- Research methods

Validity

Representativeness/generalisability

Ethical issues

Practical issues

Respondents may not understand the questions, causing them to select an answer at random, reducing validity

The choice of answers may not truly reflect the respondents thoughts and feelings, reducing validity

The presence of the interviewer might result in interviewer bias and respondents may give socially accepted answers rather telling the truth

A rigid interview schedule can limit the opportunity for the respondent to explain or discuss their answers

Respondents may not answer honestly - may say the socially acceptable answer, leading to a loss of validity

Dominant groups members will reduce validity, as well the fact that some respondents may be affected by social desirability.

A researcher has to rely on their memory of events and who said what

In everyday life we do not expect those who they are with to be taking notes on their lives making it less valid as people will be acting differently

By remaining on the edge of a group, not joining in, then the researcher is not fully experiencing their life making it less valid as they are not getting the whole picture

Postal questionnaires have a poor response rate (below 50%), this is also the case with questionnaires that respondents can complete at their leisure, both may go unreturned, and this reduces representativeness.

They are less reliable because they are not replicable, this is because open questionnaires produce answers which are written in the respondents’ own words.

The interviews are not standardised so the data may be less reliable.

As it is a small group this is unlikely to be representative of the issue

Keeping the same group is difficult, resulting in a smaller, less representative sample.

Not everyone will keep letters or diaries and, if they do they would probably be different so it is unreliable.

The nature of what is written can be affected by the intended audience. May not be representative of the population as a whole.

Respondents may not tell the truth– less valid and unsuitable for sensitive topics

Participants may feel uncomfortable in group setting, making it less ethical and less valid as they are less likely to be truthful and freely express themselves

The question of how far the researcher should become involved, especially in deviant activity remains

There are more practical issues e.g. an open questionnaire takes up more time and therefore costs a lot of money.

It's more time consuming than a questionnaire

The interviewer needs to be highly skilled which would need to take time and money

More complicated when analysing and collating information as it is time consuming

Moderator must be skilled which make is less practical

Gaining access to the group and becoming part of it

Practical problem of access can be overcome by finding a gatekeeper, but the safety of researchers is at risk, and there is a danger of ‘going native.’ e.g. in his study of a Glasgow gang, Patrick was expected to participate in illegal activities.

The question of how far the researcher should become involved, especially in deviant activity remains

The Hawthorne Effect is more likely to occur if the group is aware of the presence and purpose of the researcher, which affects validity

The ethnicity, age and sex of both the respondent and the interviewer may affect the answer, which can affect validity