Module Aims

This module aims to equip students with a comprehensive understanding of surveys in population health sciences, and to allow them to identify when and how surveys are powerful research tools. Students will familiarise themselves with all aspects of the survey research process, including design, data collection, survey administration, analysis and reporting of results and will explore national and international health and social care surveys. A variety of statistical techniques that are widely used in survey analysis will be discussed and students will have the opportunity to gain first-hand practical experience of these through examples and applications. 

Module Learning Outcomes 

By the end of the module students should be able to: 

1. Understand when surveys might be used in Population Health Sciences 
2. Describe the key stages in designing and delivering questionnaire surveys 
3. Understand what standard survey instruments are, and how they are used 
4. Understand the reasons and principles behind different survey sampling approaches 
5. Identify examples of good and poor questionnaire design 
6. Define key aspects of reliability and validity, be aware of methods used to assess them, and describe their challenges and importance in survey research 
7. Be aware of existing national and international surveys that are available for analysis, including the General Practice Patient Satisfaction survey, the Health Survey for England and the National Diet and Nutrition survey 
8. Have practical experience of analysing survey data. 
9. Be aware of methods to reduce the number of items and other advanced statistical methods that are widely used in survey analysis. 

Pre-requisites

• Principles of Epidemiology
• Principles of Biostatistics
• Conducting Research using R 

Teaching Strategy

The course will be delivered using a combination of lectures, experiential learning, and group discussions. 

Assessment

Students will be given a list of five survey measures / short questionnaires used in population health sciences (e.g., the Cancer Awareness Measure) and they will be asked to select one and critically appraise it. It is anticipated that they will consider its strengths, limitations, development, reliability and validity.   

Module Length

4 days