Questionnaires (instrument)

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Questionnaires(instrument)
Purpose 1. To translate the purpose of the
survey to specific questions which can be used
for descriptions and testing of
hypotheses 2. To motivate the respondent to
participate and deliver valid responses
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Questionnaires
Essential conditions during design 1. Content
(factual/subjective) 2. Types of questions
(open/closed/conditioned) 3. Format (nominal,
ranking, etc.) 4. Order 5. Wording 6. Layout 7. Pr
etesting
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Theory of questions
Third party Actual Social dimension dimension
desirability (B) (A) (C)
The response
A what we really want to measure B conditions
not relevant for our purpose C social opportunism
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Design of questions

• concentrate on actual dimension
• adjust to respondents universe
• as SHORT as possible
• as SPECIFIC and exact as possible
• as DIRECT as possible (to reduce third party
  effects)
• evaluate influence from third party and social
• desirability dimension

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Design of questions(wording)

• does the word mean what we intend to express
• can the word have other interpretations
• if so is the meaning clear and unambiguous
• can the word be pronounced in more than one way
• are there similar words with a similar
  pronunciation
• or spelling which can confuse the meaning
• is it possible to find a simpler word or a
  simpler
• expression

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Design of questions(wording)

• shorter words and expressions are preferable
  than longer ones
• avoid professional and academic expressions
  (adjust to
• respondents level of abstraction)
• avoid words and expression which are not
  strictly needed
• avoid double negations ( not . not )
• construct sentences so ambiguous responses will
  be excluded
• use specific and exact terms instead of weak
  ones
• avoid hypothetical questions
• questions should be as short as possible (max 20
  words)

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Questions and responses
Problems 1. time-error-effect one of the first
options is ticked never mind the
content 2. response-set a certain category is
always preferred 3. central tendency bias some
respondents always concentrate on the middle
option (afraid of conflict or no opinion)
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Order of questions

• warm-up questions at the beginning
• social-economic questions at start or end
• (depending on type of respondents)
• controversial questions at the end
• take into account
• tiredness
• logical flow
• shift between sections

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Subject matter questions

• from general to specific (funnel)
• direct or indirect
• knowledge and consciousness of the topic
• opinion
• general ?
• reasons ?
• specific aspects ?
• the strength of the opinion

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A Good Questionnaire

• Appears as easy to compose as a good poem
• But, it is usually the result of long,
  painstaking work

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Major Decisions in Questionnaire Design

• What should be asked?
• How should each question be phrased?
• In what sequence should the questions be
  arranged?
• What questionnaire layout will best serve the
  research objectives?
• How should the questionnaire be pretested? -
  Does the questionnaire need to be revised?

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DESIGN - What Should Be Asked?

• Relevance
• Only information strictly needed should be
  collected
• Accuracy
• The design should provide information which is
  reliable and valid

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Phrasing Questions

• Open-ended questions
• Fixed-alternative questions

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Classifying Surveys by Degree of Structure and
Degree of Disguise
Structured Unstructured
Undisguised Disguised
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Developing a Questionnaire

• No hard and fast rules
• Only guidelines

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• Avoid Complexity use simple, conversational
  language
• Avoid leading and loaded questions
• Avoid ambiguity be as specific as possible
• Avoid double-barreled items
• Avoid making assumptions
• Avoid burdensome questions

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1a. How many years have you been playing tennis
on a regular basis? Number of years
__________ b. What is your level of
play? Novice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-1 Advanced . . . . . . . -4 Lower Intermediate
. . . . . -2 Expert . . . . . . . . . -5 Upper
Intermediate . . . . . -3 Teaching Pro . . . .
-6 c. In the last 12 months, has your level
of play improved, remained the same or
decreased? Improved. . . . . . . . . . . . .
. -1 Decreased. . . . . . . -3 Remained the
same . . . . . -2
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2a. Do you belong to a club with tennis
facilities? Yes . . . . . . . -1 No
. . . . . . . -2 b. How many people in
your household - including yourself - play
tennis? Number who play tennis ___________
3a. Why do you play tennis? (Please X all
that apply.) To have fun . . . . . . . . . .
-1 To stay fit. . . . . . . . . . . .
-2 To be with friends. . . . . . -3 To
improve my game . . . -4 To compete. . . . . .
. . . . . -5 To win. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. -6 b. In the past 12 months, have you
purchased any tennis instructional books
or video tapes? Yes . . . . . . .
-1 No . . . . . . . -2
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Dear Passenger American Airlines is pleased to
have you on board today. To help us provide the
best service possible, we need to know more about
you and your opinions of our service. If you are
over 11 years old, we would appreciate it if you
would complete this questionnaire. Your flight
attendant will pick up your completed
questionnaire shortly. Thank you.
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1. Please indicate Flight number ___________
Date_____________ 2a. At the city where you
boarded this particular plane, did you make a
connection from another flight? Yes, from
American . . . . 1 Yes, from Other Airline .
. 2 No . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
b. Did you board this plane at the airport from
which it just took off, or were you a through
passenger for which that was an intermediate
stop? Boarded here . . . . . . . . .
. 1 Through passenger. . . . . . 2 3. How
would you rate the overall service from American
for this flight, all things considered, from your
arrival at the airport terminal until
now? Excellent Good Fair
Poor Overall Service . . . . . . . . . . 1 2
3 4
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4. Please rate each of the following with regard
to this flight, if applicable.
Excellent Good Fair Poor 1
2 3 4
Courtesy and Treatment from the Skycap at
airport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Airport
Ticket Counter Agent . . . . . Boarding Point
(Gate) Agent . . . . . Flight Attendants . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . Your Meal or Snack. . . . .
. . . . . . . . Beverage Service . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . Seat Comfort. . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . Carry-On Stowage Space. . . . . . .
. Cabin Cleanliness . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Video/Stereo Entertainment . . . . . . On-Time
Departure . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Questionnaire Design

• Question sequence
• Order bias
• Funnel technique
• Filter bias
• Question layout

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Pretesting is Important