target population. The
sampling unit may be different from the element. For example, if one wanted a sample
of housewives, it might be possible to have access to such a sample directly. However,
it is easier to select households as the sampling unit and then interview housewives in
each of the households.
As mentioned in the preceding step, the sampling frame should be complete and
accurate otherwise the selection of the sampling unit might be defective. It is necessary
to get a further specification of the sampling unit both in personal interviews and in
telephone interviews. Thus, in personal interviews, a pertinent question isof the
several persons in a household, who should be interviewed? If interviews were held
during office timings when the heads of families and other employed persons are away,
interviewing would under-represent employed persons and over-represent elderly
persons, housewives and the unemployed. In view of these considerations, it is
necessary to have a random process of selection of the adult residents of each
household. One method that could be used for this purpose is to list all the eligible
persons living at a particular address and then select one of them.
Step 4: Specify the sampling method
It indicates how the sample units are selected. One of the most important decisions in
this regard is to determine which of the twoprobability and non-probability sampleis
to be chosen.
In case of a probability sample, it is possible to measure the sampling error and thereby
determine the degree of precision in the estimates with the help of the theory of
probability. This theory also enables us to consider, from amongst the various possible
sample designs, the one that will give the maximum information per rupee. This is not
possible when a non-probability sample is used.
Although non-probability sampling does not yield these benefits, on account of its
convenience and economy, it is often preferred to probability sampling. If the researcher
is convinced that the risks involved in the use of a non-probability sample are more than
offset by its being relatively cheap and convenient, his choice should be in favor of nonprobability sampling
Step 5: Determine the sample size
In other words, one has to decide how many elements of the target population are to be
chosen.
Goal orientation
This suggests that a sample design should be oriented to the research objectives,
tailored to the survey design, and fitted to the survey conditions If this is done, it should
influence the choice of the population, the measurement as also the procedure of
choosing a sample
Measurability
A sample design should enable the computation of valid estimates of its sampling
variability Normally, this variability is expressed in the form of standard errors in surveys
However, this is possible only in the case of probability sampling In non-probability
samples, such as a quota sample, it is not possible to know the degree of precision of
the survey results
Practicality
This implies that the sample design can be followed properly in the survey, as
envisaged earlier It is necessary that complete, correct, practical and clear instructions
should be given to the interviewer so that no mistakes are made in the selection of
sampling units and the final selection in the field is not different from the original sample
design Practicality also refers to simplicity of the design, i.e. it should be capable of
being understood and followed in actual operation of the field work
Economy
Finally, economy implies that the objectives of the survey should be achieved with
minimum cost and effort Survey objectives are generally spelt out in terms of precision,
i.e. the inverse of the variance of survey estimates For a given degree of precision, the
sample design should give the minimum cost Alternatively, for a given per unit cost, the
sample design should achieve maximum precision (minimum variance)
It may be pointed out that these four criteria come into conflict with each other in most of the
cases, and the researcher should carefully balance the conflicting criteria so that he is able to
select a really good sample design As there is no unique method or procedure by which one can
select a good sample, one has to compare several sample designs that can be used in a survey
This means that one has to weigh the pros and cons, the strong and weak points of various
sample designs in respect of these four criteria, before selecting the best possible one