Course Outline: Psychology 325

Course Information

  • Department: Psychology
  • Prepared By: Psychology Department
  • Prepared Date: Fall 2017
  • Course Title: Principles of Survey Research
  • Course Code: PSY 325
  • Credits: 3
  • Contact hours: 45

Catalog Description

This course covers the basic principles of survey research related to the design, evaluation, implementation, and analysis of surveys.  Students will be introduced to the skills and resources needed to conduct quality survey research.  The course is focused on the Tailored Design Method and emphasizes the customization of survey procedures for each survey situation.  The course will cover the complete procedure of survey research including an introduction to different types of surveys, the development of survey instruments, an evaluation of reliability and validity, guidelines for implementation, sampling procedures, methods to increase response rate and reduce errors, and data entry, analysis, and reporting. Prerequisite(s): PSY 248 Credits: 3 (3,0)

  • Prerequisites: PSY 248
  • Required For: None                
  • Elective For: All curricula with upper level social science elective.
  • Required Texts: Ruel, E., Wagner, W.E., & Gillespie, B.J. (2016).  The Practice of Survey Research.  Sage Publications

Course Description

This course covers the basic principles of survey research related to the design, evaluation, implementation, and analysis of surveys. Students will be introduced to the skills and resources needed to conduct quality survey research. The course is focused on the Tailored Design Method and emphasizes the customization of survey procedures for each survey situation. The course will cover the complete procedure of survey research including an introduction to different types of surveys, the development of survey instruments, an evaluation of reliability and validity, guidelines for implementation, sampling procedures, methods to increase response rate and reduce errors, and data entry, analysis, and reporting.

Behavioral Objectives

  1. Utilize the tailored design method
  2. Develop survey objectives
  3. Design a user-friendly survey layout
  4. Assess psychometrics of the survey instrument
  5. Write an effective survey cover letter
  6. Develop valid survey items and response scales
  7. Use non-probability and probability sampling 
  8. Administer surveys in various formats
  9. Increase survey response rate
  10. Create and administer an electronic survey
  11. Perform basic analysis using statistical software 
  12. Report survey results using descriptive statistics

Course Outline

Module 1:  An Introduction to Survey Research

  • The history of survey research and new developments
  • Ethical issues in survey research
  • The Tailored Design Method
  • Types of surveys
  • Purposes and applications of survey research

Module 2:  Designing Survey Research

  • Developing a research question and survey objectives
  • Developing an introduction and cover letter
  • Design, layout, and format of the survey instrument
  • Organization and question sequence
  • Types of questions and response scales
  • Developing and evaluating survey items

Module 3:  The Quality of Measurement

  • Evaluating survey quality
  • Assessing and reducing measurement error
  • Measuring reliability and validity
  • Pre-testing and pilot testing 

Module 4:  Survey Implementation

  • Guidelines for survey administration
  • Probability and non-probability sampling
  • Techniques to increase response rate and reduce sampling error
  • Technology for survey implementation

Module 5:  Data Collection, Analysis, and Reporting

  • Data entry, cleaning, and coding
  • Data analysis software
  • Common data analysis techniques
  • Reporting survey results
  • Data storage and maintenance

Course Activities

Assigned Readings

Each module is on based several textbook chapters and assigned readings.

Critical Thinking Discussion Posts

For each module, students will be asked to respond to a critical thinking question in an open discussion forum. These questions are designed to encourage students to think about critical issues in the survey process.

Tests

A multiple choice test will be administered for each module. Each test will have between 25 and 50 questions, depending on the content of the module.

Survey Project

The project is designed to provide students the opportunity to apply the knowledge gained throughout this course. Students will:

  • Deliverable 1: Develop a research question and define the survey objective(s).
  • Deliverable 2: Create a cover letter to accompany the survey instrument.
  • Deliverable 3: Develop the survey instrument including instructions.
  • Deliverable 4: Detail the sampling plan and describe how the survey will be administered. Administer the survey to a sample of respondents.
  • Deliverable 5: Analyze data and create a summary report of findings.

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