A Computer Simulation Approach to the Teaching Of Mail Survey Strategy Alternatives and Choice

Abstract

It is customary for marketing research textbooks to describe three modes of survey data collection: personal interview, telephone interview, or mail questionnaire. These three methods are often compared across considerations assumed to be for most in the researcher’s mind. Boyd and Westfall (1972), for example, discuss differences on the bases of flexibility, amount of information obtained, accuracy of Information obtained, sampling considerations, speed, cost, and quality control. They conclude with the recommendation that accuracy of information should be the primary criterion, and speed and cost should determine the choice if the researcher believes that sufficient accuracy will result from two or more methods. Other texts contain similar discussions of relative advantages and disadvantages. It has been the author’s experience that students frequently level and sharpen this information into the conclusions that personal interviews are costly, telephone interviews are inflexible and mail surveys do not obtain sufficient responses.