9/16/2013

Half baked survey or half baked analysts?

While many do not bother much about surveys and survey findings, the latest survey by the Institute of Policy Studies is gaining some traction to the extent that some took it quite seriously. We have a race relations problem. You mean we don’t have a race relations problem until this survey came about? Or do they mean that we won’t have a race relations problem in the future if the right things are done? Heheheh, I didn’t know there are so many children around.

I did a very interesting survey myself and the results were stunning. 10% of the respondents said they will kill their parents. 30% said they will like to swap their parents. 40% will want to sell their wives. 60% of women would want to change their spouses. And 30% are very happy with their mother in laws. This survey was conducted without the input of race, so it is race free. The respondents were from all the races. Would the result be different if race is added? I dunno, but for sure it will rub people up the wrong way and they will be many stereotyping of the races by the analysts and the readers. And they will tell you, see, all racists!

Why would there be 10% wanting to kill their parents? Don’t they love their parents? Should this simple question elicit a 100% result or near there, that they all loved their parents? And 30%, horror, so many want to swap their parents, not happy with the parents who gave birth to them. As for the men who wanted to sell their wives and the wives who wanted to change their spouses, shouldn’t this be the natural response, or should the number be higher given the fact that familiarity breeds contempt, or once you get too close the spots became obvious and more difficult to live with?

And there are 30% who are happy with their mother in laws, the most undesirable part of a marriage equation! Should this be down to 1%?

Should the survey findings be different? Nay, when human nature is concerned, the results are likely to be the same like among every few good men or women there will be a few creeps, a few mad, a few insane. Does anyone really expect a survey on human perceptions of things or opinions be perfectly skewed in one way or another? Just like the Institute of Policy Studies survey, are the 20 or 30% of so called undesirable traits bad, unacceptable or should not be there that people are alarmed by them?

Even if the same person is to take a survey questionnaire, his answers would be different by the days and by his moods or by his gains or losses in the casinos. Surveys or analysts or readers that do not understand the flirtatious and superficiality of human nature would be worked up by the findings of surveys when in fact the answers are just the norm, something that will hardly change because human nature is such, unreliable, fickle and full of themselves.

So is it the problem of half baked surveys, or half baked analysts or half baked respondents? Or is it the fault of half baked readers that find survey results disagreeable or enlightening?

14 comments:

oldhorse42 said...

May be it is just a can of half baked red beans.

patriot said...

Hahaha.....

Very much depends who read, deciphers and presents the surveys.

More importantly, who calls for the surveys and what is the agenda; is it for understanding the issue and problem or to launch another propaganda???

patriot

Anonymous said...

"I'm so lucky to live till 90". Mr Lee.
"I feel so rich."
Mr Lim.

"I'm so fucked."
Mr Sinkie.

Why PAPigs all feel so lucky?
Why all Sinkies feel so fucked?

Because Sinkies are daft.
If they want to feel better, vote Opposition.
Then you will hear PAPigs say "I'm so fucked."

Ⓜatilah $ingapura⚠️ said...

There are many problems with surveys -- just look them up.

One glaring problem I'll mention is selection bias, and it can occur with respondents, survey designers, and the process of analysis of results and conclusion.

Selection Bias deals with the MOTIVATIONS (can be conscious or unconscious) of all individuals involved. For the survey designers: they bring in their own "world views" when designing the survey for e.g. perhaps they have a political agenda to "prove"

For respondents: they answer through their own cognitive "filters".

For analysts: they interpret the findings via their own rationalisations and preconceptions.

If you don't isolate variables and control for them, then your survey is highly suspect. Surveys have to be REPLICATED, hopefully by independent parties to see how similar their results are. Usually they are not.

patriot said...

The Intention and Purpose of the Survey will lead to the Design of the Survey.

patriot

Anonymous said...

oldhorse42 said...
"May be it is just a can of half baked red beans."

...and human beans.

Happy Birthday LKY. May you live long long. OMG, 90..(%)..think you should step down now, and not wait till you kick the bucket.

Ⓜatilah $ingapura⚠️ said...

Results here: IPS Social Markers Of Integration 2012 (PDF file)

I give the survey about a "truth rating" of about 50% (my own arbitrary standards).

Get out your thinking caps and brush up quickly on your stats, then have a look. Then make up your own mind ;-)

Anonymous said...

To the racists this survey confirms what they want to think.

Ⓜatilah $ingapura⚠️ said...

@1057:

Well, that's part of the problem. When it comes to "race", the results are always emotional, and emotions are prone to priming (i.e. according to your mood or experience) and also level of honesty: i.e. many people are uncomfortable with race issues as they do not want to be labelled "racists", so they'll answer accordingly.

Example of emotional priming: may yesterday some you experienced some PRC rudeness, or today you watched a YouTube video of some Banglas misbehaving. Your emotions can be thus "primed", which will invariably affect how to you respond to the poll.

Anonymous said...

Maybe this PAP gahmen is half baked and half trained. Maybe only half as good as before.
Maybe that's why got so many half baked survey and half baked analysts?

.

Anonymous said...

China Chinese, India Indians, Singapore Chinese, Singapore Indians, Malaya Malays, England English, America Americans, Australia Australians, Canada Canadians, Timbuktu Timbuktians, Mars Martians, Earth Earthlings...so many labels, my head is spinning. Here's one for you - Mother Earth Humans.

b said...

There is only one difference, the have and the not-haves. Do not let them fool you into believing that the problem is about race.

Anonymous said...

RB, Is the mentioning of Kishore your intentions to lead to this blog because the irony is that he's the Dean of the the Lee Kuan Yew School of Policies, good lead in.

Surveys are a fraction of using data and confering it to mean something, data and suface information is entire different as one sort to eliminate the deviation of defects in solid parts while the other on a set conculsion.

The govt had spent million of dollars on harmony, bringing all the races to sing in adverts, slogans, banners etc etc, and then they bring in hores of ft's, what's the inbetween information of the survey, making a statement that there are dis-harmony, it took us so many years to be stable with one another, attending any racial harmony session, one would know it's a fine line we are still walking on, a couple million more ft's is the same, message said, full stop.
The arrogance, the insults, the shouts, the warnings, etc etc, the ft's are bringing it in brothers, wash your behinds, cause they are coming in fast and quick.
Oh, did the harmony just went out the window, no problem, the slogans, singing, adverts can come back again.......

Kaki

Anonymous said...

Anyone read Zuraidah Ibrahim's comments on the survey in the Sunday Times?

You can see where she is coming from and leading to.