SURVEY METHODOLOGY

Prof. Amar KJR Nayak

 SURVEY METHODOLOGY

What is a Survey?

What are the key features of this

Methodology?

What is the philosophical foundation of

Survey Methodology?

What are the basic statistical assumptions of

this methodology?
 What Is a Survey?

Survey is a means to get a prompt and accurate flow of

information on preferences, needs, and behavior. It is
in response to this critical need for information on the
part of the government, business, and social
institutions that so much reliance is placed on surveys.

"Survey" is used most often to describe a method

of gathering information from a sample of
individuals. This "sample" is usually just a fraction
of the population being studied.
 Census v/s Survey

The sample is not selected haphazardly or only

from persons who volunteer to participate. It is
scientifically chosen so that each person in the
population will have a measurable chance of
selection.

Who undertakes Survey?

 An Experience
Impact assessment of RLTAP
Drought Proofing, Poverty alleviation &
Quality of Life

8 schemes, 130 variables, 4500 respondents in

58 of the 80 blocks

Workshop – ‘Do not get into kaduo/mud’

Highly efficient method of research
Low Cost
Fast
Possibility of Generalization

Proper Sampling
Representative and Adequate (H & V)
Highly Clinical in Approach
Garbage in – Garbage out

Statistical Assumptions
Interpretation with caution
Philosophical Foundation of Survey Methodology

Ideational Perspective

V/s
Materialistic Perspective

Respondents say what they think

Application

Answers to questions like what?

 Conditions for good Survey
Sample size is significant
Sample is representative of the population
Principles of good estimation is followed
(unbiased, efficient, consistent, sufficient)

All respondents are sincere in their responses

Biases in the responses get normalized due to

proper sampling
 Criteria of a good Estimator

Unbiased
If the statistic tends to assume values that are above the
population parameter as frequently as it assumes values
that are below the population parameter.

Efficiency
It refers to the size of the standard error of the statistic
If we compare two statistics from a sample of the same size,
and try to decide which one is the more efficient estimator,
we would pick the statistic with the smaller standard error
 Consistency
If as the sample size increases, the statistic becomes
closer to the values of the population parameter, then
that statistic is consistent.

Sufficiency
An estimator is sufficient if it makes so much use of the
information in the sample that no other estimate could
extract from the sample, additional information about the
population parameter.
Some Basics of Survey
 Sampling & Estimation

Sampling

1. Simple random Sampling: equal probability of being

picked
2. Systematic Sampling: selected at an uniform
interval
3. Stratified Sampling: selected from homogeneous
groups / strata
4. Cluster Sampling: make clusters and choose
any one of them
 Statistical inference is based on
simple random sampling

Sampling Distribution:

¾ Sampling distribution of the mean:

A probability distribution of all the possible means of the

samples is a distribution of sample means.

¾Sampling distribution of the median:

¾Sampling distribution of the proportion:
How can we infer population characteristics
from a Sample?
 The Central Limit Theorem:

The mean of sampling distribution of the mean will equal

the population mean regardless of the sampling size, even
if the population is not normal.
As the sample size increases, the sampling distribution of
the mean will approach normality, regardless of the shape
of the population distribution.
The significance of the central limit theorem is that it
permits us to use sample statistics to make inferences
about population parameters, without knowing anything
about the shape of the frequency distribution of that
population other than what we can get from the sample.
 The sample frequency distribution:

x1 x2 x3 x4
Research Principles & Ethics
 Descriptive statistics
(parametric)

¾ Sample
¾ Population
¾Statistics
¾Parameter
¾Raw data, source, & authenticity
 Standard error:
The standard deviation of the distribution of a sample
statistic is known as the standard error of the
statistics.
Example: standard deviation of the distribution of sample
means is termed as standard error of the mean.

μ
σ = standard deviation of this distribution

The population distribution:

μ = the mean of the distribution
 The sampling distribution of the mean

μx

μx = mean of the sampling distribution of the means

σx = standard error of the mean
= standard deviation of the sampling distribution of mean
 Sampling from Normal Populations

Properties of the sampling distribution of the mean when

the population is normally distributed
μx = μ
σx = σ/√ n
Standard error of the mean for infinite population:
σx = σ/√ n

Standard error of the mean for finite populations:

σ (N - n)
σ x = ---- * √ ----------
√n n-1

With a finite population multiplier

 Standardizing the sample mean:

Standard score; standard deviation from the mean of a

standard normal probability distribution

x - μ
Z= -------
σx

Sample mean, population mean, standard error of the

mean
 Estimation

Reason for estimates: To make statistical inferences about the

population from a sample.
Types of estimate:

Point Estimate: It is a single number that is used to estimate

an unknown population parameter.
 Limitations

Often insufficient, right or wrong

Example: Total weight of students, CGPA of students in a

high school
Point estimate is more useful, if it is accompanied by an
estimate of the error that might be involved.

Interval Estimate: It is a range of values used to estimate

a population parameter.
 How Large Must The Sample Size Be?

The sample size required for a survey partly depends on

the statistical quality needed for survey findings

Much depends on the professional and financial resources

available.

For example, the well-known national polls frequently

use samples of about 1,000 persons to get reasonable
information about national attitudes and opinions
 ⎡ Zα ⎤
n = ⎢ 2
⎥ pq * DE
⎢⎣ E ⎥⎦

n = sample size
E = Margin of Error
DE = Design Factor
p = 0.5
q = 0.5

Surveys provide a speedy and economical means

of determining facts about our economy and about
people's knowledge, attitudes, beliefs,
expectations, and behaviors.
The recommended policy for survey organizations
to safeguard such confidentiality includes

Using only number codes to link the respondent to a

questionnaire and storing the name-to-code linkage
information separately from the questionnaires

Refusing to give the names and addresses of survey

respondents to anyone outside the survey organization,
including clients
Destroying questionnaires and identifying information
about respondents after the responses have been
entered into the computer

Omitting the names and addresses of survey

respondents from computer files used for analysis

Presenting statistical tabulations by broad enough

categories so that individual respondents cannot be
singled out