Effective Questionnaire Administration Training Guidelines

1. Questionnaire administration EHES Training material

2. Modes of questionnaire administration • Similar basic principles applied for • Checking self-administered questionnaires • Interviewing

3. Basic principles • Don’ t comment the responses or express any criticism (e.g. regarding participant’s lifestyles) • If needed, the question and the answer alternatives can be clarified by giving additional information in a standardized and non-directive way • Always check the interviewer instructions and, if needed, contact your supervisor • Do not try to interpret the question yourself and develop additional explanation • Record ‘refusal’ or ‘Don’t know’ if needed, but try to avoid these

4. Subjective items • Questions that measure the person’s own assessment (e.g. self perceived health) should not be interpreted or assessed by anyone else • You or any other person who is present during the interview or while filling in and checking the questionnaires (e.g. a family member), should not affect the participant’s choice of the answer categories

5. Objective items • Questions on facts, e.g. having diseases diagnosed by a doctor, using medicines, can be asked from a proxy (e.g. a family member or care taker), especially when the participant him/herself in unable to answer due to cognitive impairment

6. Starting the interview • Explain the possibility to stop the interview at any time and right to refuse answering any question • Explain that all information is strictly confidential and all answers are valuable to obtain reliable and valid results from the survey • Read all questions and response categories exactly as they are written • If needed, repeat the question first, before giving additional information

7. Interviewing process • Follow the order of the questions in the questionnaire • Record answers carefully and so that the participant doesn’t focus on observing what you are writing • Keep active contact with the participant

8. Pausing or stopping the interview • Stop the interview if • the participant loses the ability to concentrate (e.g. is very tired or intoxicated) • there are severe problems in the participant’s cognitive or communication skills • Explore the possibility to continue later, e.g. with proxy assistance

9. Checking self-administered questionnaires • Empty, unanswered questions: help the participant when needed • If the participant has marked several answer categories, when one should be chosen, ask which option applies most or corresponds best in his/her situation • Correct if jump rules have not been followed: check the correct answers with the participant

10. Closing • Give positive feedback to the participant: ”Thank you for this valuable information…” • Record if proxy (or proxy assistance) was used • Record and report to your supervisor any problems encountered during the interview or when checking the questionnaires, e.g. problems in communication, disturbing presence of other persons

11. Acknowledgements • Slides • Päivikki Koponen • Photographs • Hanna Tolonen • Demonstration • Saara Vallivaara, Marjut Kajosaari, Shadia Rask, William Garbrah