Research Methodology - Dr. Krishan K. Pandey

Appendix (iii): Difference Between Survey and Experiment 121
(vi) Surveys are concerned with hypothesis formulation and testing the analysis of the relationship
between non-manipulated variables. Experimentation provides a method of hypothesis testing.
After experimenters define a problem, they propose a hypothesis. They then test the
hypothesis and confirm or disconfirm it in the light of the controlled variable relationship
that they have observed. The confirmation or rejection is always stated in terms of probability
rather than certainty. Experimentation, thus, is the most sophisticated, exacting and powerful
method for discovering and developing an organised body of knowledge. The ultimate
purpose of experimentation is to generalise the variable relationships so that they may be
applied outside the laboratory to a wider population of interest. *
(vii) Surveys may either be census or sample surveys. They may also be classified as social
surveys, economic surveys or public opinion surveys. Whatever be their type, the method
of data collection happens to be either observation, or interview or questionnaire/opinionnaire
or some projective technique(s). Case study method can as well be used. But in case of
experiments, data are collected from several readings of experiments.
(viii) In case of surveys, research design must be rigid, must make enough provision for protection
against bias and must maximise reliability as the aim happens to be to obtain complete and
accurate information. Research design in case of experimental studies, apart reducing bias
and ensuring reliability, must permit drawing inferences about causality.
(ix) Possible relationships between the data and the unknowns in the universe can be studied
through surveys where as experiments are meant to determine such relationships.
(x) Causal analysis is considered relatively more important in experiments where as in most
social and business surveys our interest lies in understanding and controlling relationships
between variables and as such correlation analysis is relatively more important in surveys.
* John W. Best and James V. Kahn, “Research in Education”, 5th ed., Prentice-Hall of India Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1986,
p.111.