PSC 207: Survey and Questionnaire Research Methods

Prof. Gregory Herek
Fall, 2008

About the Course

Asking questions – in self-administered questionnaires, in telephone and face-to-face interviews, and on the internet – is one of the primary research strategies employed by psychologists and other behavioral and social scientists. Asking good questions has often been assumed to be more art than science. However, an extensive scientific literature exists on how to ask questions and how to understand responses to them. In the past decade, knowledge in this area has accumulated rapidly as a consequence of advances in cognitive science and improvements in survey technology.

This course will provide students with an introduction to survey and questionnaire research methods with a special emphasis on how to ask questions. Students will be introduced to empirical research and theory on the cognitive, motivational, and social processes that influence how respondents answer questions. They will gain an understanding of the practical implications of these processes by designing their own survey instrument in stages throughout the term, and presenting successive versions of it to the class for feedback and discussion. Students will also be introduced to sampling theory, ethical considerations in survey and questionnaire research, and practical considerations in fielding survey studies. Through in-class and homework assignments, students will learn how to use relevant internet resources for survey and questionnaire research.

Texts

Important: We will use three texts during the quarter. They are all excellent books. However, their usefulness to you may vary depending on your disciplinary background and research goals. For this reason, all three books are listed as "optional" at the campus bookstore. Feel free to purchase some or all of them now if you wish, but you can also wait until after we discuss them at the first class meeting.

• Dillman, D. A. (2007). Mail and internet surveys: The tailored design method (2nd ed., 2007 update). New York: Wiley. (ISBN: 047003856-X)

• Bradburn, N. M., Sudman, S., & Wansink, B. (2004). Asking questions: The definitive guide to questionnaire design (Rev. ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. (ISBN: 9780787970888)

• Tourangeau, R., Rips, L. J., & Rasinski, K. A. (2000). The psychology of survey response. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. (ISBN: 0521576296)

• Selected journal articles and chapters may also be assigned (available at the library, on the web, or through campus photocopying service).

Prerequisites

• Graduate standing in psychology or the social or biological sciences
• Completion of an undergraduate research methods course

Course Topics (may be modified as the seminar progresses)

1. The psychology of survey and questionnaire response: Cognitive, motivational, and social processes.
2. Asking questions about behavior and knowledge.
3. Asking questions about attitudes and other subjective phenomena.
4. Visual versus spoken presentation of questions.
5. Data collection modes: Personal interviews; telephone surveys; mail surveys and other self-administered, paper-based questionnaires; internet surveys.
6. Closed vs. open-ended question formats.
7. Response formats, rankings vs. ratings.
8. Context effects: Item order, response order.
9. Visual presentation of questionnaire items: Layout and design.
10. Asking questions about sensitive topics.
11. Acquiescence and social desirability in responding.
12. Ethical issues in survey and questionnaire research.
13. Implementing the survey or questionnaire.
14. Embedding experiments in surveys.
15. Introduction to Internet databases of public opinion items and survey data sets.
    

Grading

• Satisfactory completion of class exercises and homework assignments (25%)
• Consistent participation in class discussions and peer critiques (25%)
• Class presentations of individual questionnaire project (25%)
• Final individual questionnaire project (25%)

Contact Information and Office Hours for Professor Herek

• Office Hours: Mondays 1:10-2 pm and by appointment
  
• Office: 271 Young Hall
  
• Phone: 530-752-8085