Module 6

 Module 6

 

Having completed your literature review, you are now more knowledgeable about the subject area you’ve chosen to explore this semester. In particular, you are familiar with what others have already written about it. Now it’s time to turn to the original research you’ll do in the second half of the semester. That research will be conducted via survey, so this week, you’ll begin thinking about what kind of information you might gather about your topic by conducting a survey.

 

If you were able to obtain a copy of Patten’s Questionnaire Research: A Practical Guide, it will serve as a handbook and reference as you develop your survey. I will not be making specific assignments out of the Patten text… it is there for you to use as a reference. 

 

This article will give you a good overview of considerations to keep in mind as you begin to think about your survey. 

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC420179/

 

After reading the article, please make a blog post outlining your current thinking in response to the following questions:

 

1. You have been developing your familiarity with the existing literature around a topic area in your literature review. What questions have occurred to you that are not yet adequately answered by the existing literature? 

 

2. What questions or concerns drew you to the topic area in the first place?

 

3. If you were to ask 50 people a series of questions, how might their answers help you better understand your topic area or answer your most pressing questions?

 

4. What kinds of people would you sample? Would you want to ask your questions of people of a certain age range? People who have had certain life experiences? People who feel a particular way about an issue? Describe the people who might most usefully take your survey.

 

5. What questions might you ask your survey-takers? List at least 10-12 questions. 

 

Please DO NOT write your survey yet. We are just beginning and this is just a brainstorming exercise to get you started.

 

An example: If your topic is vaping, similar to our lit review example, you might have been drawn to this topic because you have an interest in addiction or in health. You might be most interested in learning how people get started vaping… is it true that flavored substances cause younger children to get hooked on vaping? You might in that case ask your series of questions of kids in high school or college. Or you could, alternatively, survey parents of young people who vape. Or maybe your interest is more in older vapers who continue the habit into adulthood. You might want to construct a series of questions that helps you understand why they started, or how they became addicted, whether they fully understand the health risks, etc. Or, more broadly, you might want to ascertain general attitudes toward vaping – do people see it as a social problem? Are they concerned about the possible burden on taxpayers if vapers develop serious illnesses like smokers have done? Is there a need for more social services focused on treating or avoiding vaping addiction? This is the level at which you should begin your thinking about your survey.