Five methods could be:-
• Conduct interviews
This is the most basic and probably the quickest method. Simply ask people what they think about an issue and see what they say. By predetermining the questions and responses, a picture should emerge. Responses should be within quantifiable levels - a range of numbers, 'yes, no, maybe' or A-E. This is a very important part of the process as otherwise the range of answers may be too vague to be easily quantified.
• Make a chart
By researching what observations you wish to make, you can draw up a chart. If you examined a school's feeling of well being, there could be three categories- excellent, average or good (and a large cross section of people polled: Most of the school). By making a chart and comparing it with other charts, a qualitative understanding of the issue can be made- the charts will show general rises and falls in the observations.
• Create a questionnaire
Simply by writing up a sheet of predetermined questions, combined with a set of quantifiable answers, an interview can be conducted with a sample group to establish their views.
• Use a computerized poll
This is effectively the questionnaire above, but displayed on a computer terminal, be it an internet site or on an intranet LAN. By computerizing the poll, a great deal of work is taken out of collating the results. There is no need to enter data into the computer as the sampling process has already done this.
• A show of hands
This is the most basic method. It can be elaborated upon to produce more complex results beyond simple 'Yes-No' requests, but the basic nature of a show of hands is either 'For' or 'Against', which is useful in getting a lot of raw data very quickly.
• Conduct interviews
This is the most basic and probably the quickest method. Simply ask people what they think about an issue and see what they say. By predetermining the questions and responses, a picture should emerge. Responses should be within quantifiable levels - a range of numbers, 'yes, no, maybe' or A-E. This is a very important part of the process as otherwise the range of answers may be too vague to be easily quantified.
• Make a chart
By researching what observations you wish to make, you can draw up a chart. If you examined a school's feeling of well being, there could be three categories- excellent, average or good (and a large cross section of people polled: Most of the school). By making a chart and comparing it with other charts, a qualitative understanding of the issue can be made- the charts will show general rises and falls in the observations.
• Create a questionnaire
Simply by writing up a sheet of predetermined questions, combined with a set of quantifiable answers, an interview can be conducted with a sample group to establish their views.
• Use a computerized poll
This is effectively the questionnaire above, but displayed on a computer terminal, be it an internet site or on an intranet LAN. By computerizing the poll, a great deal of work is taken out of collating the results. There is no need to enter data into the computer as the sampling process has already done this.
• A show of hands
This is the most basic method. It can be elaborated upon to produce more complex results beyond simple 'Yes-No' requests, but the basic nature of a show of hands is either 'For' or 'Against', which is useful in getting a lot of raw data very quickly.
