1. Review the approaches discussed in your text for collecting quantitative data and determine which (sampling, observation, or interview) might be best suited for your study. Explain your decision.
When conducting interviews why is it critical to develop specific interview questions?
Is it useful to include scaled questions (e.g., Likert scale such as 1 to 5) as part of your structured interview questions? Why or why not?
Should open-ended questions be included? Why or why not?
What are useful data sources for conducting historical research?
2. In writing the cover letter to accompany a survey, novice researchers often stress the immediacy of their need for the data. Is this the best approach to take in the cover letter? If not, what do you recommend instead?
3. The authors of your textbook suggest that sampling bias is virtually unavoidable and that it is important to disclose and discuss possible sources of bias in the study report. Do you agree? Explain your position.
4. Under what circumstances would a researcher choose a longitudinal study over a cross-sectional study? Give a specific example of a question that could be addressed with a longitudinal study and explain why that developmental design is preferred.
