Key Notes: Collection of Data | Economics Class 11 - Commerce PDF Download

Mode of Data Collection

Data are collected in the following ways:

• Personal Interviews- Personal interviews are face-to-face conversations where the researcher asks questions to the responder. It is advantageous in the sense that it can be an elaborative discussion, misunderstandings can be avoided, the study can be explained in detail, long answers can be asked and the opinion of the responder can be understood. But, it has some cons such as the process becomes lengthy, it can be expensive, trained interviewers are required and the presence of the interviewer might make the respondent uncomfortable.
• Mailing Questionnaire- This process follows sending of a questionnaire by email to the required people and they are asked to submit it at a specific time and date. Perks of this method are that it is less expensive, more people can be reached out, it gives time to respondents to think about the issue, and the presence of the interviewer cant influence the answers of the respondents. Cons of this process are that it can lead to misunderstanding of questions and it can lead to low responses since the mail can get lost, the form can be submitted without a response, etc.
• Telephone interviews- Interviews conducted via telephone are telephone/telephonic interviews. The advantages of telephone interviews are that they are cheaper than personal interviews and can be conducted in a shorter time. They allow the researcher to assist the respondent by clarifying the questions. The disadvantage of this method is access to people, as many people may not own telephones.
• Pilot Survey- Once the questionnaire is prepared, it has to be tried with a small group which is known as a pilot survey or pre-testing.It helps in pre-testing of the questionnaire, so as to know the shortcomings and drawbacks of the questions. A pilot survey also helps in assessing the suitability of questions, clarity of instructions, the performance of enumerators, and the cost and time involved in the actual survey.

Census and Sample Surveys

• Census or Complete Enumeration- A survey, which includes every element of the population, is known as the Census or the Method of Complete Enumeration. If certain agencies are interested in studying the total population in India, they have to obtain information from all the households in rural and urban India. It is carried out every ten years.
• Population and Sample- A population is always all the individuals/items who possess certain characteristics (or a set of characteristics), according to the purpose of the survey. The first task in selecting a sample is to identify the population. Once the population is identified, the researcher selects a method of studying it. If the researcher finds that survey of the whole population is not possible, then he/ she may decide to select a Representative Sample. A sample refers to a group or section of the population from which information is to be obtained.
• Random Sampling- Random sampling is one where the individual units from the population (samples) are selected at random. In random sampling, every individual has an equal chance of being selected.
• Non-random Sampling- In a non-random sampling method all the units of the population do not have an equal chance of being selected and convenience or judgment of the investigator plays an important role in the selection of the sample. They are mainly selected on the basis of judgment, purpose, convenience, or quota and are non-random samples.

Census of India and NSSO

• There are some agencies both at the national and state level to collect, process, and tabulate the statistical data. Some of the agencies at the national level are the Census of India. The Census of India provides the most complete and continuous demographic record of the population. The Census is being regularly conducted every ten years since 1881. The Census officials collect information on various aspects of the population such as the size, density, sex ratio, literacy, migration, rural-urban distribution, etc. Census data is interpreted and analyzed to understand many economic and social issues in India.
• NSS stands for National Sample Survey. The NSS was established by the Government of India to conduct nationwide surveys on socio-economic issues. The data collected by NSS are released through reports and its quarterly journal Sarvekshana. NSS provides periodic estimates of literacy, school enrolment, utilization of educational services, employment, unemployment, manufacturing and service sector enterprises, morbidity, maternity, child care, and utilization of the public distribution system.