Data collection is a vital process when engaging in the research process because it enhances the quality of the research conducted when it is implemented correctly. However, it is worth noting that the researchers often experience several challenges in data collection, which limits the effectiveness and quality of the research. One of the challenges experienced in the data collection process includes the location, which influences how the participants may freely express themselves when responding to the questions asked (Love, 2020. The location may limit the study design of the research, and this poses a significant challenge. Lack of health literacy and language used in the data collection instrument is also another data collection challenge. When participants possess low health literacy, they may be limited to understanding the questions in the data collection instrument, and this will eventually affect the data collection process.

Similarly, the duration of data collection is a significant challenge that should not be ignored. The length of the data collection instrument and the time the participants are required to engage in the process of providing data can negatively impact the data collection process. Setting inappropriate time for engaging in the research study may make the participants feel uncomfortable during data collection. As a result, they may not want to complete the survey question or even ask for assistance needed when completing the survey (Koch et al., 2018). Moreover, researcher fatigue may negatively impact the data collection process as this would limit the information gathered during research. At the same time, collection of sensitive information pose a significant challenge to the data collection bearing in mind that the participants may feel uncomfortable to reveal such kind of information, which would be necessary to given research.

There are three typical interview techniques used when interviewing the participants. This includes unstructured, structured, and semi-structured techniques, which are often used when conducting qualitative studies. In regards to the unstructured interviews, few questions are used. They can be regarded as a relatively formless interview style that encompasses the establishment of a rapport and comfort between a researcher and the participant. In this kind of interview, researchers are required to probe participants so that they can effectively gather the most relevant information (Brinkmann, 2014). Semi-structured interview refers to a guided conversation existing between a researcher and a participant. It not only provides a structure but also offers a researcher an opportunity to probe the participant to get sufficient details. When it comes to structured interviews, a strict and rigid interview protocol is utilized to guide a researcher.

From the three types of interview techniques, I would prefer using a structured interview because it will give me a chance to formulate a list of interview questions that target a specific phenomenon based on my research design. Such questions will ensure that I gather all the correct information I require, and it will alleviate the need for doing follow- up interviews as a result of missed or forgotten questions. In particular, the interview technique will allow a face-to-face structure, which will allow me to collect factual information from the respondent (Galletta & Cross, 2013). Face-to-face interviews are critical in minimizing survey dropout rates while also improve the quality of gathered data.

References

Brinkmann, S. (2014). Unstructured and semi-structured interviewing. The Oxford Handbook of Qualitative Research, 276-299. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199811755.013.030

Galletta, A., & Cross, W. E. (2013). The semi-structured interview as a repertoire of possibilities. Mastering the Semi-Structured Interview and Beyond, 45-72. doi:10.18574/nyu/9780814732939.003.0003

Koch, A., Glover, K., Zambri, B., Thomas, E., Benito, X., & Yang, J. (2018). Open-data practices and challenges among early-career paleo-researchers. Past Global Change Magazine, 26(2), 54-55. doi:10.22498/pages.26.2.54

Love, R. (2020). Challenges in data collection. Overcoming Challenges in Corpus Construction, 51-102. doi:10.4324/9780429429811-6