There are two types of survey instruments: questionnaires and interviews. Almost always, surveys are self-administered, allowing respondents to complete them independently. The researcher is just required to arrange the distribution and collection of surveys. Typically, an interview involves face-to-face conversation or communication between an interviewer and a respondent via technology such as the telephone or computer. There are three types of interviews: i) unstructured, which permits unrestricted communication throughout the interview or questionnaire administration; (ii) structured, which predetermines the information to be elicited from respondents; and (iii) semi-structured, which restricts certain types of communication but permits speed and agility on certain topics.
Type of Questions:
Open-ended questions: These are questions that lack pre-coded responses. These are often used for informative or qualitative research to gather respondent comments verbatim. Open-ended survey questions allow respondents to provide their responses in the text box provided. It indicates no predetermined responses, and respondents are free to express their opinions in their chosen language. It also allows them to respond in greater detail.
Closed-ended questions: These questions can be answered with a single word, such as “yes” or “no,” or can get the respondent to pick an option from a list of answer possibilities. This question is straightforward to analyze, as responders may be categorized according to their responses.
Dichotomous questions: Dichotomous questions have two potential replies, such as yes/no, true/false, and agree/disagree. While conducting surveys, dichotomous questions are often used to identify a lead question.
Multiple-response questions: Certain questions may have several possible responses. The majority of responders are likely to be aware of more than one method. As a result, it becomes necessary to sometimes structure queries as multiple-response questions.
Cross-check Items: Cross-check items are check items that aid researchers in assuring the consistency of data acquired via a research questionnaire. The researcher may ask about the respondent’s age at one moment and their date of birth at another to confirm that both survey items are accurate. Split-form interviewing is a variant, in which the questionnaire is provided separately to unrelated respondents, for example, a husband and wife, to verify uniformity.
Rating: Rating questions let respondents assess the persuasiveness of particular characteristics or alternatives on a predetermined scale.
There may be some confusion regarding the distinction between ranking and rating questions among younger researchers. The distinction is as follows:
While both types of questions collect comparative data, ranking questions require responders to express the relative importance of each response option with respect to the others. In contrast, rating questions permit respondents to score certain choices on a predetermined scale. It is recommended that rating scale include five options so that a neutral response is available.
Rank Order Question: The rank order question type enables respondents to organize their responses. One can utilize this question type to determine the weight respondents assign to each option. The second type of rank order question is a drag-and-drop inquiry, in which the respondent can rearrange choices based on their relative importance. A sports products firm may conduct a rank order survey to determine respondents’ preferences for sports and how they would rank them.
Matrix: Matrix questions are a survey industry mainstay. The bulk of us automatically think of matrix questions when we hear the word survey, and with good reason. They may prove useful for determining the intensity of respondents’ actions and attitudes. Having said that, caution is advised while utilizing matrix sets because each line of a matrix necessitates distinct replies from our survey respondents; we consider each line as a different question. We recognize that not all question forms are made alike, so we change survey responses depending on the number of questions and the estimated amount of time needed to complete the survey. When respondents see more than five matrix lines in a row, they may lose interest quickly and perhaps quit the survey. Thus, keeping each matrix to five or fewer lines wherever possible maintains respondents’ attention.
Further, one can also use a matrix rating scale. The matrix rating scale should be given logically, such as Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree, reading from left to right. Consistency should be maintained with rating scales throughout a survey, whether they read from left to right or vice versa. Lastly, matrix line items must be kept clear and concise because, frequently, respondents do surveys on their mobile devices, and packed matrix sets may negatively affect their survey experiences, avoiding crowding the restricted area with needless phrases is optimal for better results.
Likert scale survey questions: While measuring perceptions and opinions, the Likert scale can be utilized.
A Likert scale question is comprised of a five- or seven-point scale. The options on the scale range from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree,” allowing you to understand the opinion of your respondents. Rensis Liker, an organizational psychologist, created the scale in 1932, and it is now widely used in numerous fields.
Comment Box Question: The comment box’s open-ended inquiry is designed to gather any lengthy criticism or recommendations. They are in an open text style, allowing respondents to react with their full knowledge, sentiments, and comprehension. This question type is employed when the entity conducting the survey wishes to defend a previous decision or when a significant response from the respondent is desired.
Text question: Similar to a comment box, a text inquiry asks the user to provide normally controlled and validated data. A single row of text may be entered, for example, a home address. Only numbers may be put in the numeric textbox.
Drop-down survey questions: It is popular because it is a simple way to display a lengthy list of answer options without discouraging respondents. In addition, these questions are useful because they help participants comprehend the question you’re posing.
Date/Time Question: The Date/Time question type allows one to regularly collect date/time information from responders. For example, this question may respond to questions regarding a person’s date of birth.
Max Diff Question: Maximum Differential Scaling, or Max-Diff, is a method of research in which respondents are shown a list of characteristics and asked to rate them from greatest to worst. Each option may appear in the final response only once.
Kultar Singh – Chief Executive Officer, Sambodhi
