Reflective Report: Questionnaire Piloting & Administration at VU

This report reflects on the process of piloting a questionnaire for a consumer behavior survey on luxury goods consumption in the tourism sector, conducted by Victoria University. It details the rationale for choosing a face-to-face survey method, discussing its pros and cons, including cost-effectiveness and potential for biased responses. The report assesses the success of the administration, noting challenges like unanswered questions and respondent comprehension. Suggestions for improvement are offered, such as simplifying questions and ensuring participant privacy. Key lessons learned include the importance of ethical considerations and strengthening analytical skills. The author emphasizes the value of this experience in preparing for future research endeavors and highlights the need for privacy and clear communication in survey design and implementation.

Running head: BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS
Business Research Methods
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Rationale for the Research Method: Pros and Cons........................................................................2
Was it a success or failure?..............................................................................................................3
Suggestions for the administration..................................................................................................4
Changes made to the questionnaire before administering it to a larger group of respondents........5
Key lessons learnt from the process................................................................................................5
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
References........................................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
Consumer behaviour is one of the most important segments in the hospitality industry.
The industry mainly deals with the customer satisfaction rate. Victoria University has conducted
the survey on the luxury goods consumptions of the consumers in the tourism sector. We have
selected the quantitative data collection process for conducting face-to-face survey and identify
the diverse consumer perspectives (Taylor, Bogdan and DeVault 2015). The major focus of this
survey questionnaire was to identify cultural values, socio demographics, and shopping
motivations that can persuade the consumer to use the tourism services. We have maintained the
appropriate ethical manners in order to conduct the survey. In this report, we shall discuss the
rationale for selecting this type of research process. The discussion of the advantages and
disadvantages of this type of data collection process will be presented. The reflection on the
entire process will be provided in this study.
Rationale for the Research Method: Pros and Cons
In this research study, we have selected the face-to-face survey process for conducting
the research on this subject area. The questionnaire process is quite helpful in understanding the
perceptions of a group of population who are interested in dealing with the sophisticated and
luxurious tourism services. It is noticed that the formulation of the questionnaire is much cost
effective and gather the collective responses (Flick 2015). The responses determine the
effectiveness of the subject in terms of understanding the perceptions of the associated people.
On the other hand, it is noticeable that the quantitative survey method helps in gathering the
responses in a practical way. It selects a particular focus group to gather the responses and
calculate the data. While conducting the quantitative data, we face the obstacle due to the time

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constraints. This specific method produces the quicker result and reduces the risks of missing our
deadlines.
However, conducting this survey process was not an easier approach for us. We needed
to maintain the appropriate tactics to gather the responses from the participants. One of the major
disadvantages of this technique is the lack of integrity while responding back. It is noticeable that
the respondents are not always honest about their answer or they prefer to stay neutral
sometimes. This biasness is quite ineffective for generating the appropriate response. In fact, it
was difficult for us to differentiate between the understanding and interpretation of the data. In
many cases, it was observed that respondents failed to understand the actual purpose of the
question (Brinkmann 2014). The responses gathered from this survey process may not even
present the absolute emotions and feelings of the participants that made this research process
quite limited. During this survey process, I have observed that many respondents skipped
questions that were quite problematic for us to analyze appropriately. Therefore, it can be stated
that in spite of the easier and costs effectiveness of the method, we faced the difficulties as well
in gathering the appropriate responses from the participants.
Was it a success or failure?
Apparently, it is noticeable that the quantitative data collection process is a successful
procedure for gathering the collective response and analyzing the customer perceptions.
However, it is quite difficult practice for us since it required much involvement and maintenance
of the ethical parameter. The participants left some of the blanks unanswered. They simply
skipped the questions if they did not feel comfortable. They even sometimes ask the repeat
questions as they were unable to understand the questions on the questionnaire. We faced trouble

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with the missing data as they left the space blank (McPeake, Bateson and O'Neill 2014). It was
much problematic for us to assume the responses due to their biasness. The responses gathered
from the survey help in making the appropriate conclusion based on which the decision is needed
to be made. Moreover, the respondents took much time to fill the form and submit it to us.
Hence, it was much difficult to conduct the survey and interpret the data. However, the
administration associated with this process was quite cooperative due to which we could
properly generate the collective responses and separated under a particular segments. After
dividing the answers, we calculated the maximum responses on the diverse segments. The use of
the statistical data analysis method was quite effective for us to identify the perception of the
customers (Reinharz 2017). Hence, I can infer that the administrative procedure used in this
research was much successful.
Suggestions for the administration
Considering the situations faced during this face to face survey process, it is important to
adopt the appropriate technique prior to start the survey session. The administration department
needs to be much serious about the purpose of the research and prepare the questions according
to it. The questions include in the questionnaire need to be understandable to the participants that
they could easily select the right one (Humphries 2017). The administrative department needs to
even convey the purpose to the participants in a detailed manner that will help them to
understand the significance of the research. The rules and tactics used for answering the
questions are needed to be conveyed more specifically. It will be much helpful for them to
answer promptly and present their concerns if they face any difficulties in answering the
questions. The administrators need to assure the members about their privacy that would make
them more reliable in terms of presenting their answers without any hesitation (Saris and

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Gallhofer 2014). Maintaining these specifications would be much helpful in improving the
survey process in future.
Changes made to the questionnaire before administering it to a larger group of
respondents
We need to ensure some of the ethical consideration prior to distribute the questionnaire
to the respondents. We need to make the simplified questions that are quite understandable to the
respondents. The close ended questions are much suitable in such cases. The close ended
questions create the flexible approach that will make the participants comfortable to answer by
selecting from the multiple options. The responses determine the effectiveness of the subject in
terms of understanding the perceptions of the associated people. Therefore, the questions would
be relevant to the subject matter (Bryman and Bell 2015). It should be written in a simple
language and it should be synchronized systematically. The administrative department needs to
even convey the purpose to the participants in a detailed manner that will help them to
understand the significance of the research. Making the participants aware of the concept would
be quite effective in analyzing the diverse perceptions of the customers (Moser and Kalton
2017). The difficulty level of the questions will be lower and much effective that will strike on
the minds of the respondents. We shall concentrate on the appropriately used methods for
gathering responses from the participants.
Key lessons learnt from the process
This journey of conducting the survey among the participants was quite promising for
me. I could learn many lessons from the each step I have gone through during this research
process. It was noticeable that we understood the significance of prioritizing individual privacy

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concerns. It is important to maintain the anonymity of the participants to generate the sense of
reliability. When they were comfortable enough to share their experiences with us, it became
much beneficial for us to understand their perspective values. Moreover, I learnt about the ethical
concerns that I need to value in every research study. Even in future, I can use this knowledge to
gather the appropriate result and formulate the informative research study (Brace 2018). The
journey even helped me in strengthening my analytical skills. With the help of my group
members and other professors, I could gather the adequate knowledge about the similar studies.
We had even gathered the techniques of dealing with the larger population and analyzing their
responses to obtain idea about the subject matter. Hence, I can infer that the entire research study
has been much memorable for us that generate more confidence for the future research purposes.
Conclusion
This reflective report is formulated to share our experience in conducting the face to face
survey among the group of people who are interested in dealing with the luxurious services in the
tourism sector. I have identified that the questionnaire process is quite helpful in understanding
the perceptions of a group of population who are interested in dealing with the sophisticated and
luxurious tourism services. The administrative department needs to be more cautious while
framing the questions related to the subject matter. The questions are needed to be
understandable to the participants for understanding the significance. The administrative
department needs to even convey the purpose to the participants in a detailed manner that will
help them to understand the significance of the research. The responses determine the
effectiveness of the subject in terms of understanding the perceptions of the associated people.
Therefore, the questions would be relevant to the subject matter. It helped me in learning in-
depth analysis of the research process. The promising journey strengthened my skills for the

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future research. Moreover, it helped me in generating the knowledge regarding the privacy
concerns that are needed to be maintained while arranging a systematic survey process. This
journey will be much helpful for the future prospects and developing the knowledge regarding
the subject matter.

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References
Brace, I., 2018. Questionnaire design: How to plan, structure and write survey material for
effective market research. Kogan Page Publishers.
Brinkmann, S., 2014. Interview. In Encyclopedia of critical psychology (pp. 1008-1010).
Springer New York.
Bryman, A. and Bell, E., 2015. Business research methods. Oxford University Press, USA.
Flick, U., 2015. Introducing research methodology: A beginner's guide to doing a research
project. Sage.
Humphries, B., 2017. Re-thinking social research: anti-discriminatory approaches in research
methodology. Taylor & Francis.
McPeake, J., Bateson, M. and O'Neill, A., 2014. Electronic surveys: how to maximise
success. Nurse Researcher (2014+), 21(3), p.24.
Moser, C.A. and Kalton, G., 2017. Survey methods in social investigation. Routledge.
Reinharz, S., 2017. On Becoming a Social Scientist: from survey research and participant
observation to Experimental Analysis. Routledge.
Saris, W.E. and Gallhofer, I.N., 2014. Design, evaluation, and analysis of questionnaires for
survey research. John Wiley & Sons.
Taylor, S.J., Bogdan, R. and DeVault, M., 2015. Introduction to qualitative research methods: A
guidebook and resource. John Wiley & Sons.