Lesson 6
Lesson 6
• To get a picture that will help you to design the next stages of your
research
• To assess the feasibility of a project
• To get reactions from beneficiaries
• To evaluate projects.
Advantages of Mini-survey
A mini-survey can be completed in three to seven weeks compared
to large surveys that can take a year before the whole process is
completed and the results are analyzed.
1. Technically, mini-surveys for development research are usually
structured interviews rather than questionnaires, because
questionnaires exclude people who cannot read. Interviews have the
added advantage of allowing you to help people through a process
that may be culturally alien, confusing, or intimidating.
2. The respondents are few.
3. A mini-survey may not give you great precision, but it may be good
enough to give you a general picture of the situation, trends, and
patterns.
Steps in conducting a mini-survey
Step 1: Clarify Your Objectives
Ask yourself:
a. "What do I want to find out?" "Why?"
b. "Is this technique the way to get this kind of information?"
c. "When I get the answers to these questions, will they meet my
needs?"
Step 2: Find Out What Else Has Been Done
There are ready-made survey questions which were utilized by
some researchers and may be good enough for your purposes. This may
provide you with some useful ideas and information and will allow you to use
for your study. This may also take you to go a step a little further for it
gives a little ease to do. However, do not automatically use someone else’s
questions unless you are convinced, they will work for you.
Steps in conducting a mini-survey
6. Avoid possessive forms where possible: "Mila's sister took her request
to her teacher." Whose request, whose teacher?
7. Use specific rather than general terms: The chief, the teacher, rather
than the authorities; the soccer club, the debating team, rather than
extracurricular activities.
8. Avoid words with two different verbs if the verbs suggest two
different actions: "Should villagers attend and challenge the teachers
at the parent teacher meetings?"