Questionnaire Validation For Quantitative Researchers

This course teach questionnaire validation for students and lecturers conducting quantitative research at University

What you'll learn
Understand the general structure of the questionnaire and tips for questionnaire design
How the process of scale construction for a questionnaire works
How to determine validated constructs for a questionnaire with Exploratory Factor Analysis(EFA)
How to test reliability of the items of a construct in a questionnaire with the Cronbach Alpha coefficient
How to choose a validated scale for your questionnaire when conducting the literature study
Use the pilot study for pre-testing the questionnaire
Requirements
Quantitative researchers busy with a postgraduate degree or lecturing.
Description
“To consult the statistician after an experiment is finished, is often merely to ask him to conduct a post mortem examination. He can perhaps say what the experiment died of.” This quote is from the famous Statistician, Ronald Fisher. In order to avoid using a questionnaire or research instrument that is not valid or reliable and therefore not be able to do the statistical analyses, this course is developed.The lessons in this course is developed from 20 years of experience as a consulting Statistician at various Universities in South Africa.Testing perceptions with Likert scale statements in a questionnaire must be arranged as constructs(concepts) also called dimensions or factors in order to test some theory. The constructs of a scale that is used in any questionnaire for quantitative research, must be valid and reliable, before scores can be calculated which would be used as variables in the statistical analyses.  These variables will then be used when answering research questions or testing hypotheses.For example, the Technology Acceptance Model(TAM) used in the Information science field, consists of the validated constructs: ease of use, usefulness, attitude and intention. These constructs forms the Technology Acceptance scale that is used in a questionnaire.  For each of these constructs(ease of use, usefulness, attitude and intention) a few Likert scale statements will be used.This questionnaire with the TAM scale will then be distributed and the results analysed by using the TAM model to test the acceptance of new technology. This course will teach the participant to determine valid and reliable constructs to use in their own questionnaire.The following topics are discussed in this course: General questionnaire design and tipsThe use of Exploratory Factor Analysis for construct validation.  The use of the Cronbach Alpha coefficient to test reliability of constructs in the questionnaire. How to choose a validated questionnaire when conducting the literature study. The pre-testing of the questionnaire. A practical example from a PhD.

Overview

Section 1: Introduction to questionnaire design

Lecture 1 Introduction

Lecture 2 Structure of the questionnaire

Lecture 3 General tips for questionnaire design

Section 2: Validation of constructs in a questionnaire

Lecture 4 Construct validity

Lecture 5 Construct validity continued

Lecture 6 Construct reliability

Lecture 7 Construct reliability continued

Section 3: The scale construction process

Lecture 8 The scale construction process

Section 4: How to choose a validated scale when conducting the literature study

Lecture 9 Choose a validated scale

Section 5: The Pilot questionnaire

Lecture 10 The pilot questionnaire

Section 6: Exercises and conclusions

Lecture 11 ABC example study explained

Lecture 12 A practical example with the The ABC study

Lecture 13 Conclusions

Lecture 14 References for rules of thumb used in this course

Lecture 15 Credits for developing the course

Lecture 16 Checklist for the questionnaire

Section 7: Next steps

Lecture 17 Next steps: bonus lecture

Quantitative researchers using or intending to use a questionnaire as research instrument.