INSTRUMENTATION

By: Hazel Marianne L. Mariano

 INSTRUMENTATION
• important part of the research study
• quality of research output depends to a large
extent on the quality of research instruments
used
• two broad categories: research-completed
instruments and subject-completed instruments
 INSTRUMENTATION
Researcher – Completed Instruments
Rating Scales
Interview Schedules / Guides
Tally Sheets
Flowcharts
Performance Checklists
Time-and-Motion Logs
Observation Forms
 INSTRUMENTATION
Subject – Completed Instruments
Questionnaires
Self – Checklists
Attitude scales
Personality Inventories
Achievement / Aptitude Tests
Projective Devices
Sociometric Devices
 VALIDITY
• extent to which the instrument measures what it
intends to measure and performs as it is
designed to perform

• involves collecting and analyzing data to assess

the accuracy of an instrument.
 CONTENT VALIDITY
• the extent to which a research instrument
accurately measures all aspects of a construct

• Ex. Your teacher gives you a psychology test on

the psychological principles of sleep. This must
measure your knowledge or mastery of the
psychological priniciples of sleep.
 CONSTRUCT VALIDITY
• the extent to which a research instrument
measures the intended construct

• Ex. If a person has a high score on a survey that

measures anxiety does this person truly have a
high degree of anxiety?
 CRITERION VALIDITY
• the extent to which a research instrument is
related to other instruments that measure the
same variables

• how well one measure predicts an outcome for

another measure
 CRITERION VALIDITY
• A job applicant takes a performance test during
the interview process. If this test accurately
predicts how well the employee will perform on
the job, the test is said to have criterion validity.
 CRITERION VALIDITY
• A graduate student takes the GRE. The GRE has
been shown as an effective tool for predicting
how well a student will perform in graduate
studies.
 RELIABILITY
• the extent to which the instrument is consistent

• ability to obtain approximately the same

response when applied to respondents who are
similarly situated
 RELIABILITY
• when the instrument is applied at two different
points in time, the responses must highly
correlate with one another
TYPES OF DATA
 SOURCES OF DATA
• two sources:
primary sources
secondary sources
 PRIMARY DATA
• are also known as raw data which can be
collected from experimental research,
observation or questionnaire survey
 SECONDARY DATA
• are data obtained from reports, books, journals,
magazines, the web, and more
DATA COLLECTION
METHODS
 INTERVIEW
• begins with the assumption that the participants’
perspectives are meaningful and that their
perspectives affect the success of the project
 STRUCTURED INTERVIEW
• asks a standard set of questions

• follows a specific format with the same line of

questioning
 FACE TO FACE INTERVIEW
• most frequently used quantitative research
method

• establishes rapport with potential participants

and therefore gain their cooperation
 FACE TO FACE INTERVIEW
• allows to clarify ambiguous answers and when
appropriate, seek follow-up information

• impractical when large samples are involved,

time consuming and expensive
 TELEPHONE INTERVIEW
• less time consuming and less expensive
• response rate of this interview is not as high as
the face-to-face interview
• sample may be biased
 TELEPHONE INTERVIEW
• usage surveys
• customer satisfaction surveys
• exploration of the potential for new products or
services
 COMPUTER-ASSISTED
PERSONAL INTERVIEW
• instead of completing questionnaire, the
interviewer brings along a laptop to enter the
information directly into the database
• saves time involved in processing data
• requires that interviewers have typing skills
 INTERVIEW
• Structured Interview
• Face-to-Face Interview
• Telephone Interview
• Computer-Assisted Personal Interview
 OBSERVATION
• a way of gathering data by watching behavior,
events, or noting physical characteristics in their
natural setting
 OBSERVATION
• a way of gathering data by watching behavior,
events, or noting physical characteristics in their
natural setting

• respondents are unwilling or unable to provide

data through questionnaires or interviews
 OVERT VS COVERT
OBSERVATION
• Overt observation: when everyone knows they
are being observed

• Covert observation: when no one knows they are

being observed and the observer is concealed.
 OVERT VS COVERT
OBSERVATION
• The benefit of covert observation is that people
are more likely to behave naturally.

• However, you typically need to conduct overt

observations because of ethical problems related
to concealing your observation.
 DIRECT VS INDIRECT
OBSERVATION
• Direct observation: when you watch interactions,
processes or behaviors as they occur

• Indirect observation: when you watch the results

of interactions, processes or behaviors
 WAYS TO COLLECT
OBSERVATION DATA
• Recording sheets and checklists which are the
most standardized ways of collecting.

• Observation guides list the interactions,

processes, or behaviors to be observed.
 WAYS TO COLLECT
OBSERVATION DATA
• Field notes are the least standardized way of
collecting observation data and do not include
preset questions or responses. They are open-
ended narrative data that can be written or
dictated unto a tape recorder.
 TEST
• provide a way to assess subjects’ knowledge and
capacity to apply this knowledge to new
situations
 TEST
• may require respondents to choose among
alternatives like selecting a correct answer or an
incorrect answer, to cluster choices into like
groups, to produce shorts answers, or to write
extended responses
 NORM-REFERENCED TEST
• provide information on how the target performs
against a reference group or normative
population
 CRITERION-REFERENCED TEST
• determine whether or not the respondents have
attained mastery of a skill or knowledge area
 PROFICIENCY TEST
• provide an assessment against a level of skill
attainment, but includes standards for
performance at varying levels of proficiency,
typically a three- or four-point scale ranging from
below basic to advanced performance
 SECONDARY DATA
• has already been collected by someone else for a
purpose different from yours
• are collected by researchers, government and
private agencies, institutions or organizations, or
companies that provide important info for
government planning, policy recommendation
and theory generation
 SECONDARY DATA
• Philippine Statistics Office, Philippine Statistics
on Education, Department of Health,
Department of Budget and Management,
Commission on Audit and others
• World Bank, UNESCO, TIMSS, World Health
Organization, etc.
 SECONDARY DATA
• Where do the data come from?
• Do they cover the correct geographical location?
• Are they up-to-date or recent?
 SECONDARY DATA
• The usefulness of existing sources varies
depending on whether they are accessible and
accurate. When using such instruments, it is
advisable to do a quick scan to assess data
quality before undertaking extensive analysis.
 QUESTIONNAIRE
• helps extract data from respondents

• serves as a standard guide for the interviewers

who need to ask the questions in exactly the
same way
 QUESTIONNAIRE
• Introduction: It is the interviewer’s request for
help. It is normally scripted and lays out the
credentials of the purpose of the study and any
aspects of confidentiality.

• Respondent’s Identification Data: This includes

the respondent’s name, address and others.
 QUESTIONNAIRE
• Instruction: It refers to the interviewer ‘s
directions on how to move through the
questionnaire such as which questions to skip
and where to move to if certain answers are
given.
 QUESTIONNAIRE
• Information: It is the main body of the document
and is made up of the many questions and
response codes.
• Classification data and information: These
establish the important characteristics of the
respondent, particularly related to their
demographics.
 PAPER AND PENCIL
QUESTIONNAIRE
• can be sent to a large number of people and
saves the researcher time and money
• people are more truthful while responding to the
questionnaires regarding controversial issues in
particular due to the fact that their responses are
anonymous
 PAPER AND PENCIL
QUESTIONNAIRE
• majority of the people who receive
questionnaires don’t return them and those who
do might not be representative of the originally
selected sample
 WEB-BASED QUESTIONNAIRE
• a new and inevitably growing methodology using
the internet-based research

• receiving an e-mail on which you would click on

an address that would take you to a secure web-
site to fill in a questionnaire
 WEB-BASED QUESTIONNAIRE
• some disadvantages of this method include the
exclusion of people who do not have a computer
or access to the internet

• validity of such surveys is in question as people

might be in a hurry to complete it and so might
not give accurate responses.
 SELF-ADMINISTERED
QUESTIONNAIRE
• is generally distributed through mail, filled out
and administered by the respondents themselves
which is returned via mail to the researcher
 QUESTIONNAIRE
• A checklist is a list of behaviors, characteristics,
or other entities that the researcher is looking
for. Either the survey participant simply checks
whether each item on the list is observed,
present or true or vice versa.
 QUESTIONNAIRE
• A rating scale is more useful when a behavior
needs to be evaluated. This states the criteria
and provide three or more responses to describe
the quality or frequency of a behavior, skills,
strategies or variables of the study.