06BRM Questionnaire and Form Design

8/2/2019 06BRM Questionnaire and Form Design

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Questionnaire and Form Design


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A questionnaire, whether it is called aschedule, interview form, or measuringinstrument, is a formalized set of questionsfor obtaining information from respondents.


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Any questionnaire has three specificobjectives It must translate the information needed into a set

of specific questions that the respondents can andwill answer.

Questionnaire must uplift, motivate, and encouragethe respondent to become involved in the interview,to cooperate, and to complete the interview.

A questionnaire should minimize response error.


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Specify the information needed. Specify the type of interviewing method.

Determine the content of individual

questions. Design the questions to overcome the

respondents inability and unwillingness toanswer.

Decide on the question structure. Determine the question wording.


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Arrange the questions in proper order. Identify the form and layout.

Reproduce the questionnaire.

Eliminate bugs by pretesting.


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Is the question necessary? Are several questions needed instead of one?

E.g.: Do you think Coca-Cola is a tasty andrefreshing soft drink?

Such a question is called a double barreledquestionbecause two or more questions are combined intoone.


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The correct way to ask this question is: Do you think Coca-Cola is a tasty drink? and

Do you think Coca-Cola is a refreshing drink?


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Is the respondent informed? Respondents are often asked about topics on which

they are not informed. A husband may not beinformed about monthly expenses for groceries

and department store purchases if it is the wife whomakes the purchases, or vice versa.


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Can the respondent remember? Many things that we might expect everyone to know

are remembered by only a few. Test this outyourself. Can you answer the following?

What is the brand name of the shirt you were wearingtwo weeks ago?

What did you have for lunch a week ago?

What were you doing a month ago at noon?

How many liters of soft drinks did you consume duringthe last four weeks?


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The soft drink consumption may be betterobtained by asking: How often do you consume soft drinks in a typical

week?

_______ Less than once a week _______ 1 to 3 times per week

_______ 4 to 6 times per week

_______ 7 or more times per week


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The inability to remember leads to errors of omission,telescoping, and creation.

Omission is the inability to recall an event thatactually took place.

Telescoping takes place when an individualtelescopes or compresses time by remembering anevent as occurring more recently than it actuallyoccurred. For example, a respondent reports threetrips to the supermarket in the last two weeks when,in fact, one of these trips was made 18 days ago.

Creation errors takes place when a respondent

remembers an event that did not actually occur.


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Can the respondent articulate? Respondents may be unable to articulate certain

types of responses. Respondents should be givenaids, such as pictures, maps, and descriptions to

help them articulate their responses.


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Effort required of the respondents Most respondents are unwilling to devote a lot of

effort to provide information. Hence, the researchershould minimize the effort required of the

respondents. Please list all the departments from which you

purchased merchandise on your most recentshopping trip to a department store.


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In the list that follows, please check all thedepartments from which you purchasedmerchandise on your most recent shoppingtrip to a department store.

Womens dresses Mens apparel Childrens apparel Other (please specify)


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Context Some questions may seem appropriate in certain

contexts but not in others.

Legitimate Purpose Respondents are also unwilling to divulge

information that they do not see as serving alegitimate purpose.


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Sensitive Information Respondents are unwilling to disclose, at least

accurately, sensitive information because this maycause embarrassment or threaten the respondents

prestige or self-image. If pressed for the answer,respondents may give biased responses, especiallyduring personal interviews.


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Unstructured Questions: Unstructured questions areopen-ended questions that respondents answer intheir own words. They are also referred to as free-responseor free-answerquestions. The following aresome examples:

What is your occupation?

What is your favorite soft drink?

Who is your favorite political figure?


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Structured Question: Structured questionsspecify the set of response alternatives andthe response format. A structured questionmay be multiple choice, dichotomous, or

scale.


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Multiple-Choice Questions: In multiple-choice questions, the researcher provides achoice of answers and respondents are askedto select one or more of the alternatives

given. Consider the following question.


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Do you intend to buy a new car in the nextsix months?------ Definitely will not buy------ Probably will not buy

------ Undecided------ Probably will buy------ Definitely will buy------ Other (please specify)


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Dichotomous Questions: A dichotomousquestion has only two response alternatives:yes or no, agree or disagree, and so on. E.g.

Do you intend to buy a new car withinnext six months?

----- Yes

----- No

[----- Dont Know]


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Scales:Do you intend to buy a new car within thenext six months?

Definitely Probably Probably

Definitely

will not buy will not buy Undecided will buywill buy

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A question should clearly define the issuebeing addressed. Define the issue in terms ofwho, what, when, where, why and how.

Is this question correct?

Which brand of shampoo do you use?


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The correct way to ask this question is:Which brand or brands of shampoo have

you personally used at home during the lastmonth? In case of more than one brand,please list all the brands that apply.


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Is this question correct?

Do you think the distribution of softdrinks is adequate?


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The correct way to ask this question is:

Do you think soft drinks are readilyavailable when you want to buy them?


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Is this question asked correctly?In a typical month, how often do you shop indepartment stores?------ Never

------ Occasionally------ Sometimes------ Often------ Regularly


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These are the correct choices to be given:In a typical month, how often do you shop indepartment stores?

------ Less than once

------ 1 or 2 times

------ 3 or 4 times

------ More than 4 times


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Leading Question: A leading question is onethat clues the respondent to what answer isdesired or leads the respondent to answer ina certain way, as in the following:

Do you think that patriotic Indians shouldbuy imported TV when that would put Indianlabor out of work?

------ Yes

------ No------ Dont Know


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A better questions would be:

Do you think that Indians should buy importedTV?

------ Yes

------ No

------ Dont Know


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Implicit Alternatives:An alternative that is notexplicitly expressed in the options is animplicit alternative. E.g.: Do you like to fly when travelling short distances?

(Incorrect) Do you like to fly when travelling short distances,

or would you rather drive? (Correct)


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Implicit Assumptions: Questions should notbe worded so that the answer is dependentupon implicit assumptions about what willhappen as a consequence. Are you in favor of balanced budget? (Incorrect) Are you in favor of a balanced budget if it would

result in an increase in the personal income tax?(Correct)


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Generalization and Estimates: Questionsshould be specific, not general. Moreover,questions should be worded so that therespondent does not have to make

generalizations or compute estimates. E.g.:

What is the annual per capita expenditureon groceries in your household?


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The correct way to ask this question is:

What is the monthly (or weekly) expenditureon groceries in your household?

and

How many members are there in yourhousehold?


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Opening Questions: The opening questionsshould be interesting, simple, andnonthreatening. Questions that askrespondents for their opinions can be good

opening questions, because most people liketo express their opinions.


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Difficult Questions: Difficult questions orquestions that are sensitive, embarrassing,complex, or dull should be placed late in thesequence.

Effect on Subsequent Questions: As a rule ofthumb, general questions should precedespecific questions.

Going from general to specific is called funnelapproach.


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The format, spacing, and positioning ofquestions can have a significant effect on theresults.


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How a questionnaire is reproduced foradministration can influence the results. Forexample, if the questionnaire is reproducedon poor-quality paper or is otherwise shabby

in appearance, the respondents will think theproject is unimportant and the quality ofresponse will be adversely affected.Therefore, the questionnaire should bereproduced on good-quality paper and havea professional appearance.


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Pretesting refers to the testing of thequestionnaire on a small sample ofrespondents to identify and eliminatepotential problems. A questionnaire should

not be used in the field survey withoutadequate pretesting.

06BRM Questionnaire and Form Design

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