Choices in asynchronously collecting qualitative data: Moving from written responses to spoken responses for open-ended queries

The practice of physical distancing has become commonplace in our global society. In response, social science researchers have been forced to make use of alternative yet practical ways to collect qualitative data that would be otherwise inaccessible. Most studies of late have focused on virtually collecting asynchronous written responses to open-ended queries utilizing emails or instant messaging. However, these options have advantages and disadvantages for researchers and respondents. This study looked at the option of virtually gathering asynchronous spoken responses to open-ended queries instead of written responses for the same. At first, the respondents were asked to write replies to open-ended queries via an online document administration software. The average reply length per question per respondent was 18 words. Next, they were asked to independently record spoken replies to similar open-ended queries via an online voice recording service. The average reply length was 373 words. It was found that virtually asynchronously gathering spoken responses, as opposed to written responses, to open-ended queries led to the respondents offering more explanatory answers comprising personal opinions, beliefs, and experiences. The knowledge obtained from this study can help enrich qualitative data collection whereby researchers can gather less resource-intensive, higher-quality extended responses in a shorter amount of time from a greater number of respondents.