Q.Give two examples of the situations where survey method can be used. What are the limitations of this method?

Survey research grew out of the need to study people's opinions, attitudes and social facts on a large scale, historically, its first purpose was to establish an existing 'baseline' reality, such as literacy rates, religious affiliation, income distribution, or attitudes toward family planning and toward giving local panchayati raj institutions more power to run health, education and sanitation programmes. Over time, the survey method has grown into a more sophisticated technique capable of helping researchers infer causal relationships too, not merely describe the present state of affairs. Surveys are carried out using several different techniques, most commonly personal interviews, printed questionnaires, and telephone surveys, and each of these has its own distinct strengths and limitations, which is why a researcher must exercise real care in deciding which technique best suits a given study. Taken as a whole, the survey method offers two clear advantages: information can be gathered quickly and efficiently from very large numbers of people, and because surveys can be organised and conducted quickly, they can capture public opinion on newly emerging issues almost as soon as those issues arise. Set against these advantages are two important limitations. First, respondents may give inaccurate information, sometimes simply because of memory lapses, and sometimes because they deliberately …