KEY TERMS
Information collected first-hand by the researcher for their investigation
Primary data
80 Year 12 students complete the same written questions about their study habits
Questionnaire
72% of students use social media for more than 3 hours per day
Quantitative data
Don’t you agree that Year 12 is extremely stressful?
Leading/biased question
Give ONE advantage of a questionnaire
Efficient for large samples / easy to compare responses / quick collection
Information already collected or published by another person or organisation
Secondary data
A researcher watches children playing and records how often they cooperate
Observation
Students describe in their own words how social media affects their wellbeing
Qualitative data
A researcher surveys only five close friends but claims the results represent all Year 12 students
Small/unrepresentative sample
Give ONE limitation of an interview
Time-consuming / interviewer bias / usually smaller sample
The consistency of a research method and whether similar procedures would produce similar results
Reliability
A researcher asks young carers detailed questions about how caring affects their school life
Interview
A student uses ABS statistics about youth employment. Identify BOTH types of data.
Secondary and quantitative
A researcher secretly records an interview without telling the participant
Ethical issue – lack of informed consent/privacy
You want to investigate how Year 12 students feel about HSC pressure. Which method would be particularly appropriate and why?
Interview – allows detailed qualitative responses about feelings and experiences
The extent to which research actually investigates what it intends to investigate
Validity
A researcher investigates one family's experience of moving from Sydney to a remote community in considerable depth
Case study
Interviews ask six parents open-ended questions about balancing work and family. Identify the main data type AND one advantage.
Qualitative; provides detailed/rich information
A researcher only reports answers that support their original opinion. Identify the problem AND likely effect
Researcher bias; may distort findings/reduce validity
Give TWO strategies that could improve the reliability of a questionnaire
Same questions/instructions; standardised administration; pilot testing; clear wording
Explain the difference between anonymity and confidentiality
Anonymity means identity isn't known/recorded; confidentiality means identifying information is protected from disclosure
A student examines AIHW reports, ABS statistics and journal articles before conducting their own research
Literature review
A questionnaire contains rating scales AND open-ended questions. What data could it collect?
Both quantitative and qualitative
A study investigating HSC stress only asks students how many sports they play. Identify the major problem AND explain it
Poor validity – the questions don't adequately investigate HSC stress
“Does part-time employment affect Year 12 students' wellbeing?” Propose a method, sample, data type AND one ethical consideration
Answers vary; e.g. questionnaire + representative Year 12 sample + quantitative/qualitative data + informed consent/confidentiality