Question

What are panel trend and cohort studies as longitudinal designs and how they diffrer each other in designs?

Answer 1

• Longitudinal surveys,are those which study trends over time, and usually consist of cohorts or panel respondents. These can be further classified into three distinct types of longitudinal designs (trend, cohort and panel).
• A longitudinal study is a correlational research study that involves repeated observations of the same items over long periods of time.
• The hardest type of research would be collecting panel data because you are getting net change and gross change of the dependent variable.
• The easiest would be to collect trend data, which is why it is used so often in polls.
• A cohort sample could go either way because it may be hard to track the wide range of people that have the same characteristics over an extended period of time.
• 1.Trend studies focus on the same population of people use opinion poll surveys to look at their attitudes over time. While the population is always the same, trend studies usually select different market research survey samples from that population.
• For example: Before an election a sample of adults is drawn. A year later, a different sample drawn from the same population shows a change.
• 2.Cohort research is a method in which a specific population is studied repeatedly as well, but these studies center around how given groups with a common characteristic view social phenomena over time.
• A common cohort design uses a class of students as its population. For example, the freshman class of 2008 would be given a survey, and then the freshman class of 2009 at the same school would be given the same survey, and any differences in opinion would be noted.
• 3.Panel studies utilize the same sample from the same population over time. While more complicated and difficult to carry out, this is the best design to truly find out changes over time, because you are tracking opinions of the exact same respondents repeatedly.
• A researcher can use either a continuous panel, consisting of members who report specific attitudes or behavior patterns on a regular basis, or an interval panel, whose members agree to complete a certain number of measurement instruments only when the information is needed.