According to Graziano and Raulin (2007) there are two types of survey designs: Cross-sectional design is a survey which is conducted one time to a sample, resulting data on the measured features as they present at the point of the survey and Longitudinal survey designs is a survey which can be repeated to the same subjects at different times.
In a cross-sectional survey, research may be equated to a snapshot of the phenomenon of concern and data are collected at one point in time from a sample selected to describe an approximately greater population (Saris & Gallhofer, 2007). Such a survey can be used not only for the purpose of description, but also for determination of the relationship between variables at the time of the study (Babbie, 2010). In a longitudinal survey, data are collected from the same sample at several different times, with the main purpose being to study changes in the elements over time (McGivern, 2006). A Longitudinal study is inclined to being costly and fraught with great difficulties as a result of the relatively long periods of time it takes to conduct (Saris & Gallhofer, 2007). In fact, a longitudinal survey requires follow-up on respondents, which makes the capacity to capture a large sample size difficult if not, in certain
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One of the main reasons for the selection of cross-sectional surveys is because of feasibility and practicality issues. Cross-sectional surveys are simple to design and establish research validity in addition to taking minimal time in the research project in comparison to longitudinal surveys. Furthermore, survey research can be conducted in different settings, it requires minimal investment to develop and administer, and it is relatively easy for making generalizations. It can also elicit information about attitudes that are otherwise difficult to measure using observational techniques (Rea & Parker,