A crawler, also known as a spider, is a computer program that automatically navigates the World Wide Web (WWW) and collects information for various purposes such as indexing for search engines.
In empirical research, a hypothesis is an assertion made about some property of the elements being studied. It serves as a guiding assumption early in an investigation, directing the search for supporting data. At the conclusion of the study, the hypothesis is tested and determined to be true or false depending on whether the proposed property accurately characterizes the elements.
A Personal Data Sheet is a questionnaire often given by organizations to individuals for the purpose of eliciting specific information relative to the individual.
Original data compiled and studied for a specific purpose. For example, a structured survey might be conducted for the purpose of discovering current attitudes on a particular topic; raw survey responses would be primary data.
A sample group of people used for research purposes who have been selected at the discretion of the interviewer based on predetermined quotas.
Initial data a researcher has before beginning analysis, often unprocessed and unorganized, representing real-world conditions without any transformations or analytical treatments.
In legal terms, a 'respondent' is the party sued in an action at law. In a general context, a 'respondent' is someone who answers a survey.
Secondary data refers to information collected for a purpose other than the current research objective. This data is typically gathered by other entities such as government agencies, market research firms, or academic institutions.
A structured interview is a systematic method where the interviewer strictly controls the conversation topics and uses a defined question and response format. This approach aims to ensure consistency and comparability of findings across different interviews.
A survey is a methodologically structured process by which information is collected from a group of respondents to understand public attitudes, preferences, behaviors, or characteristics. Surveys are widely used in various fields such as marketing, political science, sociology, and public health.
A survey area refers to a specific geographic location that is used to collect data, typically during research studies or market analyses. The purpose of defining a survey area is to ensure the data collected is relevant and represents the broader population or market being studied.
Systematic sampling is a probability sampling method where researchers select every nth observation from a larger population, following an initial randomly chosen starting point.
Verbatims are research reports that consist of word-for-word duplications of interviews or other forms of recorded communication, without any editorial comment.
