Question types

Usually, a questionnaire consists of a number of questions that the respondent has to

answer in a set format. A distinction is made between open-ended and closed-ended
questions. An open-ended question asks the respondent to formulate his own answer,
whereas a closed-ended question has the respondent pick an answer from a given
number of options. The response options for a closed-ended question should be
exhaustive and mutually exclusive. Four types of response scales for closed-ended
questions are distinguished:

• Dichotomous, where the respondent has two options

• Nominal-polytomous, where the respondent has more than two unordered
options
• Ordinal-polytomous, where the respondent has more than two ordered options
• (Bounded)Continuous, where the respondent is presented with a continuous
scale

A respondent's answer to an open-ended question is coded into a response scale

afterwards. An example of an open-ended question is a question where the testee has
to complete a sentence (sentence completion item).[1]

[edit] Question sequence

In general, questions should flow logically from one to the next. To achieve the best
response rates, questions should flow from the least sensitive to the most sensitive,
from the factual and behavioural to the attitudinal, and from the more general to the
more specific.

[edit] Basic rules for questionnaire item construction

• Use statements which are interpreted in the same way by members of different
subpopulations of the population of interest.
• Use statements where persons that have different opinions or traits will give
different answers.
• Think of having an "open" answer category after a list of possible answers.
• Use only one aspect of the construct you are interested in per item.
• Use positive statements and avoid negatives or double negatives.
• Do not make assumptions about the respondent.
• Use clear and comprehensible wording, easily understandable for all
educational levels
• Use correct spelling, grammar and punctuation.
• Avoid items that contain more than one question per item (e.g. Do you like
strawberries and potatoes?).

[edit] Types
• A food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) is a questionnaire to assess the type of
diet consumed in people, and may be used as a research instrument. Examples
 of usages include assessment of intake of vitamins or toxins such as
acrylamide.[2][3]

[edit] Questionnaire administration modes

Main modes of questionnaire administration are:[1]

• Face-to-face questionnaire administration, where an interviewer presents the

items orally.
• Paper-and-pencil questionnaire administration, where the items are presented
on paper.
• Computerized questionnaire administration, where the items are presented on
the computer.
• Adaptive computerized questionnaire administration, where a selection of
items is presented on the computer, and based on the answers on those items,
the computer selects following items optimized for the testee's estimated
ability or trait.

[edit] See also

open-ended question
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Types of Questionnaires

1) Structured non disguised questionnaire

2) Structured disguised questionnaire
3) Non structured non disguised questionnaire
4) Non structured disguised questionnaire

1) Structured non disguised questionnaire

• Questions are listed in a pre-arranged order
• Respondents are told about the purpose of collecting information
2) Structured- disguised questionnaire
• Questions are listed in a pre-arranged order
• Respondents are not told about the purpose of conducting survey
3) Non structured non disguised questionnaire
• Questions are not structured.

• Researcher is free to ask questions in any sequence he/she wants.

• Respondents are told about the purpose of collecting information

4) Non structured disguised questionnaire

• Questions are not structured
• Researcher is free to ask questions in any sequence he/she wants.
•

Respondents are not told about the purpose of conducting survey.

Types of Questions

1) Closed ended questions:---

•

In the closed ended type of questions, the respondent is asked to select

from a fixed list of replies.
• Repondent has to choose any one of the options given or multiple options
•

This facilitates coding and helps in quantifying the answer to the

1.3 What is the purpose of questionnaires?

Home » Questionnaires » 1 Introduction

As a mechanism for obtaining information and opinion, questionnaires have a number

of advantages and disadvantages when compared with other evaluation tools. The key
strengths and weaknesses of questionnaires are summarised in bullet points below. In
general, questionnaires are effective mechanisms for efficient collection of certain
kinds of information. They are not, however, a comprehensive means of evaluation
and should be used to support and supplement other procedures for evaluating and
improving teaching.

Advantages of questionnaires

• They permit respondents time to consider their responses carefully without

interference from, for example, an interviewer.
• Cost. It is possible to provide questionnaires to large numbers of people
simultaneously.
• Uniformity. Each respondent receives the identical set of questions. With
closed-form questions, responses are standardised, which can assist in
interpreting from large numbers of respondents.
 • Can address a large number of issues and questions of
concern in a relatively efficient way, with the possibility
of a high response rate.
• Often, questionnaires are designed so that answers to
questions are scored and scores summed to obtain an
overall measure of the attitudes and opinions of the
respondent.
• They may be mailed to respondents (although this
approach may lower the response rate).
• They permit anonymity. It is usually argued that
anonymity increases the rate of response and may
increase the likelihood that responses reflect genuinely
held opinions.

Different Types of Questions in

Questionnaire Design

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We have a team of qualified marketing questionnaire design experts who are skilled
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There are different types of questions that can be put forth to a large audience. The
key to getting the right data depends on the questions that are asked. We have
knowledge and expertise in the different types of questions in questionnaire design.

The following is a list of the different types of questions in questionnaire design:

1. Open Format Questions

Open format questions are those questions that give your audience an opportunity to
express their opinions. In these types of questions, there are no predetermined set of
responses and the person is free to answer however he/she chooses. By including open
format questions in your questionnaire, you can get true, insightful and even
unexpected suggestions. Qualitative questions fall under the category of open format
questions. An ideal questionnaire would include an open format question at the end of
the questionnaire that would ask the respondent about suggestions for changes or
improvements.

Example of an Open Format Question

2. Closed Format Questions
Closed format questions are questions that include multiple choice answers. Multiple
choice questions fall under the category of closed format questions. These multiple
choices could either be in even numbers or in odd numbers. By including closed
format questions in your questionnaire design, you can easily calculate statistical data
and percentages. Preliminary analysis can also be performed with ease. Closed format
questions can be asked to different groups at different intervals. This can enable you
to efficiently track opinion over time.

Example of an Open Format Question

3. Leading Questions
Leading questions are questions that force your audience for a particular type of
answer. In a leading question, all the answers would be equally likely. An example of
a leading question would be a question that would have choices such as, fair, good,
great, poor, superb, excellent etc. By asking a question and then giving answers such
as these, you will be able to get an opinion from your audience.

Example of an Open Format Question

4. Importance Questions
In importance questions, the respondents are usually asked to rate the importance of a
particular issue, on a rating scale of 1-5. These questions can help you grasp what are
the things that hold importance to your respondents. Importance questions can also
help you make business critical decisions.

Example of an Open Format Question

5. Likert Questions
Likert questions can help you ascertain how strongly your respondent agrees with a
particular statement. Likert questions can also help you assess how your customers
feel towards a certain issue, product or service.

Example of an Open Format Question

6. Dichotomous Questions
Dichotomous questions are simple questions that ask respondents to just answer yes
or no. One major drawback of a dichotomous question is that it cannot analyze any of
the answers between yes and no.

Example of an Open Format Question

7. Bipolar Questions
Bipolar questions are questions that have two extreme answers. The respondent is
asked to mark his/her responses between the two opposite ends of the scale.

Example of an Open Format Question

8. Rating Scale Questions
In rating scale questions, the respondent is asked to rate a particular issue on a scale
that ranges from poor to good. Rating scale questions usually have an even number of
choices, so that respondents are not given the choice of an middle option.

Example of an Open Format Question

9. Buying Propensity Questions

Buying propensity questions are questions that try to assess the future intentions of
customers. These questions ask respondents if they want to buy a particular product,
what requirements they want to be addressed and whether they would buy such a
product in the future.

Example of an Open Format Question

Questions to be avoided in a questionnaire

The following is a list of questionnaires to be avoided when preparing a questionnaire.

1. Embarrassing Questions

Embarrassing questions are questions that ask respondents details about personal and
private matters. Embarrassing questions are mostly avoided because you would lose
the trust of your respondents. Your respondents might also feel uncomfortable to
answer such questions and might refuse to answer your questionnaire.

2. Positive/ Negative Connotation Questions

Since most verbs, adjectives and nouns in the English language have either a positive
or negative connotations, questions are bound to taken on a positive or negative
question. While defining a question, strong negative or positive overtones must be
avoided. Depending on the positive or negative connotation of your question, you will
get different data. Ideal questions should have neutral or subtle overtones.
3. Hypothetical Questions

Hypothetical questions are questions that are based on speculation and fantasy. An
example of a hypothetical question would be “If you were the CEO of ABC
organization what would be the changes that you would bring?” Questions such as
theses, forces the respondent to give his or her ideas on a particular subject. However,
these kinds of questions will not give you consistent or clear data. Hypothetical
questions are mostly avoided in questionnaires.