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Questionnaire surveys: methodological and epistemological problems for field-based ethnopharmacologists
Sarah Edwards1, Sabine Nebel, Michael Heinrich
1Centre for Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy, The School of Pharmacy, University of London, 29-39 Brunswick Sq., London WC1N 1AX, UK.
Questionnaires are common in health and social science research but may be culturally inappropriate. This study examines the limitations of questionnaire surveys in diverse cultural contexts and explores alternative data collection methods.
Area of Science:
- Health and social sciences
- Ethnopharmacology
- Medical ethnobotany
Background:
- Empirical research relies on data collection.
- Questionnaires are widely used for quantitative data in health and social sciences.
- The cultural appropriateness of questionnaires is often overlooked.
Purpose of the Study:
- To address issues with questionnaire surveys in diverse cultural contexts.
- To highlight the limitations of questionnaires beyond literacy.
- To explore alternative methods for quantitative data collection.
Main Methods:
- Case studies from ethnopharmacology field experiences.
- Discussion of qualitative versus quantitative research.
- Examination of alternative data elicitation techniques.
Main Results:
- Questionnaires can be culturally inappropriate, irrespective of literacy.
- Qualitative and quantitative research have distinct pros and cons.
- Alternative methods can effectively gather quantitative data.
Conclusions:
- Researchers must consider cultural context when selecting data collection tools.
- Questionnaire surveys may not be universally suitable for quantitative data gathering.
- Exploring alternative methods is crucial for robust, culturally sensitive research.
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