SURVEY RESEARCHTime budget survey A specialized type in which
respondents record details about the timing and dura-
tion of their activities over a period of time.Disadvantages.An unusual disadvantage of Web
surveys is that they are cheap and easy. As Weisberg
(2005:38) remarked: “Putting a poll up on the Inter-
net can be inexpensive, so many groups put up polls
without paying attention to quality.” Web surveys
have three disadvantages or areas of concern: cov-
erage, privacy and verification, and design issues.
The first concern involves sampling and unequal
access to and use of the Internet. Older, less edu-
cated, low-income, and rural people are less likely
to have access, and a majority without access now
say that they do not plan to acquire it in the future.
In addition, many people have multiple e-mail
addresses.
A second concern involves protecting respon-
dent privacy. Secure Web sites with passwords or
PINs and high confidentiality protection can help.
Respondent verification is needed to ensure that the
sampled respondent alone participates and only
once.
A third concern involves design complexity
and flexibility. The compatibility of various Web
software and hardware combinations must be veri-
fied. We are just beginning to learn the most effec-
tive way to design Web surveys. For example, it
appears best to provide one or a few questions per
screen, making the entire question visible on the
screen at one time in a consistent format with drop-
down boxes for answer choices. It is best to include
a progress indicator (as motivation) such as a clock
or symbol indicating progress (how far respondents
have gone and how much questionnaire remains).
Keeping visual appearance simple (limited colors
and fonts) and maintaining consistency is best. Very
clear instructions are needed for any computer
action (e.g., use of drop-down screens) and they
should include “click here” instructions. Also, mak-
ing it easy for respondents to move back and forth
across questions is best. Providing detailed ques-
tions and a large space for answers in open-ended
questions on Internet surveys helps elicit longer and
more complete answers. Avoiding technical glitches
and “bugs” at the implementation stage with dedi-
cated servers and sufficient broadband to handle
demand is important.^56Special Situations
There are many kinds of special surveys. One is a
survey of organizations (e.g., businesses, schools).
We write questions to ask about the organization but
also to learn who in the organization has necessary
information. Making the significance of the survey
clear is also essential because officials in an organ-
ization receive many requests for information and
do not answer all of them.
Surveying white-collar elites requires special
techniques.^57 Powerful leaders in business, the
media, and government are difficult to reach. Assis-
tants frequently intercept mail questionnaires or
restrict access to face-to-face or telephone inter-
viewing. One way to facilitate access is to have a
respected source call or send a letter of introduc-
tion. After making an appointment, the researcher
him- or herself, not a hired interviewer, needs to
conduct the interview. Personal interviews with a
high percentage of open-ended questions are usu-
ally more successful than those with all closed-
ended questions. Confidentiality is a crucial issue
because elites often have information that few oth-
ers do and are very sensitive about being identified
as having provided specific information.
The time budget surveyis a special type used
to study how people allocate their time. Studies of
urban planning, the gender division of labor, qual-
ity of life, mass media usage, and leisure use time
budget surveys. A respondent to a time budget sur-
vey agrees to record her or his activities in detail
over several days, usually in a diary, noting activi-
ties for each 10- or 15-minute period. For example,
about 10 years ago, several professors who work at
my university were asked to be part of a time budget
survey. Government officials who wanted to learn
how much time professors devoted to academic
work activities initiated the survey. The professors
filled in a detailed diary, recording what they did for
each 15-minute period at home and work for a two-
week period. The officials thought that professors