Limitation of Questionnaires as Research Method

Question: Discuss about theLimitation of Questionnaires as Research Method. Answer: Introduction Questionnaires are a method used in research, which is widely popular. Specially in cases of where the sample size and the information to be gathered needs to be large in quantity to gain some understanding of the research topic and make sure the bigger picture is being considered the questionnaire provides an efficient way of gathering large amount of data in short time. However, there are issues that might be raised about the validity of this method of research as the questions are fixed and the respondents are not free to speak their mind (Wright, 2005). Although the open ended questionnaire might give the respondents to voice their opinions about the particular topic being asked about it mostly consists justification of their choices and thus is not very helpful in raising the functionality and usefulness of the method of conducting research. Disadvantages of Questionnaires The questionnaires in many cases are able to represent the opinion of the respondents but in many cases, the answers are inadequate resource to judge some factors like emotion and behaviour (Bordens Abbott, 2002). If the respondent is not aware of the reason behind their own behaviour, they cannot possibly answer about any reason for their actions. There is a certain amount of influence of the researcher into the outcome of the research if the questionnaire methods are used. This is more evident in close ended questionnaire than the open ended ones as although the topic is fixed the respondents are somewhat free to express their responses (Bradburn et al., 1992). By the use of the responses, the characteristic and mentality of the respondent can be guessed. The researcher is also free in these cases to influence the outcome of the research. However unconsciously they might do it, it will have a definite impact of the research outcome. This can be done by asking specific questions and ignoring other important ones that might help in the interpretation of the response to the question. The researcher usually often chooses the questions for the questionnaire that he deems important so asking the right questions might be subject to the judgement of the researcher. Therefore the as the skills of the researcher and their views vary this might affect the validity and accuracy of the research. The truthfulness and attention of the respondents might also affect the results of the research, as the respondent might not answer truthfully in the questionnaire (Lerner et al., 2001). Even if their motive is not to misguide the researcher, they might do so unconsciously by not thinking of the concept in the context the researcher is asking the questions. The respondent also might not give enough thought to the questions and the answers might not reflect their true opinion or decisions based on the scenario presented. The validity of the process of the research by using questionnaires is not accurate as the questions that are asked might be unconsciously or deliberately focus on one aspect of the study as no explanation of why a question is being asked are given (Oppenheim, 2000). This might lead to a researcher asking specific questions that will put a research topic in either good or bad light and make a specific impression. This is the most valid risk as the questionnaire does not provide explanation on the significance of a question in the questionnaire and nor does it provide reason for asking a specific question. Effect on the Research in Hospitality Industry In the hospitality industry, the research conducted by the use of questionnaire as a tool for unearthing data about the customer and the business is tricky proposition because of the issues that might be raised by the use of the questionnaire method. One of the issues is the availability of the information and subjectivity in the case of the different customers of the same business or the people connected with different businesses (Woodward Chambers, 1983). The general picture about a scenario that might influence the industry at a specific location as whole cannot be believed if it had been discovered by research using questionnaire method. The customers of the one social class might have vastly different opinions from the ones from others and the same can be said for the establishments that cater to different customers and their employees. The result if used in the decision making process might be affected by the lack of reliability and subjectivity based on the venue. Therefore, to make successful business decisions one establishment in the tourism and hospitality industry one has to conduct a study on the customers and environment and services of the specific establishment (Brace, 2008). The method of using questionnaires is not suitable for the hotel and hospitality industry as the respondents and their opinion from a lot of establishments might make understanding of the topic much easier which is the main benefit of the questionnaire method but it is inapplicable because of the variety of opinions of the different customers. Some customer might think one hotel too costly but one might think they are justified in charging the amount in light of the services they offer. Conclusion From the essay, it is clear that there are many benefits to the questionnaire method of conducting research. However, there are many limitations in the research method, which makes this inapplicable in some scenarios (Goodman, 1997). Therefore, the validity and reliability of the method of research using questionnaires is in question in many cases. One of the cases is the hotel and hospitality industry. 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