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MULTIMETHODS OF DATA COLLECTION 257

face and discussed during such interviews. On the negative side, face-to-face
interviews have the potential for introducing interviewer bias and can be expen-
sive if a large number of subjects are involved. Where several interviewers
become necessary, adequate training becomes a necessary first step.
Face-to-face interviews are best suited at the exploratory stages of research
when the researcher tries to get a handle on concepts or the situational factors.
Telephone interviews help to contact subjects dispersed over various geo-
graphic regions and obtain immediate responses from them. This is an efficient
way of collecting data when one has specific questions to ask, needs the
responses quickly, and has the sample spread over a wide geographic area. On
the negative side, the interviewer cannot observe the nonverbal responses of the
respondents, and the interviewee can block a call.
Telephone interviews are best suited for asking structured questions where
responses need to be obtained quickly from a sample that is geographically spread.
Personally administering questionnaires to groups of individuals helps
to (1) establish rapport with the respondents while introducing the survey, (2)
provide clarifications sought by the respondents on the spot, and (3) collect the
questionnaires immediately after they are completed. In that sense, there is a
100% response rate. On the negative side, administering questionnaires person-
ally is expensive, especially if the sample is geographically dispersed.
Personally administered questionnaires are best suited when data are collected
from organizations that are located in close proximity to one another and groups
of respondents can be conveniently assembled in the company’s conference (or
other) rooms.
Mail questionnaires are advantageous when responses to many questions
have to be obtained from a sample that is geographically dispersed, or it is dif-
ficult or not possible to conduct telephone interviews without much expense. On
the negative side, mailed questionnaires usually have a low response rate and
one cannot be sure if the data obtained are biased since the nonrespondents may
be different from those who did respond.
The mailed questionnaire survey is best suited (and perhaps the only alterna-
tive open to the researcher) when information is to be obtained on a substantial
scale through structured questions, at a reasonable cost, from a sample that is
widely dispersed geographically.
Observational studies help to comprehend complex issues through direct
observation (either as a participant or a nonparticipant-observer) and then, if pos-
sible, asking questions to seek clarifications on certain issues. The data obtained
are rich and uncontaminated by self-report biases. On the negative side, they are
expensive, since long periods of observation (usually encompassing several weeks
or even months) are required, and observer bias may well be present in the data.
Because of the costs involved, very few observational studies are done in busi-
ness. Henry Mintzberg’s study of managerial work is one of the best known pub-
lished works that used an observational data collection method. Observational
studies are best suited for research requiring non–self-report descriptive data; that
is, when behaviors are to be understood without directly asking the respondents
themselves. Observational studies can also capture “in-the-stores buying behaviors.”