UNIT-III

Sampling Design: Fundamentals of Sampling

Design, Non-probability and Probability Sampling,
Sample Size Determination, Reliability and Validity.

Questionnaire Design: Techniques and

Precautions; Measurement and Scaling
Techniques: Types of Data; Rating Scale and
Ranking Scales.

Data Collection and Preparation: Primary and

Secondary Sources of data; Data Tabulation,
Editing and Coding.

Sunil Kushwaha
Sampling : A researcher generally takes a small portion of the
population for study, which is referred to as sample. The process of
selecting a sample from the population is called sampling.

 Sampling saves time.

 Sampling saves money.
 When the research process is destructive in nature, sampling minimizes
the destruction.
 Sampling broadens the scope of the study in light of the scarcity of
resources.
 It has been noticed that sampling provides more accurate results, as
compared to census because in sampling, non-sampling errors can be
controlled more easily.
 In most cases complete census is not possible and, hence, sampling is
the only option left.
Sunil Kushwaha
Sunil Kushwaha
Step 1: Target population must be defined
 Target population is the collection of the objects which possess
the information required by the researcher and about which an
inference is to be made.

Step 2: Sampling frame must be determined

A researcher takes a sample from a population list, directory,
map, city directory, or any other source used to represent the
population. This list possesses the information about the
subjects and is called the sampling frame.
 Sampling is carried out from the sampling frame and not from
the target population.

Sunil Kushwaha
Step 3: Appropriate sampling technique must be selected

 In sampling with replacement, an element is selected from the

frame, required information is obtained, and then the element is
placed back in the frame. This way, there is a possibility of the
element being selected again in the sample.

 As compared to this, in sampling without replacement, an element is

selected from the frame and not replaced in the frame. This way, the
possibility of further inclusion of the element in the sample is
eliminated.

Step 4: Sample size must be determined

 Sample size refers to the number of elements to be included in the

study.

Step 5: Sampling process must be executed

Sunil Kushwaha
 In random sampling, each unit of the population has the
same probability (chance) of being selected as part of the
sample.

 In non-random sampling, members of the sample are not

selected by chance. Some other factors like familiarity of the
researcher with the subject, convenience, etc. are the basis of
selection

Sunil Kushwaha
Sunil Kushwaha
 Simple Random Sampling
 In simple random sampling, each member of the population
has an equal chance of being included in the sample.

 Stratified Random Sampling

 In stratified random sampling, elements in the population are
divided into homogeneous groups called strata.
 Then, researchers use the simple random sampling method
to select a sample from each of the strata. Each group is
called stratum.
 In stratified random sampling, stratum should be relatively
homogenous and the strata should contrast with each other.

Sunil Kushwaha
 Cluster (or Area) Sampling
 In cluster sampling, we divide the population into non-overlapping
areas or clusters.
 In stratified sampling, strata happen to be homogenous but in
cluster sampling, clusters are internally heterogeneous.
 A cluster contains a wide range of elements and is a good
representative of the population.

Diagram for cluster sampling

Sunil Kushwaha
 In systematic sampling, sample elements are selected from the
population at uniform intervals in terms of time, order, or space.
 A researcher wants to take a sample of size 30 from a population
of size 900 and he has decided to use systematic sampling for
this purpose.

 For obtaining the sample, the first member can be selected

randomly and after that every 30th member of the population is
included in the sample. Suppose the first element 3 is selected
randomly and after this, every 30th element, that is, 33rd, 63rd,
… element up to a sample size of 30 are included in the sample.

Sunil Kushwaha
 Sampling techniques where selection of the sampling units is
not based on a random selection process are called
nonrandom sampling techniques.

 Quota Sampling
 In quota sampling, certain subclasses, such as age, gender, income
group, and education level are used as strata. Stratified random
sampling is based on the concept of randomly selecting units from
the stratum.
 However, in case of quota sampling, a researcher uses non-random
sampling methods to gather data from one stratum until the
required quota fixed by the researcher is fulfilled.

 Convenience Sampling
 In convenience sampling, sample elements are selected based on the
convenience of a researcher.

Sunil Kushwaha
 Judgement Sampling
In judgement sampling, selection of the sampling units is
based on the judgement of a researcher.

 Snowball Sampling
In snowball sampling, survey respondents are selected on
the basis of referrals from other survey respondents.

Sunil Kushwaha
 Sampling Error
Sampling error occurs when the sample is not a true representative
of the population. In complete enumeration, sampling errors are not
present.

Sampling errors can occur due to some specific reasons:

 Faulty selection of the sample.
 Sometimes due to the difficulty in selection a particular sampling
unit, researchers try to substitute that sampling unit with another
sampling unit which is easy to be surveyed.
 Sometimes researchers demarcate sampling units wrongly and
hence, provide scope for committing sampling errors.

Sunil Kushwaha
Non-Sampling Errors
All errors other than sampling can be included in the
category of non-sampling errors.

The following are some common non-sampling errors:

 Faulty designing and planning of survey
 Response errors
 Non-response bias
 Errors in coverage
 Compiling error and publication error

Sunil Kushwaha
 A questionnaire consists of formalized and pre-
specified set of questions designed to obtain
responses from potential respondents.
 Questions in the questionnaire reflect the research
objective under investigation.
 Questionnaires are generally situation and culture
specific.
 Questionnaire design process requires a careful
attention to each step as the questionnaire or
research instrument should be adapted to the
specific cultural environment and should not be
biased in terms of any one culture (Malhotra et al.,
1996).

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
Business Research Methods
Naval Bajpai
 Phase I is the pre-construction phase of the
questionnaire design process. It consists of
three steps: specific required information in
the light of research objective, an overview of
respondent’s characteristics, and decision
regarding selecting an appropriate survey
technique.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 The first and the foremost important decision relates to
finding the required information through a questionnaire.
 To generate specific information, the researcher should
clearly define the objective and the other research
components such as theoretical model, research questions,
and hypotheses.
 Clarity in all these components is very important as these
only will provide the base of specific information to be
collected through survey.

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Naval Bajpai
 While collecting the information, an overview of the
respondent’s characteristics is a vital
consideration.
 A researcher must construct the questionnaire in
the light of the respondent’s profile.
 Even while constructing a questionnaire, a
researcher has to keep the profile of a probable
respondent in mind.
 Various factors such as the respondent’s
qualification, age, experience, income, marital
status, occupation, and so on have a decisive and
impactful role in conducting a research.

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Naval Bajpai
 Phase II is the real construction phase of the
questionnaire design process.
 It consists of six steps:
 Decision regarding question format :structured
questions versus unstructured questions
 Decision regarding question relevance and wording
 Decision regarding question sequencing
 Decision regarding question response choice
 Decision regarding the questionnaire layout
 Producing first draft of the questionnaire.

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Naval Bajpai
 Questionnaires use two types of question formats.
These are open-ended questions and closed-ended
questions.
 In the case of a “closed-ended” question, the
respondent has to format the judgment to fit the
response categories and when “open-ended” questions
are used, the judgment has to be verbalized into a
preliminary answer (DeLeeuw, 2001).
 The closed ended question format can be further
divided into dichotomous, multiple-choice questions,
and scales. The following sections focus on open-ended
questions and closed-ended questions.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 Closed-ended questions are structured questions. The question
structure does matter (Connolly et al., 2005).
 The closed-ended questions provide response alternative to the
respondents instead of giving them a free-to-express response
option.
 The choice offered to the respondents can be either in the form
of a rating system or a set of response alternatives.
 These response alternatives are presented to the respondents
and they select the most appropriate one.
 The closed-ended questionnaires are generally cheaper, more
reliable, and faster to code, and analyse the collected data
(Swamy, 2007).
 The closed-ended question format can be further divided into
dichotomous, multiple-choice questions, and scales.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 The negative wordings impact the process of
interpreting the questions, leading at least some
respondents to misinterpret how to respond and, thus,
reducing or destroying the usefulness of the questions
or the series of questions (Johnson et al., 2004).
 In some cases of conducting personal interviews, the
researchers feel that they will be able to overcome the
wrong wording during the discussion, but they suggest
a different understanding.
 The effects of question wording on response accuracy
did not seem to be moderated by the respondent’s
knowledge gained via discussion (Bickart et al., 2006).

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
Business Research Methods
Naval Bajpai
 In a questionnaire, the questions must flow in a logical
sequence. There are at least three approaches to
suggest the roadmap to place the questions in a logical
sequence; they are funnel technique, work technique,
and sections technique.
 Funnel technique suggests asking general questions
first and then the specific questions.
 Work technique suggests that difficult-to-answer,
sensitive, or complicated questions should be placed
later in the questionnaire.
 The third technique is the section technique in which
questions are placed in different sections with respect
to some common base.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 It is important to understand that too many
response choices will burden the respondent and
he or she will be perplexed while answering.
 Few response choices will not be able to cover all
ranges of possible alternatives.
 As a general rule, the researchers present a
question with five to seven response alternatives.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 Questionnaire layout is important to enhance the response
rate. A recent study (Lagarace & Washburn, 1995) revealed
that a user-friendly format, and to some extent colour, is
valuable to increase mail survey response rate.
 The appearance of a questionnaire is particularly important in
mail surveys because the instrument, along with the
preliminary letter and/ or cover letter, must sell itself and
convince the recipient to complete and return it (Boser,
1990).
 It has been observed that the respondent emphasizes the
questions that are placed at the top of the questionnaire
compared with that at the bottom.

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Naval Bajpai
 Printing on a poor, quality paper or an
unprofessional look of the questionnaire may
generate a non-serious feeling among the
respondents.
 So, the questionnaire may be printed on a good,
quality paper and must have a professional look.
 The appearance of the front cover on a mail
questionnaire and the nature of first questions
have been purported to have an important
influence on the respondent’s decision to complete
the questionnaire (Frey, 1991).

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 Phase III is the post-construction phase of the
questionnaire design process. It consists of four
steps:
1. Pre-testing of the questionnaire

2. Revisiting the questionnaire based on the inputs

obtained from the pre-testing
3. Revising final draft of the questionnaire

4. Administering the questionnaire and obtaining

responses.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 Pre-testing of the questionnaire involves administering the
questionnaire to a small sample of the population to identify
and eliminate the potential problems of the questionnaire, if
any.
 Testing a questionnaire can be a time-consuming process,
and this stage of questionnaire has often been overlooked in
the past in researcher’s eagerness to start collecting data
(Williams, 2003).
 Researchers generally use two common procedures to pre-
test: protocol analysis and debriefing.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 To enhance the accuracy, after incorporating
suggestions from the pre-testing, a researcher can go
for second pre-testing.
 It is always possible that the second pre-testing may
also reveal some of the problems of the questionnaire.
 Pre-testing of the questionnaire might have provided
many inputs in a subjective manner.
 At this stage, the researcher must objectively
incorporate all the inputs obtained from the pre-testing
exercise.
 All the parameters related to the question wording (as
discussed in the previous sections) must be carefully
considered.

Business Research Methods

Naval Bajpai
 At this stage, the researcher once again carefully
examines the questionnaire.
 Insertions and deletions of the previous stage must be
re-checked to provide the desired accuracy.
 The researcher makes the questionnaire “ready to
administer” by eliminating all the minute mistakes and
tries to make it error free.
 After careful examination of all the incorporations
obtained from pre-testing, the researcher is now ready
to have the final draft of the questionnaire and
administers to the sample taken from a target
population.

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Naval Bajpai
 The data, after collection, has to be processed and
analyzed in accordance with the outline laid down
for the purpose at the time of developing the
research plan.

 This is essential for a scientific study and for

ensuring that we have all relevant data for making
contemplated comparisons and analysis.

 processing implies editing, coding, classification

and tabulation of collected data so that they are
amenable to analysis

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 editing

coding
Data
processing
classification

tabulation

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 a process of examining the collected raw data
(specially in surveys) to detect errors and omissions
and to correct these when possible.

 Field editing => the review of the reporting forms

by the investigator for completing what the latter
has written in abbreviated and/or in illegible form
at the time of recording the respondents’
responses.

 Central editing =>when all forms or schedules

have been completed and returned to the office.

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 Coding refers to the process of assigning
numerals or other symbols to answers so that
responses can be put into a limited number of
categories or classes.

 Such classes should be appropriate to the

research problem under consideration.

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 Classification of data which happens to be the
process of arranging data in groups or classes on
the basis of common characteristics

(a) Classification according to attributes:

 descriptive (such as literacy, sex, honesty,)

 numerical (such as weight, height, income, etc.).

b) Classification according to class-intervals:

 Data relating to income, production, age, weight,
etc. come under this category.

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 Tabulation is the process of summarizing raw
data and displaying the same in the form of
statistical tables for further analysis

 Generally accepted principles of tabulation:

1. table should have a clear, concise and adequate
title
2. units of measurement must always be indicated.
3. Sources of data obtained must be indicated
4. Abbreviations should be avoided
5. Table should be made as logical, clear, accurate
and simple as possible.

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 By measurement we mean the process of assigning
numbers to objects or observations

 the level of measurement being a function of the

rules under which the numbers are assigned.

 Example:
Domain appears to be male, assign to “0” and if
female assign to “1”

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 nominal scale

ordinal scale
Measurement
Scales
interval scale

ratio scale

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 Nominal Scale
 Nominal scale is simply a system of assigning number
symbols to events in order to label them.

 Example:
Assignment of numbers of basketball players in order to
identify them.

 Ordinal Scale

 The ordinal scale places events in order

 For Example:
1. Result of 100 meter race

2. if Ram’s position in his class is 10 and Mohan’s position

is 40, it cannot be said that Ram’s position is four times as
good as that of Mohan.

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 Interval Scale
 Interval scales can have an arbitrary zero

 Differences between objects can be compared

 Interval scale with fixed reference point

 Ratio Scale

 Ratio of scale values can be computed

 Ratio scale represents the actual amounts of

variables.

 Measures of physical dimensions such as weight,

height, distance, etc.
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43
 Scaling describes the procedures of assigning
numbers to various degrees of opinion, and
attitude .

=> we judge an object in absolute terms against

some specified criteria.

Example:
 like-dislike.

 above average- average- below average.

 excellent—good—average—below average—poor.

 always—often—occasionally—rarely—never.

 like very much—like some what—neutral—dislike

somewhat—dislike very much.
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 Important Scaling
Techniques

Ranking scales
Rating scale Or
(comparative scales)

(i) (ii) (a) Method of

(b) Method of rank
The graphic The itemized paired
order:
rating scale comparisons
rating scale

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46
 Presents a series of statements from which a respondent
selects one as best reflecting his evaluation.

Example:
Q: How well does a worker get along with his fellow workers?

 He is almost always involved in some friction with a fellow

worker.
 He is often at odds with one or more of his fellow workers.
 He sometimes gets involved in friction.
 He infrequently becomes involved in friction with others.
 He almost never gets involved in friction with fellow
workers.

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Example:

1. Which of the two brands of detergent you would

prefer?
 Tide | Wheel

2. Which of the two store would you prefer For

purchasing a door mat
 Zee Mahasale | Mundra cloth store

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 Under this method of comparative scaling, the
respondents are asked to rank their choices.

 This method is easier and faster than the method of

paired comparisons stated above.

Note: Then there may be the problem of respondents

becoming careless in assigning ranks particularly
when there are many (usually more than 10) items.

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BIT

50
1. Arbitrary Scales
2. Differential Scales (or Thurstone-type
Scales)
3. Summated Scales (or Likert-type Scales)
4. Cumulative scales:

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 Arbitrary scales are developed on ad hoc basis
and are designed largely through the
researcher’s own subjective selection of items.

 The researcher first collects few statements or

items which he believes are unambiguous and
appropriate to a given topic.

 Some of these are selected for inclusion in the

measuring instrument and then people are asked
to check in a list the statements with which
 they agree.

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 The name of L.L. Thurstone is associated with
differential scales

 A Thurstone scale is an attitude scale consisting of

items (in the form of statements) with which the
respondent has either to agree or disagree.

 Only those items with which they agree are scored.

Each item has a value and the respondent’s score on
the scale corresponds to the median score of the
items with which the respondent agrees.
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54
 Developed by Rensis Likert, A north American
psychologist, who has invented it in 1932,

 to measure most accurately people attitudes

55
when asked to express opinion whether one
considers his job quite pleasant?

Note: These score values are normally not printed on

the instrument but are shown here just to indicate
the scoring pattern.

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1. It is relatively easy to construct

2. It is considered more reliable

3. It can easily be used in respondent-centred

4. It takes much less time to construct

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× we can simply examine whether respondents are
more or less favourable to a topic, but we cannot
tell how much more or less they are.

× There is no basis for belief that the five positions

indicated on the scale are equally spaced.

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=> Developed by Louis Guttman 1950

 Also known as Cumulative scales or scalogram analysis

 consist of series of statements to which a respondent

expresses his agreement or disagreement.

 The special feature of this type of scale is that

statements in it form a cumulative series

 A scale is said to be unidimensional if the responses

fall into a pattern

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Advantages:

1. only a single dimension of attitude is being measured.

2. It can be used for personal, telephone or mail surveys

Disadvantages:

1. perfect cumulative or unidimensional scales are very

rarely
2. more difficult in comparison to other scaling methods.

60
The stapel scale is used to measure the direction and intensity of an
attitude. At times , it may be difficult to use semantic differential scales
because of the problem in creating bipolar adjective.

For example: Respondent will choose +5 if surf very accurately

describe the attitude, and -5 if it does not describe at all correctly.

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 Developed through factor analysis or on the basis
of intercorrelations of items

 An important factor scale based on factor analysis

is
i) Semantic Differential (S.D.)
ii) Multidimensional Scaling (MDS)

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 Developed by Osgood, Suci and Tannenbaum
(1957)

 an attempt to measure the psychological meanings

of an object to an individual.

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For Example:
S.D. scale items for analyzing candidates for leadership position

E= Evaluation , P= Potency , A = Activity , showing the relevant

factors.
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 MDS) can be characterized as a set of procedures
for portraying perceptual

 The grouped objects are usually evaluated and

compared with each other.

 Visually, plots the perceptions and preferences of

individuals singly as group.

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66
 Tests of Sound
Measurement

1. Test of 2. Test of 3. Test of

Validity Reliability Practicality

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1. “Validity refers to the extent to which a test
measures what we actually wish to measure.

2. Reliability has to do with the accuracy and

precision of a measurement procedure .

3. Practicality is concerned with a wide range of

factors of economy, convenience, and
interpretability

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1. Content validity is the extent to which a measuring instrument
provides adequate coverage of the topic under study.

2. Criterion-related validity relates to our ability to predict some

outcome or estimate the existence of some current condition.
Relevance: (terms we judge to be the proper measure.)
Freedom from bias:
Reliability: (A reliable criterion is stable or reproducible.)
Availability: (The information specified by the criterion must be available.)

3. Construct validity is the degree to which scores on a test can be

accounted for by the explanatory constructs of a sound theory.

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 The test of reliability is another important test of sound
measurement. A measuring instrument is reliable if it
provides consistent results.

 Two aspects of reliability viz., stability and equivalence

 The stability aspect is concerned with securing consistent

results with repeated measurements of the same person
and with the same instrument

 The equivalence aspect considers how much error may get

introduced by different investigators or different samples
of the items being studied

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 The practicality characteristic of a measuring
instrument can be judged in terms of :

 economy
 convenience
 interpretability.

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Text Book for Research Methodology:

1. Deepak Chawla and Neeta Sondhi (2016): Research

Methodology: Concepts and Cases, Vikas Publishing,
New Delhi.
2. Naval Bajpai, Business Research Methods, 2017,
3. Naresh Malhotra, Marketing Research: An Applied
Orientation, 1993
4. Kothari, C. R. (2004): Research Methodology methods
and techniques New age international , New Delhi.

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1. Naval Bajpai, Business Research Methods,
2017,
2. Naresh Malhotra, Marketing Research: An
Applied Orientation, 1993

3. C. R. Kothari (2004) Research Methodology,

2nd revised edition, New Age International
(P) Ltd., Publishers.

Sunil Kushwaha
Sunil Kushwaha