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Class 11 Statistics Notes · GSEB

Methods of Collecting Primary Data

Methods of Collecting Primary Data — understand direct inquiry, indirect inquiry, and questionnaire method with advantages and disadvantages. GSEB Class 11 Statistics notes.

Last updated: 11 Jul 2026

Notes

The Three Methods — Overview

There are many popular methods for the collection of primary data. Commonly used methods are: direct inquiry, indirect inquiry, inquiry by telephone or E-mail, method of questionnaire, inquiry by local news reporters. We shall study the following three methods.

In this method an investigator himself or an enumerator appointed by him visits personally to the field and collects the necessary information. The information obtained by this method is called data collected by direct inquiry.

Examples:

  • If a person wants to collect data about the condition of farmers of Sanand taluka of Ahmedabad district, he must go to Sanand taluka, contact the farmers and obtain the data regarding their condition.
  • A person interested in knowing the health status of the students of municipality schools of Ahmedabad city personally meets the students and asks questions pertaining to their health.

Advantages:

  • The data obtained by this method are accurate and reliable.
  • Due to face to face interviews with respondents, enumerators can solve any question or doubt or any confusion by giving proper explanation.
  • By personal interview enumerator sometimes gets supplementary information of the respondents which may be useful at the time of interpretation of the results.
  • This method is much better when the field of inquiry is limited.
  • Sometimes when respondents are unwilling to give particular type of information, the enumerator can get such information indirectly by asking supplementary questions and giving assurance against the misuse of the information provided by them.

Disadvantages:

  • This method requires more time, more number of enumerators when the field of inquiry is very wide.
  • This method is more expensive.
  • The information collected by this method may be less reliable if the enumerators are untrained.

In any of the following situations, the investigator contacts an organization or a person capable of conducting inquiries and gets relevant information from such organization or person. The method of collecting information in such a way is called indirect inquiry. In this method, the information is obtained with the help of the third party instead of enumerators.

When to use:

  • When direct source does not exist.
  • When the field of direct inquiry is very large and there is a lack of time for personal contact with the respondents.
  • When the information to be obtained is complex.
  • When the cost associated with direct inquiry is unbearable.

The reliability of the information obtained by this method depends on the ability, honesty and experience of the enumerators who collect the information.

Examples:

  • A person interested in getting the information about the conditions of farmers of Sanand taluka approaches the talati of Sanand taluka who has the entire information of all the farmers, and gets information from him, instead of personally visiting each farmer.
  • A person interested in information of the educational status of the workers of an industry having 2000 workers approaches the manager who has complete records, instead of making personal visit to each worker.
  • An advocate can get information regarding murders, thefts from the police station when needed.

Advantages:

  • This method is most suitable when the field of inquiry is very wide.
  • When a respondent associated with the inquiry is not willing to give information, this is the only useful method to collect the information.
  • It involves less cost, time and energy as compared to direct inquiry method.
  • This method is very much useful for various departments of government to collect various types of information.

Disadvantages:

  • When individual or organization associated with the task of providing information have any prejudices or a biased attitude, the information becomes less reliable.
  • The method becomes useless when the third party from whom the information is obtained is dishonest, inefficient or unable to provide correct information.

A list of logically arranged questions relevant to the object of the study is made. The space between the questions is provided for the answers. A list of questions prepared in such a way is called questionnaire. The method of obtaining information using such type of questionnaire is called a method of questionnaire. The questions in the questionnaire should be short and simple so that respondent can understand the questions and easily answer them. This method is quite useful when the field or area from which the information is to be collected is very wide. Since there is considerable saving of time and cost in this method, it is the most economical method of inquiry. Questionnaire may be used in direct inquiry as well as indirect inquiry.

There are two ways of collecting information by questionnaire: (1) By post (2) By enumerators.

Examples:

  • A researcher preparing a questionnaire to study the buying habits of 10,000 consumers across Gujarat — sent by post or email to reach respondents in remote areas.

Advantages:

  • Most economical method — considerable saving of time and cost.
  • Questions are short and simple, making it easy for respondents to understand and answer.
  • Very useful when the field or area of inquiry is very wide.
  • Can be used in both direct inquiry and indirect inquiry.

Disadvantages:

  • Success depends mainly on the design of the questionnaire — a poorly designed questionnaire yields poor data.

Questionnaire Deep-Dive

Success of collecting data depends mainly on the design of questionnaire. A well designed questionnaire is known as an ideal questionnaire.

1

Covering Letter / Title

Every questionnaire must have a covering letter or an appropriate title so that the reader gets clear idea about the purpose of the study.

2

Minimum Number of Questions

Number of questions should be as minimum as possible. The fewer number of questions have greater chance of getting better response from the respondent. Long questions discourage the respondent to provide accurate answer particularly towards the end of questionnaire. If the number of questions is large, say 25 or more, it is advisable to divide the questionnaire into various parts.

3

Consistency with Purpose

The number of questions in the questionnaire should be consistent with the purpose of the inquiry.

4

Simple, Short & Understandable

Questions should be simple, short and understandable. They should not be ambiguous. Example: Instead of "Are you educated?", use "What is your education level?" with options: (a) Upto primary (b) Upto secondary (c) Upto higher secondary (d) Upto graduate (e) Uneducated.

5

Logical Arrangement

The arrangement of the questions should be logical — from general to specific. Example: First ask "Do you use a smartphone?" then "What is your opinion about smartphones?"

6

Avoid Sensitive Questions

Questions of sensitive nature or personal life should be avoided. If necessary, assure confidentiality.

7

Answers Free from Calculations

Answers should be free from calculations. Avoid questions like "What is the average income of earning members?"

8

Prefer YES/NO or Multiple Choice

Questions with YES/NO or multiple alternatives should be preferred. Questions with open-ended answers difficult to tabulate should be avoided.

Specimen questionnaire for collecting information of the study habits of 12th standard students of Gujarat state

1. Name of the student:

2. Sex: Female / Male

3. Place: Village/city: District:

4. School: Not taking government grant / Taking government grant

5. Stream: Arts / Commerce / Science / Others

6. Medium of study: English / Gujarati / Others

7. School Time:

8. How much time do you spend for your daily school home work?

9. Average time spent daily for reading and preparation:

10. Mode of entertainment: Sports / Film or TV / Music / Spending time with family members

11. How much time do you spend for entertainment?

12. Average hours of daily sleeping time:

Choosing the Right Method — Six Factors

Among the three methods of collecting primary data, there is no definite rule for using a particular method. The selection mainly depends on the following aspects:

Spread of the Area

How widely the respondents are geographically distributed.

Purpose of Inquiry

What the investigation aims to achieve.

Monetary Provision

The budget available for data collection.

Time Frame

How quickly the data must be collected.

Expert Enumerators

Whether trained enumerators can be obtained.

Standard of Accuracy

The degree of precision required by the study.

Think about it

Imagine you need to survey 5,000 farmers across Gujarat about crop yields. With a tight budget and short deadline, questionnaire by post would be cheapest. But if accuracy is critical for government policy, you would hire enumerators for direct inquiry. The right method depends on your constraints.

Key Takeaways

Key Takeaways

  • Direct inquiry: investigator personally visits respondents — most accurate but most expensive and time-consuming.
  • Indirect inquiry: information obtained through a third party — cheaper and faster but reliability depends on the third party's honesty.
  • Method of questionnaire: a list of logically arranged questions — the most economical method, usable in both direct and indirect inquiry.
  • An ideal questionnaire has 8 characteristics: covering letter, minimum questions, consistent with purpose, simple questions, logical order, avoid sensitive questions, no calculations, prefer multiple-choice answers.
  • Questionnaire by post reaches vast areas cheaply but fails with illiterate respondents; questionnaire by enumerator gives more reliable data but costs more.
  • Method selection depends on: spread of area, purpose, budget, time frame, availability of enumerators, and required accuracy standard.