MARKET RESEARCH GLOSSARY - P |
Package Test
A test that measures consumer reactions to a package or label.
Paired Comparison Evaluation
A study or part of a study in which respondents compare two or more test stimuli (eg products, concepts or labels etc) according to some criterion such as preference.
Paired Comparison Scale
A type of comparative scale where respondents are presented with two alternatives and they are asked to choose which they prefer (according to a criterion).
Paired Depth - see Friendship Pair Interview
Pairwise Deletion
A treatment of survey data where only the completed questions are analysed, ie partially complete responses are not excluded from the analysis.
Pan-cultural Analysis
The collection of data from different countries (or cultural units) and analysis of the aggregated data.
Panel - see Consumer Panel
Panel Conditioning
A form of systematic error that occurs when panel participants change their behaviour (that is being observed) as a result of being part of the panel.
Pantry Check - see Home Audit
Parameter
A summary measure used to describe a group of people or objects that is based on data from all units in the group.
Parametric Test
A test that involves metric data (ie data from interval or ratio scales that can be analysed statistically).
Partial Correlation Coefficient
A statistic that is calculated to measure the association between two variables after controlling (or adjusting) for the effects of one or more additional variables.
Participant
A general term covering anyone who is involved in a research study and not just someone who is interviewed, eg in an observation study or a group discussion.
Pearson Coefficient - see Product Moment Correlation Coefficient
Penetration
The proportion (usually expressed as a percentage) of a population of interest that has accepted a product or an idea in some way.
People Meter (aka Audimeter)
An electronic device attached to a TV set that monitors which programmes are watched by whom.
Perceptual Mapping
An analysis technique that is designed to demonstrate how consumers view a concept or brand relative to the alternatives. Perceptual maps can be constructed from different types of analysis, eg factor analysis, correspondence analysis and multi-dimensional scaling.
Periodicity
A cyclical variation in a characteristic being measured. Periodicity can lead to a bias in systematic sampling when the period of the cycle coincides with the sampling interval being used.
Personal Interview
When respondents are questioned face-to-face by an interviewer. The interviewer may cover any topic. The personal interview can be conducted in the respondent's home, place of business or at a central location facility. These interviews can be long or short depending on the topic to be discussed. Exhibits are often used in this approach to aid the respondent in answering questions.
Personalisation Technique
A projective technique where participants are asked to ascribe “personality-type” traits or characteristics to an object or idea.
Personal Observation
When human beings record the behaviour of interest or events taking place.
Persuasion
A copy testing measure intended to indicate the motivating ability of an ad, by subtracting the proportion of respondents choosing the test brand prior to ad exposure (or in an unexposed control group) from the proportion choosing it after exposure. It is the net shift in brand choice from unexposed to exposed.
Pictograph
A type of graph that uses pictures or symbols to display the data.
Pictorial Scale
A type of scale where the intervals are represented by a sequence of pictures or diagrams, eg smiling faces (as opposed to numbers or words).
Pilot Testing - see Pre-Testing
Placement Test - see Home Use Test
Plausibility Sample
A type of non-probability sample where the sample is chosen because it appears plausible that sample units are representative of the population of interest, although there is no evidence to support this assumption.
Population of Interest (aka Target Population or Ideal Population)
The group about whom the researcher wants to know more and from whom a sample will be drawn.
Population Mis-Specification Error
A type of non-sampling error caused by incorrectly defining the population of interest for a survey and either excluding or including certain types of respondents, eg limiting a survey to previous consumers of a product (and not asking the views of those who have not tried it).
Pop-Up Survey
A questionnaire that appears on the screen of a website visitor. The term can also be used to refer to an invitation to participate in a survey. Pop-up surveys are usually triggered by a mechanism of some form, eg after a pre-defined period of time, or after so many visitors to a web page.
Position Bias - see Order Bias
Postal Survey - see Mail Survey
Post-Test
An evaluation of advertising after it has been run in the media.
Post-Test Only Control Group Design
A type of true experimental design where test units are randomly allocated to an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group is exposed to a treatment and both groups are measured afterwards.
Power
The probability that a hypothesis testing procedure will lead to a rejection of a null hypothesis that is false. The power is one minus the probability of committing a Type II error, ie 1-b.
Precision Level
A measure of the spread of a confidence interval. The narrower the interval, the higher the level of precision.
Pre-Coded Questions - see Closed-Ended Questions
Pre-Codes
Numbers printed on a questionnaire for data entry and tabulation purposes. For closed-ended questions, the numbers can be circled as the answer.
Pre-Coding
The assignment of codes (coding) before the fieldwork of a survey is carried out.
Predictive Validity
The degree to which a measured marketing phenomenon at one point in time is able to predict another marketing phenomenon at a future point in time.
Pre-Experimental Design
An experimental design where randomisation procedures are not used to control for external variables. Examples of pre-experimental designs are: one-shot case study, one group pre-test/post-test and a static group.
Preference Test
A test where research participants are asked to compare a number of products or services and express their preferences.
Pre-Measurement Error - see Pre-Testing Bias
Pre-Recruited Participants
Consumers or business professionals who are contacted (by telephone, mail or in person etc) and invited to participate in a research study scheduled for a future date and time, provided they qualify. People who agree and are eligible are often compensated for their participation in the research.
Pre-Selected Sample - see Pre-Recruited Participants
Pre-Teen (aka Tweenager or Tween)
A young person aged around 8/9 to 12, who does not consider themselves to be a child, but is not yet a teenager.
Pre-Test
Can be used to refer to two different activities. A pre-test is where a questionnaire is tested on a (statistically) small sample of respondents before a full-scale study, in order to identify any problems such as unclear wording or the questionnaire taking too long to administer. A pre-test can also be used to refer to an initial measurement (such as brand or advertising awareness) before an experimental treatment is administered and subsequent measurements are taken. In this sense a pre-test can also be called a base line, benchmark or pre-wave.
Pre-Testing (aka Pilot Testing)
When the questionnaire is tried on a (statistically) small group of respondents to identify any unforeseen problems such as the wording or flow of the questions.
Pre-Testing Bias (aka Pre-Measurement Error or Main Testing Effect)
When the pre-testing in an experiment has a systematic effect on the main experimental results, regardless of what happens between the measurements.
Pre-Test Manipulation Interaction Bias (aka Interactive Testing Effect)
Pre-test manipulation interaction bias is present when the pre-testing in an experiment heightens participants’ sensitivity and makes them behave in a systematically different way during the experiment that prevents the results being generalised to a population of interest (ie it reduces external validity).
Pre-Test - Post-Test Control Group Design
A type of true experimental design where test units are randomly allocated to an experimental group and a control group. Both groups are measured before and after the experimental group is exposed to a treatment.
Pre-Wave - see Base Line
Pricing Research
Research that aims to determine how demand for a product or service will vary with changes in price.
Primary Data
Data that are collected specifically for a current research project.
Primary Purchaser
The person responsible for 50% or more of the household grocery purchases.
Probability Proportionate to Size
An approach used in cluster sampling where the clusters have widely differing numbers of units in them. Clusters are selected with a probability proportional to the number of units in them. The units within each selected cluster are then sampled with a probability inversely proportional to the number of units, so that the probability of selecting each unit from the selected clusters is equal.
Probability Sample
A sample where all units in the population of interest have a known and non-zero chance of being selected. Examples of probability samples are: simple random, systematic, stratified and cluster.
Probing
The asking of additional questions to encourage a respondent to enlarge on a particular answer or opinion so that their answer can be further understood by the researcher.
Processing Error
A type of non-sampling error caused during the processing of the data. Examples include the incorrect entry of data and incorrect assignment of values.
Product Image
The impression created about the characteristics of a product or service. These may be perceived or real attributes and they can be conveyed through communications, packaging or personal experience.
Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (r) (aka Correlation Coefficient)
A statistic that is calculated to determine whether a linear relationship exists between two metric variables and it takes values between -1 and +1 (depending on the degree of the relationship). A negative value indicates that the variables move in opposite directions and a positive value indicates that they move in the same direction. A value of 0 indicates that there is no linear relationship (although there may be a non-linear relationship).
Product Placement Test
Product placement test can refer to two types of tests:
- A home use test, where participants evaluate products in their own homes or in a natural usage context.
- A test where products are placed on retail shelves to observe the rate of sale.
A respondent who regularly attends group discussions, whose views may well not be typical of the intended respondents.
Profile
A general term that covers the description of a population of interest (or a sub-group) according to certain characteristics. For example a demographic profile describes consumers in terms of their age, gender, life-cycle stage and occupation.
Projective Techniques (aka Enabling Techniques)
A form of disguised questioning that encourage participants to attribute their feelings, beliefs or motivations to another person, object or situation. Examples of projective techniques are word association, sentence completion and thematic apperception tests.
Prompt Material
Any material that is shown to participants in research projects.
Prompted Awareness (aka Aided Awareness)
The percentage of respondents who claim to have seen something (eg a brand or an advert) after having been shown some form of stimulus material.
Prompting
Where respondents are made aware of the possible answers to questions by an interviewer either reading them out or showing some material during the research.
Proportionate Stratified Sample
A type of probability sample where the probability of a unit being selected from a stratum is proportional to the number of units in the stratum.
Proposal
An outline (usually in writing) of how marketing research data could be collected and used to solve a specific problem. Proposals are normally written by research suppliers and they usually are divided into the following sections: background, objectives, methodology, costing and timings.
Proprietary Techniques
Research techniques that are considered to be the intellectual property of a research supplier.
Pseudo Research
Research that is carried out for reasons other than to reduce the risk in a resource-allocation decision.
Psychodrawing
A projective technique where participants are asked to attach abstract notions such as colours, shapes or symbols to objects.
Psychographics
Quantified psychological profiles of individuals, based on their attitudes and behaviour.
Purchase Intentions
A measure of respondents’ attitudes towards buying a particular product or service.
Pupilometer
A device used to measure the dilation of a participant’s pupil in response to a visual stimulus.
Purchase Panel - see Consumer Panel
Purposive Sample - see Quota Sample