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What makes a good questionnaire

What makes a good questionnaire. Stages of a questionnaire:. Define your research question Formulate your questions Formulate your responses Design the layout Test the questionnaire – Refine Design your coding scheme Upload online, or print Analyse data and report.

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What makes a good questionnaire

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  1. What makes a good questionnaire

  2. Stages of a questionnaire: • Define your research question • Formulate your questions • Formulate your responses • Design the layout • Test the questionnaire – Refine • Design your coding scheme • Upload online, or print • Analyse data and report

  3. Define your research question • Important to define your research question, study population,and the objectives at the beginning • What audience do you cater for? • Previous studies have shown that people are more responsive to questionnaires that cover issues that are relevantto them

  4. Formulate your questions • Studies have shown that the wording of questions has an importantinfluence on the responses that are given • It is important to remember that the average readingage in the UK is around 12 years • More difficult questions willeither produce an inaccurate response or the respondentwill give up and fail to complete the questionnaire • Better response rate is achievedif general questions precede specific questions

  5. Formulate your questions • Use simple language • Avoid jargon • Keep questions short and specific • Avoid ambiguities • Avoid double-barrelled questions (“and”, “or”) • Avoid double negatives • Do not overload the respondent's memory • Avoid hypothetical questions • Do not make assumptions

  6. Formulate your responses • Questions can be divided into open-ended questions, orclosed questions • Open-ended questions are useful for identifying a rangeof possible responses where no previous data exist. Open-endedquestions also give the people an opportunity to state theirown views about a topic • The main disadvantage of open-endedquestions: they take longer to complete – may be left unanswered. It is also more difficult to code the responsesthan closed questions • Closed questions are quicker to complete and easier to code.Responses can be presented as simple yes/no choices

  7. Design the layout • Important to capturepeople’s attention and make them interested in completingthe questionnaire • Good idea to use at leasta size 14 font size for the questions and to avoidtoo many questions onto a page • If many questions, divide questionnaire into sections • Separate each question from the next with a linewill also help to make the questionnaire easier to read • Important that you give clear instructions atthe beginning and throughout the questionnaire

  8. Test the questionnaire • First, identify the rangeof possible responses for each question • Do they examine the full scope of your research question? • Ask a friend or colleague to help you • Go through the questions togetherto identify potential problems • After each session, amend the questionnaire before re-testing

  9. Design Coding Scheme • Coding is the process of converting questionnaire data intomeaningful categories to facilitate analysis • For example: numbering the response tick boxes for each question • Test your coding schemeand data entry process during the testing phase

  10. Upload online or print • Make sure that database is setup correctly • All links are working • Test on different Operating Systems and browsers • Print on high quality paper • Use bright colours for front and back of questionnaire but questions should be on white background

  11. Analyse data and report • When reporting, explain the purpose or aim of the research • Describe in detail how the research was done • Describe and justify the methodsand tests used for data analysis • Present the results of theresearch • Interpret and discuss the findings • Present conclusionsand recommendations

  12. Increasing response rate • Design a questionnaire that is easy to navigate • Clear questions and structure the questionnaire in sections • Do not ask too many questions – attention is limited • If you have to ask many questions, state the number of questions beforehand • Stress anonymity of the questionnaire • Make the e-mail request personal. Genuine request – do not spam! • Send reminders to people who have not responded • Add additional info (pages left, percentage completed)

  13. Conclusion • Define a research question • Meet research objectives • Make it clear for respondent (instructions) • Use simple language – avoid grammar errors • Do not overload the respondent’s memory • Organise the questionnaire • Test the questionnaire • Do not make assumptions

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