From an expert team in the research methods field, RESEARCH METHODS: THE ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE BASE, 2nd Edition, is written specifically for users who are new to research methods. The book streamlines and clarifies explanations of fundamental, yet difficult, concepts in a familiar, engaging style. Readers learn about the relationship between theory and practice, which helps them become better researchers and better consumers of research.

(view table of contents)

A guide to conducting sample survey research, explaining major components such as constructing the survey instrument and administering the entire survey process. The authors explain how to conduct a survey research project and how this method can be applied in various fields.

Features the essential methodologies and statistical tools for developing reliable and valid survey questionnaires Modern survey design requires the consideration of many variables that will ultimately impact the quality of the collected data. Design, Evaluation, and Analysis of Questionnaires for Survey Research outlines the important decisions that researchers need to make throughout the survey design process and provides the statistical knowledge and innovative tools that are essential when approaching these choices. Over fifteen years of survey design research has been referenced in order to conduct a meta-analysis that not only unveils the relationship between individual question characteristics and overall questionnaire quality, but also assists the reader in constructing a questionnaire of the highest relevance and accuracy. Among the book's most outstanding features is its introduction of Survey Quality Prediction (SQP), a computer program that predicts the validity and accuracy of questionnaires based on findings from the meta-analysis. Co-developed by the authors, this one-of-a-kind software is available via the book's related Web site and provides a valuable resource that allows researchers to estimate a questionnaire's level of quality before its distribution. In addition to carefully outlining the criteria for high quality survey questions, this book also: Defines a three-step procedure for generating questions that measure, with high certainty, the concept defined by the researcher Analyzes and details the results of studies that used Multitrait-Multimethod (MTMM) experiments to estimate the reliability and validity of questions Provides information to correct measurement error in survey results, with a chapter focusing specifically on cross-cultural research Features practical examples that illustrate the pitfalls of traditional questionnaire design Includes exercises that both demonstrate the methodology and help readers master the presented techniques Design, Evaluation, and Analysis of Questionnaires for Survey Research succeeds in illustrating how questionnaire design influences the overall quality of empirical research. With an emphasis on a deliberate and scientific approach to developing questionnaires, this book is an excellent text for upper-level undergraduate or beginning graduate-level survey research courses in business and the social sciences, and it also serves as a self-contained reference for survey researchers in any field.

Frosty the Snowman arranges to bring back the cold for one day so that his friend Mary, who was sick all winter, can play with him in the snow

A Companion to Survey Research provides a critical overview and guide to survey methods. Rather than a set of formulas, survey design is understood as a craft where the translation of research questions into a questionnaire, sample design and data collection strategy is based on understanding how respondents answer questions and their willingness to complete a survey. Following an account of the invention of survey research in the 1930s, a synthesis of research on question design is followed by a practical guide to designing a questionnaire. Chapters on sampling, which deal with the statistical basis of survey sampling and practical design issues, are followed by extensive discussions of survey pretesting and data collection. The book concludes with a discussion of the extent and implications of falling response rates. This book is written for researchers, analysts and policy makers who want to understand the survey data they use, for researchers and students who want to conduct a survey, and for anyone who wants to understand contemporary survey research.

This book introduces the latest methods for assessing the quality and validity of survey data by providing new ways of interpreting variation and measuring error. By practically and accessibly demonstrating these techniques, especially those derived from Multiple Correspondence Analysis, the authors develop screening procedures to search for variation in observed responses that do not correspond with actual differences between respondents. Using well-known international data sets, the authors show how to detect all manner of non-substantive variation from response styles including acquiescence, respondents' failure to understand questions, inadequate field work standards, interview fatigue, and even the manufacture of (partly) faked interviews.

Serving as a comprehensive guide for anyone wishing to conduct online survey research, this book fills a considerable niche in the methodological literature. While other research methods texts contain chapters covering online administration of surveys, few adequately address the specific opportunities and challenges inherent in conducting surveys online.

In this important book, the authors explore what answers mean in relation to how people understand the world around them and communicate with one another. They offer practical and theoretical insights that will prove invaluable when developing questionnaires.