Guidelines for Questionnaire Construction

One question per line.

Use contingency questions when necessary.

Format matrix questions so they are easily answered.

Be aware of issues with ordering items.

Include instructions for the questionnaire.

Pretest all or part of the questionnaire.

Questionnaire Construction

2 Questionnaire A questionnaire is an instrument that is generally mailed or handed over to the respondents and filled
in by them without the help of interviewer or any other person.

3 Schedule A schedule is an instrument that is not given to the respondents but is filled in by interviewer himself who
reads the questions to the respondents and records the answers as provided by the respondents.

4 Questionnaire Construction Points to be considered while constructing questionnaire are  Contents of questions 
Types of questions  Sequence of questions  Question formulation and their wording  Physical layout of the
questionnaire

5 Types of Questions Closed ended questions In a closed ended question, respondents are offered a set of answers and
asked to choose the one that most closely represents their views. For example, What is your marital status? a. Single b.
Married c. Widowed d. Divorced

6 Types of Questions Open – ended Questions Open – ended questions are those questions that are not followed by any
kind of specified choice i.e. respondents are not given a specific set of responses. Here, the respondents are asked to
describe their attitude in their own words and their answers are recorded in full.

7 Open – ended Questions For example, the question, “What do you personally feel are the most important steps
government should take to eliminate terrorism?” is an open ended question.

8 Types of Questions Contingency Questions Contingency questions are special type of closed ended questions,
applicable to a sub-group of respondents. The relevance of the question to this sub-group is determined by the answer
of all respondents to a preceding filter question.

9 Q. 3 How old are you?…. Years Q. 4 Have you ever attended school? Yes No [1] [2] Go to Q. 6 Q. 5 What was the
highest class you have passed? Primary Secondary College University [1] [2] [3] [4] Q. 6 What is your religion? Islam
Hinduism Others [1] [2] [3] For example, Q. 5 is a contingency question and Q. 4 is a filter question
10 Question Formulation & Wording Use simple language Question should be formulated using simple and everyday
language so that respondents can easily understand. For example, instead of using ‘assist’, ‘help’ is known to be much
used word.

11 Question Formulation & Wording Start with an interesting and easy question It is important to start with question
that is interesting and non-controversial and is directly related to the study.

12 Question Formulation & Wording Avoid ambiguity An ambiguous question is one that can have more than one
meaning. This is likely to mislead the respondent resulting in incorrect response or non-response.

13 Avoid ambiguity Suppose one is asked “Are you live in a rented house, because you are constructing a new house of
your own?” A ‘no’ answer may mean two things – I am not living in a rented house. I am not constructing a new house.
So ambiguity arises.

14 Question Formulation & Wording Avoid questions with vague words Vague words and phrases like “often”,
“occasional” “kind of”, “fairly”, “many” should be avoided. For example, in a typical month, how often do you shop in
department stores? 1. Never 2. Occasionally 3. Often 4. frequently

15 Question Formulation & Wording Avoid leading questions A Leading question is one, which by its content, structure
or wording leads the respondents in the direction of a certain answer. For example, Smoking is harmful, isn’t it?

16 Question Formulation & Wording Avoid sensitive, embarrassing or painful questions If it is necessary to ask a
sensitive question, you should be tactfully as possible and avoid asking it near beginning of the interview. Similarly,
painful questions should be asked with great care.

17 Question Formulation & Wording Avoid asking double - barreled questions Double barreled questions refer to ask
more than one items of information in a single question. For example, do not ask, Does your company has pension and
health insurance benefits?

18 Question Formulation & Wording Use short questionnaire Do not overload the questionnaire with items that are not
essential for your study. Make the questionnaire as short as possible.

19 Question Formulation & Wording Avoid question that involve memory Events that have occurred in the distant past
are sometimes difficult to recollect for many people. For example, How many times you experienced load shading during
the last 2 months?

Ways of Administering a Questionnaire

Collective Administration - One of the best way of administering a questionnaire is to obtain a captive audience such
as students in classroom, people attending a functionAdministration in a public places - Sometimes you can
administer a questionnaire in a public place such as a shopping Center, health center, hospital, school or pub, it is
dependent upon the type of study populationThe mailed questionnaire - The most common approach to collecting
information is to send the questionnaire to prospective respondents by mail

1. 1. QUSTIONNAIRE
2. 2. CONTENT <ul><li>Questionnaire </li></ul><ul><li>Characteristics of the good questionnaire
</li></ul><ul><li>Functions </li></ul><ul><li>Types </li></ul><ul><li>Questionnaire as an instrument
 </li></ul><ul><li>Reliability </li></ul><ul><li>Validity </li></ul><ul><li>Constructing a questionnaire
</li></ul>
3. 3. QUESTIONNAIRE <ul><li>A set of predetermined questions for all respondents that serves as a primary
research instrument in survey research. </li></ul><ul><li>Used to collect factual information
</li></ul><ul><li>Consist of a form containing a series of questions </li></ul>
4. 4. CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD QUESTIONNAIRE <ul><li>Should be concerned with specific and
relevant topic </li></ul><ul><li>Should be short </li></ul><ul><li>Directions and wording should be simple
and clear </li></ul><ul><li>Questions should be objective </li></ul><ul><li>Embarrassing questions,
presuming questions and hypothetical questions should be avoided </li></ul><ul><li>Should be presented in
a good order </li></ul><ul><li>Should be attractive, neatly printed and clearly arranged </li></ul>
5. 5. FUNCTIONS OF QUESTIONNAIRE <ul><li>DESCRITION : </li></ul><ul><li>The questionnaire provides
description about age, sex, marital status, occupation, income, political affiliation religious affiliation, etc.
</li></ul><ul><li>MEASUREMENT : </li></ul><ul><li>Measurement of individual and/or group variables like
attitude, opinion, traits and habits of persons. </li></ul>
6. 6. TYPES OF QUESTIONNAIRE <ul><li>Based upon the type of respond required , </li></ul><ul><li>Fixed-
response questionnaire. </li></ul><ul><li>Open- end questionnaire. </li></ul><ul><li>Based upon the
method of administering , </li></ul><ul><li>Mail questionnaire </li></ul><ul><li>Face-to-face administered
questionnaire </li></ul>
7. 7. QUESTIONNAIRE AS INSTRUMENTS <ul><li>Most survey research relies on the use of questionnaire
to measure variables </li></ul><ul><li>Demographic variables </li></ul><ul><li>The accuracy and precision
of questionnaire requires expertise and care in their construction </li></ul><ul><li>Self report scales
</li></ul>
8. 8. DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES <ul><li>Demographic variables are used to describe the characteristics of
the people who are surveyed. </li></ul><ul><li>Measures such as race, ethnicity, age and socio economic
status. </li></ul><ul><li>The accuracy and precision of questionnaire as survey research instrument
depends upon the expertise and care that go into their construction </li></ul>
9. 9. PREFERENCES AND ATTITUDES <ul><li>Individuals’ preferences and attitudes </li></ul><ul><li>For
example brand of coffee preferred, attitude regarding public issues </li></ul>
10. 10. SELF REPORT SCALES <ul><li>Used to measure peoples judgments or attitude about items presented
on the scale </li></ul><ul><li>e.g., coffee, political candidates, life events </li></ul><ul><li>To determine
differences among people on some dimensions presented on the scale </li></ul><ul><li>e.g., personality
traits, amount of stress </li></ul>
11. 11. RELIABILITY <ul><li>Reliability refers to the consistency of measurement. </li></ul><ul><li>Reliable
test should yield similar(consistent) results each time it is taken </li></ul><ul><li>Common method: test-
retest reliability </li></ul><ul><li>FACTORS AFFECTING RELIABILITY: </li></ul><ul><li>Number of items
</li></ul><ul><li>Variability </li></ul><ul><li>Condition in which the questionnaire is administered </li></ul>
12. 12. VALIDITY <ul><li>It refers to the truthfulness of a measure </li></ul><ul><li>Does it measure what it
intends to measure? </li></ul><ul><li>Assessing validity : Construct validity </li></ul><ul><li>Extend to
which it measure the theoretical construct it is designed to measure. </li></ul><ul><li>Convergent validity
</li></ul><ul><li>Discriminant validity. </li></ul>
13. 13. CONSTRUCTING A QUESTIONNAIRE <ul><li>Deciding type, writing a draft, pretesting, concluding
with specific procedures . </li></ul><ul><li>STEPS: </li></ul><ul><li>Decide what information should be
sought </li></ul><ul><li>Decide what type of questionnaire should be used </li></ul><ul><li>Write a first
draft of the questionnaire </li></ul><ul><li>Reexamine and revise the questionnaire
</li></ul><ul><li>Pretest the questionnaire </li></ul><ul><li>Edit the questionnaire and specify the
procedures for its use. </li></ul>
14. 14. <ul><li>WORDINGS OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE : </li></ul><ul><li>Simplicity in language
</li></ul><ul><li>Avoid ambiguity </li></ul><ul><li>Avoid vague words </li></ul><ul><li>Avoid embarrassing
questions </li></ul><ul><li>Avoid double negatives </li></ul><ul><li>Avoid leading questions
</li></ul><ul><li>Presuming questions </li></ul><ul><li>Hypothetical questions </li></ul>
15. 15. <ul><li>ORDER OF THE QUESTIONS : </li></ul><ul><li>Begin with simple and general questions
</li></ul><ul><li>No sensitive and embarrassing questions at beginning </li></ul><ul><li>Move from general
to specific in logical manner </li></ul><ul><li>Sensitive questions at the end </li></ul><ul><li>Demographic
data should be obtained at the end of self administering questions </li></ul><ul><li>Kahn & Cannel (1975)
</li></ul><ul><li>funnel sequence : Start with broad questions and gradually narrow down to the specific
questions related to the topic. </li></ul>
16. 16. CONCLUSION <ul><li>Questionnaire are the main and easy way collecting data </li></ul><ul><li>But
the questionnaire must be highly reliable and valid. </li></ul><ul><li>Using standardized questionnaires will
give us the appropriate data and will yield a valid study </li></ul><ul><li>One must follow all the basic
guidelines and methods of constructing a questionnaire and test it before using it. </li></ul>
17. 17. REFERENCE <ul><li>Singh, A.K. (1997). Tests, Measurements and Research Methods in Behavioral
Sciences. Patna: Bharati Bhawan. </li></ul><ul><li>1. Shaughnessy, J.J., Zechmeister, E.B. & Zechmeister,
J.S. (2006). Research Methods in Psychology. (7th edition). Singapore: McGraw-Hill. </li></ul>
18. 18. THANK YOU…
19. 1. Data collection is a term used to describe a process of Systematic gathering of data for a particular
purpose from various sources, that has been systematically observed, recorded, organized
INTRODUCTION
20. 2. To obtain information To keep on record To make decisions about important issues, To pass
information on to others For research study PURPOSE OF DATA COLLECTION
21. 3. Nature , scope & Objective of the enquiry Sources of information Availability of fund Techniques of
data collection Availability of trained persons Factors to be Considered Before Collection of Data
22. 4. Qualitative Deals with descriptions. Data can be observed Data can not measured e.g. –Colour of body
coat, feather colour in poultry etc Quantitative Deals with numbers. Data which can be measured. e.g. –
height ,weight , length of the animals TYPE OF DATA
23. 5. Sources of Data External sources Internal sources Primary data Secondary data Example: Documents
Creative works Interviews Man-made materials Surveys Example: Unpublished thesis and dissertations
Manuscript Books Journals
24. 6. Internal sources of Data o Many institutions and departments have information about their regular
functions , for their own internal purposes o When those information are used in any survey is called internal
sources of data. o Eg…social welfare socities. External sources of data o When information is collected from
outside agencies is called external sources of data. o Such types of data are either primary or secondary. o
This type of information can be collected by census or sampling method by conducting survey. Internal &
External Sources of Data
25. 7. Data that has been collected from first-hand- experience is known as primary data Primary data has not
been changed or altered by human beings, therefore its validity is greater than secondary data Primary data
has not been published yet and is more reliable, authentic and objective PRIMARY DATA
26. 8. Demerits Evaluated cost Time consuming More number of resources are required Inaccurate feedback
Required lot of skill with labour Targeted issued are addressed Data interpretation is better Merits High
accuracy of data Greater control Address as specific research issues
27. 9. Factor effect method of Data collection 2.Type of research subject 3)Purpose of research study 4)Size of
study sample 5)Distribution of target population 6)Time frame of the study 7)Literacy level of subjects
28. 10. Observation-: is a methodical way of recognising & noting a fact of occurrence TYPE OF
OBSERVATION  STRUCTURED  UNSTRUCTURED  PARTICIPATIVE  NON –PARTICIPATIVE 
CONTROLLED  UNCONTROLLED
29. 11. Merits Subject bias eliminated Information related to current state of affairs Independent to respondent
Demerits Time consuming Expensive Limited amount of information available Extraneous factors may
interfere
30. 12. Presenting stimuli to the respondents in the form of question & note down their oral –verbal response
TYPE OF INTERVIEW  Standardized interviews a. Structured b. Unstructured  Non-standardized
interviews a. One to one 1.Face to face, 2.telephonic, 3.internet mediated interviews b. One to many(focus
group)
31. 13. Merits More accurate responses Get response from all persons Overcome resistance of respondents
Response to difficult question may obtained Demerits Not suitable for More respondents Wider geographical
area More time & cost Selection , training & supervision of field staff
32. 14. Questionnaire method  Questionnaire- A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a series
of question and other prompts for the purpose of gathering information from respondent.  Self administered
questionnaire  Interviewer -administered questionnaire  Telephone questionnaire  Delivery and
questionnaire  Postal or mail questionnaire
33. 15. Merits Suitable for large population Suitable for large geographical area Less time & cost Appropriate for
sensitive & personal type enquiry Demerits Difficulty in replying to the question Some question may remain
unanswered Low rate of return of questionnaire Replies may be given by any one other
34. 16.  SURVEY- A detailed study of geographical area to gather data attitudes, impressions, opinions,
satisfaction level etc., by polling a section of the population  TYPE 1.CENSUS SURVEY 2.CONTINOUS
OR REGULAR SURVEY 3.AD-HOC SURVEY
35. 17. Merits Covered large population Less expensive Information is accurate Demerits On small scale survey
avoided Time consuming Information does not penetrate deeply Researcher must have good knowledge
36. 18.  It is the method of comprehensive study of social unit which may be a person , a family , an
institution , an organisation or a community . Merits Direct behavioral study Real & personal experience
record Make possible the study of social change Increase analysis ability & skills Demerits One case almost
different from another case Personal bias Use only in limit sphere More time & money consuming
37. 19. Secondary data are those that have already been collected by others. These are usually in journals,
periodicals, research publication ,official record etc. Secondary data may be available in the published or
unpublished form. When it is not possible to collect the data by primary method , the investigator go for
secondary method.
38. 20. EXAMPLE Books Journals/periodicals Magazines/Newspapers  Published Electronic Sources e-
journals General websites Weblogs
39. 21. Merits Quick and cheap source of data Wider geographical area Longer orientation period Leading to
find primary data Demerits No fulfill our specific research needs Poor accuracy Data are not up to date Poor
accessibility in some cases
40. 22. Primary data Real time data Sure about sources of data Help to give results/ finding Costly and time
consuming Process Avoid biasness of response data More flexible Secondary data  Past data  Not sure
about of sources of data  Refining the problem  Cheap and no time consuming process  Can not know in
data biasness or not  Less flexible
41. 23. Processing involves editing , coding , classification & tabulation of the data EDITING-: it is careful
scrutiny of data to insure that the data are is accurate CODING-: it refers to the process of assigning
numerals or other symbols to answers so response can be put into a limited number of category.
42. 24. TABULATION-: it is concise , logical & orderly arrangement of data in a columns & rows But now a days
use of the computer in processing of data CLASSIFICATION-: Data are classified on the basis of common
characteristics which may be qualitative or descriptive & quantitative or numericals
43. 25. ONE WAY TABLE One way frequency table represents the distribution of cases on only a single
dimension or variable TWO WAY TABLE distribution in terms of two or more variables and the relationship
between two variable are shown in two way table.
44. 26. DEFINITION-: analysis mean the categorising , ordering , manipulating , & summerising of data to obtain
answers to research question METHOD FOR ANALYSIS OF DATA 1) Parametric Or standard test-: # The
sample is large # Population have normal distribution # The observation are independent # Variables are
expressed in interval or ratio scale e.g. t-test , z-test, f-test , analysis of variance etc
45. 27. NON-PARAMETRIC TEST Also known as distribution –free test CHARECTERISTICS Use when
normal distribution is doubtful Sample size is small Data expressed in terms of ranks E.g. chi square
test ,The Mann –whitney U-test etc.
46. 28. A) FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION The manner in which the total number of observations are distributed
over different classes is called a frequency distribution or systematic arrangement of numeric values
Frequency distribution represent in graphical form 1) Histogram 2) Bar Graph 3) Circle Graph /pie diagram
4) Frequency polygon 5) Cumulative frequency curve / ogive curve
47. 29. Its is two dimensional frequency density diagram It represent continuous frequency distribution
Class interval on X-axis & frequency on Y-axis Class interval must be exclusive
48. 30.  It is simplest type of graphical representation of data  It is suitable for discrete frequency distribution
 Simple bar graph  Double bar graph  Divided bar graph
49. 31. PIE GRAPH Definition: A graph that shows data in the form of a circle Advantages: • Shows percentages
• Shows how a total is divided into parts Disadvantages • Not best for showing trends
50. 32. FREQUENCY POLYGON  It is use for ungrouped frequency distribution  Variable value on X-axis &
frequency on Y-axis  Frequency plotted against the corresponding mid-value
51. 33. CUMULATIVE FREQUENCY CURVE  Cumulative frequency curve is also called ogive  It use when
class interval are very small  Y-value are obtained by adding successive frequency (cumulative frequency )
52. 34. B) MEASURE OF CENTRAL VALUE/TENDENCY/LOCATION Five basic measures of central tendency
Arithmetic mean Median Mode Geometrical mean Harmonic mean
53. 35. Mean The sum of the value of individual in the data divided by the number of individual in the data.
FORMULA Here, ∑, represents the summation X, represents scores N, represents number of scores
54. 36. Median: Is the value which is located in the middle of a series when the observation are arranged in
order of magnitude If the total number of numbers(n) is an odd number, then the formula is If the total
number of the numbers(n) is an even number, then the formula is
55. 37. Mode Mode: The number that occurs most frequently in a set of numbers
56. 38. C) MEASURE OF DISPERSON  It indicate the extend of scattering or variability of item about a central
value RANGE MEAN DEVIATION STANDARD DEVIATION QUARTILE DEVIATION COEFFICIENT
OF VARIATION
57. 39. Range is difference between the smallest & largest of observation Range = largest value – smallest
value  it is defined as the square root of the arithmetic mean of the squares of deviations of the observation
from the arithmetic mean  Most commonly used measure of dispersion
58. 40. Mean of absolute deviation of all value of data from average ( mean , mode , median ) μ is the mean x is
each value N is the number of values Mean Deviation = Σ|x - μ| N
59. 41. Quartile Deviation:  It is based on the lower quartile Q1 and the upper quartile Q3.  The difference
Q3−Q1 is called the inter quartile range. The difference Q3−Q1 divided by 2 is called semi-inter-quartile
range or the quartile deviation. Thus Q.D=Q3−Q1 2 Q1=Value of (n/4 )
60. 42. The coefficient of variation (CV) is defined as the ratio of the standard deviation to the mean Cv =
Standard Deviation / Mean Cv = σ /μ
61. 43. t-Test t-Test is used for comparing the means of two independent group Paired t-test If there is any kind
of correspondence between the individual values in the two samples The should be paired & differences
taken and analysed directly as
62. 44.  Report writing is an essential skill for professionals in almost every field A report aims to inform,
authority within the stipulated period Report help to know what has been done , why it was done how it
was done , what result was obtained & what conclusion
63. 45.  it should be accurate & written in simple language  It is Complete and Self-explanatory  It is
Comprehensive but Compact  It has a Proper Date and Signature  A good report should be able to
sustain reader’s interest Features
64. 46. Types of report
65. 47. Inductive report • Initial stage • Executive summary • Introduction • Methodology • Conclusions •
Discussion • references Deductive report • Initial stage • Executive summary • Introduction • Methodology •
Discussion • Conclusions • references
66. 48. Initial stage contain following items Title page –: contain information related to title , author , year ,
month of submission & affiliation Acknowledgement -: it indicate the name of person , institutions &
organisations who have sanctioned & help in various in conduct of research & preparation of report in
various ways Content -: in this page the chapters and their page number including bibliography &
appendices
67. 49. It contains all essential information in nutshell Introduce the topic to readers in a comprehensive way
a) A clear & definite statement of problem b) A brief review of literature c) The concept of important term are
explained
68. 50.  Selection of study area , sample and sample procedure method of data collection & their
measurement statistical tools  Summary what you did and why  Use the past tense
69. 51. Findings or results  describes what you discovered, observed, etc, in your observations and
experiments  Use the past tense. Discussion  Discusses and explains your findings and relates them to
previous research  Use the present tense to make generalisations
70. 52.  Reports in written form are useful for future reference  Reports provide adequate and correct
information as well as statistical data to management and helps in decision making  A report provides
information of unknown facts i.e. new ideas new vision new solution to problem new research about a
particular matter.
71. 53.  Research method in social science & extension education – G.L. RAY & SAGAR MANDAL 
Foundation of Behavioural research KERLINGER , F.N.  Class note of biostatistics  Practical manual on
biostatistics  INTERNET