Back to the full dot-point answer
EnglandSociologyQuick questions
Researching and understanding social inequalities (Component 2)
Quick questions on Surveys, questionnaires and interviews - OCR A-Level Sociology Component 2
4short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What are questionnaires?Show answer
Questionnaires are practically strong: they are cheap, quick and can reach large, representative samples, which positivists value for finding patterns in inequality. Their standardised questions make them reliable and repeatable. Their weaknesses are theoretical and practical: low validity (respondents may misunderstand questions or give socially desirable answers), low response rates, and no chance to probe or clarify.
What are interviews?Show answer
All interviews face the interviewer effect: the interviewer's age, gender, ethnicity or manner can influence the answers given, threatening validity.
What is q1?Show answer
Outline two limitations of using questionnaires. [4 marks]
What is q2?Show answer
Outline and explain two reasons why a positivist might prefer structured interviews. [10 marks]
Have a question we have not covered?
This dot-point answer is short enough that we have not extracted many short questions yet. Read the full dot-point answer or ask Mo, our study assistant, in the chat for follow ups.