| There
are two main objectives in designing a questionnaire:
* To maximise the proportion of subjects
answering our questionnaire - that is, the response rate.
* To obtain accurate relevant information for our survey.
To maximise our response rate, we have to
consider carefully how we administer the questionnaire, establish
rapport, explain the purpose of the survey, and remind those
who have not responded. The length of the questionnaire should
be appropriate. In order to obtain accurate relevant information,
we have to give some thought to what questions we ask, how
we ask them, the order we ask them in, and the general layout
of the questionnaire.
There are three potential types of information:
* Information we are primarily interested
in-that is, dependent variables.
* Information which might explain the dependent variables-that
is, independent variables.
* Other factors related to both dependent and independent
factors which may distort the results and have to be adjusted
for - that is, confounding variables.
The way questions are phrased is important
and there are some general rules for constructing good questions
in a questionnaire.
Use short and simple sentences
Short, simple sentences are generally less
confusing and ambiguous than long, complex ones. As a rule
of thumb, most sentences should contain one or two clauses.
Sentences with more than three clauses should be rephrased.
Ask for only one piece of information at a
time
For example, "Please rate the lecture
in terms of its content and presentation" asks for two
pieces of information at the same time. It should be divided
into two parts: "Please rate the lecture in terms of
(a) its content, (b) its presentation."
Avoid negatives if possible
Negatives should be used only sparingly. For
example, instead of asking students whether they agree with
the statement, "Small group teaching should not be abolished,"
the statement should be rephrased as, "Small group teaching
should continue." Double negatives should always be avoided.
Ask precise questions
Questions may be ambiguous because a word
or term may have a different meaning. For example, if we ask
students to rate their interest in "medicine," this
term might mean "general medicine" (as opposed to
general surgery) to some, but inclusive of all clinical specialties
(as opposed to professions outside medicine) to others.
Another source of ambiguity is a failure to
specify a frame of reference. For example, in the question,
"How often did you borrow books from your library?"
the time reference is missing. It might be rephrased as, "How
many books have you borrowed from the library within the past
six months altogether?"
Ensure those you ask have the necessary knowledge
For example, in a survey of university lecturers
on recent changes in higher education, the question, "Do
you agree with the recommendations in the Dearing report on
higher education?" is unsatisfactory for several reasons.
Not only does it ask for several pieces of information at
the same time as there are several recommendations in the
report, the question also assumes that all lecturers know
about the relevant recommendations.
Level of details
It is important to ask for the exact level
of details required. On the one hand, you might not be able
to fulfil the purposes of the survey if you omit to ask essential
details. On the other hand, it is important to avoid unnecessary
details. People are less inclined to complete long questionnaires.
This is particularly important for confidential sensitive
information, such as personal financial matters or marital
relationship issues.
Sensitive issues
It is often difficult to obtain truthful answers
to sensitive questions. Clearly, the question, "Have
you ever copied other students' answers in a degree exam?"
is likely to produce either no response or negative responses.
Less direct approaches have been suggested.2 Firstly, the
casual approach: "By the way, do you happen to have copied
other students' answers in a degree exam?" may be used
as a last part of another decoy question. Secondly, the numbered
card approach: "Please tick one or more of the following
items which correspond to how you have answered degree examination
questions in the past." In the list of items, include
"copy from other students" as one of many items.
Thirdly, the everybody approach: "As
we all know, most medical students have copied other students'
answers in degree exams. Do you happen to be one of them?"
Fourthly, other people approach. This approach was used in
the recent medical student survey.3 In this survey, students
were given the scenario, "John copies answers in a degree
exam from Jean." They were then asked, "Do you feel
John is wrong, what penalty should be imposed for John, and
have you done or would you consider doing the above?"
Minimise bias
People tend to answer questions in a way they
perceive to be socially desired or expected by the questioner
and they often look for clues in the questions. Many apparently
neutral questions can potentially lead to bias. For example,
in the question, "Within the past month, how many lectures
have you missed due to your evening job?" students may
perceive the desired responses to be "never" to
the first question. This question could be rephrased as, "Within
the past month, how many times did your evening job commitment
clash with lectures? How many times did you give priority
to your evening job?"
Take another example. The question, "Please
rate how useful the following text-books are. Please also
state whether they are included in your lecturer's recommended
reading list?" There is a risk that the students may
perceive that they should rate books recommended by lecturers
more favourably than those not recommended by their lecturers.
This risk may be minimised by putting the second question
later on in the questionnaire.
How
to design a questionnaire |
Steps
in building a questionnaire |
A
good Questionnaire |
Interviewing
Methods |
Questionnaire
Design
| Ten
Tips to design a Questionnaire |
