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Chances are you have filled out a questionnaire at least once in your life. But have you ever created one yourself? Do you know the steps involved in questionnaire construction? Well, let us not make a questionnaire out of this introduction and get to the answers faster.In this article, we will explore the various principles involved in the construction of questionnaires in research methodology and back them up with examples. But first, why use questionnaires in the first place?
Researchers often use questionnaires when researching because they are relatively inexpensive, it is easy to recruit and analyse many responses and their data. Typically, researchers use questionnaires that other researchers previously created and have proven reliable and valid measurement tools. If no questionnaire is available to measure the variables under study, researchers must develop their own reliable and valid questionnaire.
When researchers construct questionnaires, they must ensure reliability and validity. There are several steps researchers must take to confirm this. Once the researchers make the questionnaire, they check its reliability and validity before using it in research. There are several things researchers should consider when creating questionnaires.
Whether the researcher uses open-ended or close-ended questions affects whether the research obtains qualitative or quantitative data. The researcher must decide this in advance, as it will affect the data they will get and what forms of analysis they can use later.
When the researcher wants to understand the respondents’ thoughts or behaviours, they use open-ended questions and closed-ended questions in cases where this is not necessary. Thus, a close-ended question is a predetermined answer, such as yes or no. An open-ended question is much more detailed or allows for more self-expression.
Some questionnaires contain a mixture of both types of questions.
Example of ‘open’ and ‘close-ended’ questions in a questionnaire, StudySmarter Originals
In open-ended questions, respondents’ answers are not fixed. This is not the case with close-ended questions. There are several forms of scales that researchers can use for close-ended questions:
The questions asked must not be leading questions. Otherwise, it is more likely that the results are due to the effects of the researcher and not the respondents’ true thoughts.
The order of questions in the questionnaire must make sense so that respondents are not confused. This can lead to invalid results.
When formulating the questions, the researcher must keep in mind the type of analysis they want to perform.
Close-ended questions have a good side and a bad side. Let us explore them.
The use of closed-ended questions allows for economical data collection (large quantities can be collected at a low cost) and can be easily converted into quantitative data. The questions are also standardised, which increases reliability (they can be easily repeated).
Unlike open-ended questions, you can not get more information with close-ended questions. There is no real depth or detail that reflects a participant’s answer.
Now let us examine the strengths and weaknesses of open-ended questions.
These questions are much more detailed and allow for qualitative data collection that provides insight into the true thoughts and feelings of the participants.
They are very time-consuming, both in collecting the data and analysing it. Researchers cannot enter them into a coded analysis programme. Instead, researchers must pick out common themes and analyse the responses in depth.
Before researchers create a questionnaire, they must test it, which they usually do with a pilot study. Testing aims to ensure that the questionnaire design is reliable and valid. Ideally, the questions should be straightforward and avoid bias.
Before conducting a study, researchers tend to replicate the procedure they will use in their research. They usually do it on a small scale, meaning with fewer participants. The purpose of pilot studies is to identify weaknesses and improve the study. When they create new materials such as questionnaires, they test them before using them in the research to ensure that the measurements are reliable and valid. This procedure can be done through pilot studies.
In terms of reliability, researchers want to ensure that questionnaires have high internal reliability.
Internal reliability means that all questions in the questionnaire should consistently measure the same thing (no irrelevant questions).
Test-retest reliability is also tested before using a questionnaire. The same participants complete the same questionnaire but on different days to do this. If a high correlation exists between the test scores measured on different days, the researchers can assume that the constructed questionnaire has a high test-retest reliability.
There are several types of validity, one of which is constructed validity. The questionnaire measures the variables stated in the hypothesis and if the scores measured reflect the hypothesis. Researchers must also ensure that the questions cover all the variables under study. If this is the case, the experiment has high validity.
Validity means that the questionnaire measures the intended variables the researcher wants to measure.
A common way to study the validity of a questionnaire is to distribute a questionnaire to two groups:
If the two groups arrive at similar results, the questionnaire is easy to understand, and the questions do not allow for interpretation. Therefore, the questionnaire has high validity.
Another way to measure the validity of a questionnaire is to check whether it has concurrent validity. This check is done by inspecting whether the results of the new questionnaire match those of a previously created questionnaire that measures a similar concept, which has high reliability and validity.
Levels of validity scale, Katarina Gadže, StudySmarter Originals
Overall, questionnaires are an inexpensive and quick way to collect data for analysis, and they can be anonymous.
It becomes problematic when the questions are not carefully constructed so that large data sets do not truly reflect the research and the questions can be misunderstood. When sending out questionnaires, it also takes time for participants to receive them (if they are sent out instead of participants being present), and then it also takes time to return the questions.
Ultimately, questionnaires should avoid influencing or suggesting the correct answers (to avoid participants making the socially desirable choice).
The process of constructing a survey questionnaire is:
We identify the construct validity by determining whether a questionnaire measures the intended variables. We typically assess this by identifying any high levels of validity such as face validity, concurrent validity, criterion validity, etc.
An example of a mixed questions questionnaire is:
1) What is your sex (with the predefined options: male, female, prefer not to answer)?
2) How did the video that you just watched make you feel (open-ended question)?
The process of constructing a survey questionnaire is:
There are several forms of questionnaires, such as:
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