Good Questionnaire Design
Surveys are about asking questions. So it's vital for the success of your survey that you ask the right questions and that they are well presented.
Poorly conceived questions and quesitonnaires will reduce your response rates and provide inaccurate data. Here are some of the things The Survey Centre considers when designing questions and creating questionnaires...
Devising great questions/questionnaires...
- Define the research objective. What information or insight is required? For example is the survey trying to measure performance, gauge opinion, test awareness or evaluate actions?
- What actions will be taken? You must know in advance what action you intend to take with certain information. If you don't... leave out the question.
- Be concise. Avoid the temptation of adding `nice to know` questions.
- Provide a "Not Applicable" response. Carefully consider what multiple choice response options you offer. "Unable to Comment", "Other" or "None" will ensure respondents don't have to choose options which don't match their opinions.
- Clear layout, clear instructions. Ensure questionnaires are clearly designed and laid out, easy on the eye, and that it's clear how they should be completed.
- Include an introduction. Include a brief introduction or welcome message with the quesitonnaire. Your message can be by email for online surveys or covering letter for postal surveys. This should be complimented by a fuller message at the start of the questionnaire itself.
- Common Mistakes:
- Lengthy questions - these can confuse respondents leading to inaccurate data
- Ambiguous questions - these can be misinterpreted leading to problems with inaccurate data
- Poor response options - multiple-choice options should accurately reflect respondents` preferred answer.
Poor questionnaire design leads to poor response rates and poor information; poor information leads to poor decisions. Good researchers take time to help you to define your objectives, to understand how your organisation works and the world in which your respondents operate before they construct a questionnaire. Click How We Work to see how we do things.
To discuss how The Survey Centre might help you enhance your survey design, call us on 01444 240249, or Contact us.