Advantages: Probably the greatest benefit of the method is its
adaptability. It can be shaped in a manner that can be
easily understood by the population under study. The language, the content and
the manner of questioning can be modified suitably. The instrument is
particularly suitable for studies that are trying to establish the reasons for
certain occurrences or behaviour.
The second advantage is that it assures anonymity if
it is self-administered by the respondent, as there is no pressure or
embarrassment in revealing sensitive data. A lot of questionnaires do not even
require the person to fill in his/her name. Administering the questionnaire is
much faster and less expensive as compared to other primary and a few secondary
sources as well. There is considerable ease of quantitative coding and analysis
of the obtained information as most response categories are closed-ended and
based on the measurement levels. The chance of researcher bias is very little
here.
Lastly, there is no pressure of immediate response,
thus the subject can fill in the questionnaire whenever he or she wants.
The questionnaire is the most economical method as it
can be administered simultaneously to a number of respondents. Thus a large
amount of data can be collected within a short time through a questionnaire.
Disadvantages:
The major disadvantage is that the inexpensive
standardized instrument has limited applicability, that is, it can be used only
with those who can read and write.
- The questionnaire is an impersonal method and sometimes for a sensitive issue it may not reveal the actual reasons or answers to the questionsthat you asked.The return ratio, i.e., the number of people who return the duly filled in questionnaires are sometimes not even 50 per cent of the number of forms distributed.
- Skewed sample response could be another problem. This can occur in two cases; one, if the investigator distributes the same to his friends and acquaintances and second, because of the self-selection of the subjects. This means that the ones who fill in the questionnaire and return it might not be the representatives of the population at large. In case the person is not clear about a question, clarification with the researcher might not be possible.