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262 DATA COLLECTION METHODS

4. Explain the principles of wording, stating how these are important in questionnaire
design, citing examples not in the book.
5. What are projective techniques and how can they be profitably used?
6. How are multiple methods of data collection and from multiple sources related to the
reliability and validity of the measures?
7. “Every data collection method has its own built-in biases. Therefore, resorting to mul-
timethods of data collection is only going to compound the biases.” How would you
critique this statement?
8. “One way to deal with discrepancies found in the data obtained from multiple sources
is to average the figures and take the mean as the value of the variable.” What is your
reaction to this?
9. How has the advancement in technology helped data gathering?
10. How will you use the data from observational study to reach scientific conclusions?
11. The fewer the biases in measurement and in data collection procedures, the more sci-
entific the research. Comment on this statement.

EXERCISES
Exercise 10.1 A production manager wants to assess the reactions of the blue-collar workers in his
department (including foremen) to the introduction of computer-integrated manufacturing
(CIM) systems. He is particularly interested to know how they would perceive the effects
of CIM on:
a. their future jobs
b. additional training that they will have to receive
c. future job advancement.
Design a questionnaire for the production manager.

Exercise 10.2 Seek permission from a professor to sit in two sessions of his or her class, and do an
unstructured, nonparticipant-observer study. Give your conclusions on the data, and
include in the short report your observation sheets and tabulations.

Exercise 10.3 First conduct an unstructured and later a structured interview, with any professor not
known to you, to learn about his or her values and strategy in teaching courses. Write up
the results, and include the formats you used for both stages of the research.
Exercise 10.4 The president of Serakan Co. suspects that most of the 500 male and female employees
of the organization are somewhat alienated from work. He is also of the view that those
who are more involved (less alienated) are also the ones who experience greater satis-
faction with their work lives.
Design a questionnaire the president could use to test his hypothesis.

Exercise 10.5 Design an interview schedule to assess the “intellectual capital” as perceived by employees
in an organization—the dimensions and elements for which you had earlier developed.