Research Methods in Social Sciences: A Manual for Designing Questionnaires

For the present day society, research has become an integral activity for its development. Research produces new knowledge. It enables to find solutions to the problems and resolve conflicts in a society. Research in Library and Information Science (L & IS) has a very important role to play to extend the boundaries of knowledge and to provide solutions to the problems being faced by the librarians and information professionals. The book is primarily intended to serve as textbook for the students of M.L.I. Sc. M.Phil. Ph.D. scholars and information professionals who aim to carry out a study or conduct research in library and information science. The book provides a systematic approach, needed in designing of a good questionnaire for conducting the research. It deals with various aspects involved in questionnaire designing which have been discussed in detail in various chapters. Efforts have been made to make this work useful for the scholars of library and information science. The book is in two parts, the first part outlines a theoretical framework. It has been divided into 16 chapters, providing a basis on ‘how to design a questionnaire’. It provides clear explanations of theory, supported with a large number of examples to illustrate different steps involved in the process of designing the questionnaire. Suitable examples have been provided from natural library settings wherever needed so as to make the ideas more understandable. It covers all the basic aspects on the subject. Instances have been mentioned where a researcher can face problems. In such cases, guidelines have been given as to how to solve such problems. The second part contains ten questionnaires, two each (for librarian and users) for different types of libraries (school, college, university, public and special). A researcher can identify a specific questionnaire appropriate to his research. He can use the same questionnaire with certain modifications, if need be to suit his needs. These questionnaires were tested by the author and finalized in the light of the comments received from library professionals and the concerned users.