Small Business Framework - Research - The Legal Services Board

interview" multiple" respondents" to" capture" the" full" range" of" experience" of"
justiciable"issues,"but"larger"firms"can"be"expected"to"experience"large"numbers"
of" issues," making" questions" designed" to" enquire" about" relatively" rare" events"
inappropriate." The" questionnaires" set" out" in" the" appendices" are" therefore"
optimised"for"micro]businesses."
"
Duration!
An" important" consideration" is" interview/questionnaire" length" and" duration." It"
makes" up" one" of" four" key" elements" of" Bradburn’s" (1978)" model" of" response"
burden"(frequency"of"contact,"length"of"contact,"required"respondent"effort"and"
stress"of"disturbing"questions 29 )."Groves,"Cialdini"and"Couper"(1992)"go"further,"
highlighting" length" as" the" most" basic" element" of" response" burden," negatively"
correlated" with" response" rate." As" discussed" in" the" section" on" mode" of"
administration," different" modes" of" administration" lend" themselves" to" longer"
interviews/questionnaires," though" in" all" surveys" excessive" length" can" result" in"
low"cooperation"rates"(as"you"must"give"the"respondent"an"honest"appraisal"of"
how" long" the" interview/questionnaire" is" likely" to" take)" and" high" rates" of"
termination"(de"Leeuw"et"al."2008).""
" For"business"surveys,"it"may"be"that"survey"length"is"an"even"greater"issue"
(Hedlin"et"al."2005),"given"that"the"time"of"those"working"in"small"businesses"is"
likely" to" be" scarce," especially" when" compared" to" a" general" population" study"
where" a" significant" proportion" will" be" retired" or" not" in" employment."
Consideration"of"appropriate"survey"length"should"be"an"important"element"of"
piloting."
The"Small"Business"Research"Centre’s"(SBRC)"experience"suggests"that"it"
is" possible" to" develop" a" questionnaire" that" takes" one" hour" to" complete," when"
face]"to]face,"although"this"depends"on"the"topic"under"research."This"time"frame"
affects"the"number"and"complexity"of"the"questions"asked"of"the"respondents.""As"
with" all" survey" types" of" SMEs," the" limitation" is" the" actual" time" that" owner]
managers" are" prepared" to" devote" to" the" interview." " Owner]managers" are"
extremely" time]poor" and" interviewers" must" be" prepared" for" interruptions,"
cancellations" of" appointments" and" other" unforeseen" events." This" is" quite"
different"from"interviews"with"individual"consumers"of"advice."
The" SBRC’s" experience" suggests" that" it" is" possible" to" develop" a"
questionnaire" that" takes" 20" minutes" to" complete," by" telephone," although" this"
depends" on" the" topic" under" research." This" time" frame" affects" the" number" and"
complexity"of"the"questions"asked"of"the"respondents."
The" SBRC’s" experience" suggests" that" it" is" possible" to" develop" a"
questionnaire" that" takes" 10]15" minutes" to" complete," online," although" this"
depends" on" the" topic" under" research." This" time" frame" affects" the" number" and"
complexity"of"the"questions"asked"of"the"respondents."
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29"Questions"perceived"as"disturbing,"vacuous"or"time]wasting.""
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