QUESTIONNAIRES

QUESTIONNAIRES

1. Types

   • The mail survey
     • It is the most common type of questionnaire.
     • It is delivered by mail.
     • It can be an efficient way to collect large amounts of data.
     • Sometimes is considered impersonal and may suffer from low response rates.
   • The group-administered questionnaire
     • It is a useful tool for collecting data from a sample of respondents gathered for this purpose.
     • They are often used to collect data from students attending a conference, teachers in a school and medical staff in hospitals.
     • It allows each member of the group to complete their own questionnaire and return it to the researcher at the end.
     • Response rates are high, since the group is assembled specifically to help with research, so respondents feel personally involved.
   • The household drop-off survey
     • Is a hybrid of the mail and the group-administered survey.
     • The researcher gives the questionnaire to a member of a household to collect it at a later date.
     • The delivery and subsequent collection provides the opportunity for those who complete the instrument to clarify the questions raised with the researcher.

2. Definition

   • The questionnaire is a research instrument that can provide a cheap and efficient way of collecting data in a structured and manageable way.
   • A well-planned and well-executed questionnaire campaign can produce rich data in a format that is simple to analyze and interpret.

3. Issues

   • Design issues and other considerations when using questionnaires
     • The provision of instructions, at relevant places in the questionnaire, can generate more useful and reliable data. Without instructions, respondents could skip questions and miss out on valuable data.
     • Maximising response rates
       • To maximize response rates, consider using a cover letter for your questionnaire. This should be brief and should explain the research clearly and understandable.
     • Ideal questionnaire length and time to complete
       • a questionnaire should take no more than about twenty minutes to complete.
     • Piloting – using a suitable sample group
       • When designing a questionnaire, it is easy to miss mistakes. Pilot your instrument with colleagues or a small sample of those who will complete the questionnaire will allow 'fresh eyes' to comment on its suitability and clarity.
     • Stratified sampling
       • Stratified sampling means establishing your population and taking from within that population a sample that represents the whole.
     • Web-based questionnaires

4. Data analysis

   • Coding responses and analysing questionnaire data
     • Most questionnaires require respondents to record responses by checking boxes, or by providing written responses. The responses are coded (reduced to a number).
       • This allows questionnaire data to be collected and analyzed quickly.
     • When coding responses to questionnaires, researchers often develop "coding frames": instructions reminding them and others which number code to use.

5. Uses

   • They are used to collect large amounts of data from a variety of respondents.
   • Quickly and easily analyze collected data
   • Allow the transmission of useful information and accurate data from the respondent to the researcher.
   • Allow the informant to interpret the questions, and articulate their response, transmitting it effectively to the researcher.
   • Accurately collect, record, code, and analyze respondent responses.

6. Limitations

   • Leading questions
   • Complicated questions
   • Irritating questions
   • Ambiguous or unclear questions
   • Too many open-ended questions

7. By: Eduardo Vargas. Group 2.

8. Types of question

   • Closed questions
     • These are questions to which all possible answers are provided.
   • Multiple-choice questions
     • This questionnaires include questions which provide a number of predefined responses.
   • Open-ended questions
     • These quizzes do not impose any of the restrictions of closed and multiple choice questions.
     • The answers to open questions are not predetermined in any way; this can make analysis difficult.
   • Scale items
     • These questions require the respondent to indicate responses according to a scale, which typically ranges from a very positive response to a very negative response.
     • An example of these questionnaires is the Likert scale.
   • Routing questions
     • These questionnaires guide the respondent to appropriate areas of the questionnaire.