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AQA GCSE Physical Education · 8582
AQA 8582 Check the specification (PDF) (opens in a new tab)
Quantitative data are numbers, such as measurements or counts. In physical education, questionnaires and surveys can collect numerical information about people’s participation in physical activity. Instead of measuring a performance directly, a researcher asks participants about their activity and records their answers.
A questionnaire is a set of questions answered by participants. To collect quantitative data, it can ask for numerical answers. For example, ‘How many times each week do you take part in physical activity?’ produces a number for each participant.
Questions with fixed answer options can also produce quantitative data. A questionnaire could offer activity-frequency options such as ‘never’, ‘once a week’ and ‘more than once a week’. Although these options are words, the researcher can count how many participants select each one. Those counts are numerical data.
The important point is how the responses are recorded: a questionnaire does not automatically produce quantitative data simply because it asks questions.
A survey is the wider investigation in which information is collected from participants and their responses are analysed. A questionnaire can be used as part of a survey, so these methods are closely connected rather than completely separate alternatives.
For a survey of weekly physical activity, participants complete the questionnaire, their responses are gathered, and the number of participants at each activity level is counted. This allows the researcher to compare how common different activity levels are within the group surveyed.
Think of the questionnaire as the set of questions and the survey as the investigation that uses the answers.
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A questionnaire can be part of a survey; the two methods are closely linked.
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If asked to name methods for collecting quantitative data, identify questionnaires and surveys.
Explain how the answers produce numbers: participants can give numerical answers, or the number choosing each answer can be counted.
Quantitative data
Data expressed as numbers, such as measurements or counts.
Questionnaire
A set of questions that participants answer to provide information.
Survey
An investigation that collects information from participants, often using a questionnaire, and analyses their responses.
Put your knowledge into practice — try past paper questions for Physical Education
Quantitative data
Data expressed as numbers, such as measurements or counts.
Questionnaire
A set of questions that participants answer to provide information.
Survey
An investigation that collects information from participants, often using a questionnaire, and analyses their responses.