Unlock Elite Access: Level Up Your Preparation with Exclusive Content

Sociology Optional PYQ Solutions · Model answer

Short note : Limitations of questionnaire as a technique of data collection.

  • UPSC 1999
  • Research Methods and Analysis

A questionnaire is a self-administered set of written questions the respondent fills in without an investigator present — its limitations follow directly from that single design choice.

You are reading the opening of the model answer. The full answer is part of Sociology Optional PYQ Solutions.

What the full answer covers

  • The Literacy Barrier — Why India's Large Surveys Use Enumerators, Not Questionnaires
  • Low and Biased Response Rates
  • No Probing, No Verification, No Follow-Up
  • Fixed Categories Impose the Researcher's Own Framework
  • Wording Effects Are Not a Minor Risk

Unlock this answer and 1,500+ more

  • 1,500+ solved UPSC Sociology PYQs from 1985 to 2026, Paper-1 and Paper-2
  • Topic-wise across all 25 syllabus units, newest exam year first
  • A full model answer for every question, shaped to 10 or 20 marks, with thinkers and Indian examples
  • Read online on lotusarise.com, plus PDF download

₹1,499₹2,50040% off

Get Sociology Optional PYQ Solutions @ ₹1,499 →

One-time payment · 12 months of access · Instant access · UPI, cards, RuPay

See every Research Methods and Analysis question (63 solved) →Already enrolled? Log in