SURVEYS

How to collect information ...

• A researcher can collect information
either by observation or by asking.

• When he/she asks for information, we say

that he/she is conducting a survey.
 SURVEY ...
• A ‘survey’ is a technique of gathering
information:
– by questioning,
– those individuals who are the object of the research,
– belonging to a representative sample,
– through standardized or otherwise questioning
procedure,
– with the aim of studying the relationship among the
variables and/or collecting information that probably
describe the whole population.
 SURVEYS ...
• Surveys can be conducted
(i) either
in STRUCTURED MANNER
or
in UNSTRUCTURED MANNER.

(ii) either
Self-Administered
or
Administered through others.
WHAT IS A QUESTIONNAIRE?
• A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting
of a series of questions and other prompts for the
purpose of gathering information from respondents.
• It is a form containing a set of questions; submitted
to people to obtain statistical information.
• Designed to collect large numbers of quantitative
data
• They can be administered personally, mailed or
electronically distributed
QUESTIONNAIRE
• A questionnaire should be designed in such a
manner that
responses can be easily tabulated and translated
into findings and recommendations that satisfy the
required objectives of the research project.
• While designing a questionnaire, one must keep
the following considerations in mind:
–FIRST, does it provide the necessary information that is
required for the research project?
–SECOND, is it designed for the convenience of the
respondents?
–THIRD, does it meet coding, editing and data processing
requirements of the research project?
 QUESTIONNAIRE
• A good questionnaire should
–accommodate all the research objectives in sufficient
depth and breadth;
–‘speak’ to respondents in the understandable language
and at the appropriate intellectual level;
–be convenient to be administered - in terms of posing
questions and recording responses;
–be filled in comfortable time duration before the
boredom sets in; and
–facilitate coding, editing, data entry and data processing.
 GUIDELINES FOR
QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN
Steps involved in the development of a
questionnaire...

SPECIFY WHAT INFORMATION WILL BE

STEP#1
SOUGHT.

STEP#2
DETERMINE TYPE OF QUESTIONNAIRE
AND METHOD OF ADMINISTRATION.

STEP#3
DETERMINE THE CONTENTS OF
INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONS
Steps involved in the development of a
questionnaire...

DETERMINE FORM OF RESPONSES TO

STEP#4
EACH QUESTION

STEP#5
DETERMINE WORDING OF EACH
QUESTION

STEP#6
DETERMINE THE SEQUENCE OF
QUESTIONS
Steps involved in the development of a
questionnaire...

DETERMINE PHYSICAL
STEP#7
CHARACTERISTICS OF QUESTIONNAIRE

STEP#8
REEXAMINE STEPS 1-7 AND REVISE IF
NECESSARY

STEP#9
PRETEST QUESTIONNAIRE AND REVISE
IF NECESSARY
Successful people ask better questions, and as a
result, they get better answers.
- Tony Robbins
Consider the QUALITY of the responses we shall get from
the following questions:
• What is your annual income? (Write your answer in the nearest
thousands.)
• Please give a rank from 1 to 5 ( 1 means ‘Most Dissatisfied’… 5
means ‘Most Satisfied’ about the following features of a
departmental store you visit very frequently:
1. Layout
2. Value for Money
3. Employees’ behaviour
4. Servicing Time at the Counter
5. Range of the Products
• Your place of work ______________________________.
• Given a fact that you have a good reputation and status in the
Society, do you think that the Morning Store in your locality would
extend the credit sales?
SPECIFY WHAT INFORMATION WILL BE
SOUGHT
• … must be clear about the information you need to
answer the issues to be addressed in the research project.

• … do not try to extract that information which

respondents hesitate in providing either it is too
confidential or too private and personal to be shared with
another person.

• … try to ask only and the only information that are

relevant for your research; for that one should have
absolute clarity about the research problem.
DETERMINE TYPE OF QUESTIONNAIRE
AND METHOD OF ADMINISTRATION
• … structured or unstructured?

• … obtaining information through well designed written

questions or through showing pictures and telling stories
about these pictures, or collecting information verbally or
in writing.

• … questionnaire will be administered by self, by hired

personnel/agency; through mail; or telephonic interviews
or through internet/email.

• … whether interviews will be conducted in phases.

DETERMINE THE CONTENTS OF
INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONS
• … how many questions need to be asked and what all to
be asked in each question.

• … whether questions that are related among

themselves should be put under one question with
various sub-questions or should they be asked as main
questions without any sub-questions.

• … not try to ask so many things just in one question!

• The nature of variable tapped will determine
what kinds of questions are asked
DETERMINE THE CONTENTS OF
INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONS (continued…)
• To determine the contents of questions, a researcher
should address the following issues:

– IS THE QUESTION NECESSARY?

– ARE SEVERAL QUESTIONS NEEDED INSTEAD OF ONE?

– DO THE RESPONDENTS HAVE NECESSARY INFORMATION TO

PROVIDE?

– WILL THE RESPONDENTS LIKE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION

ABOUT THE QUESTIONS ASKED?
DETERMINE FORM OF RESPONSES
TO EACH QUESTION
• Should the questions asked be in the form of OPEN-
ENDED QUESTIONS or CLOSE-ENDED QUESTIONS?

• Should close-ended questions be in the form of

dichotomous questions or multiple-choice questions?

• Scaled Response Questions: these questions are

designed to capture the intensity of the respondents’
answers.
 EXAMPLE: Open-Ended Questions
• OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS are those questions to which a
respondent replies in her or his words.
• Open-ended response questions are free-answer questions.
 What do you think is the most in need for improvement in the present
system of billing at MTNL? _____________________________

 Give the most important reason why you have selected the present brand
of tooth brush______________________________________.

 Suggest as per your opinion which is the most important function of

Parent – Teachers Association in Schools._____________________
_______________________________________________________
 Example:
 State five things that are interesting and challenging in the
job________

 What do you like about your supervisors_____

 What do you like about work environment _____

 Another example is to invite their comments on the

investment portfolio of the firm.
• OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS are most beneficial when the researcher
is conducting exploratory research, especially when the range of
responses is not yet known
• It may provide guidance in the wording of questions and responses
for follow up surveys.
• Open-ended response questions are valuable at the beginning of an
interview. They are good first questions because they allow
respondents to warm up to the questioning process.
• They are also good last questions for a fixed-alternative
questionnaire, when a researcher can ask the respondent to expand
in a manner that provides greater richness to the data.
• Generally open-ended questions are used at the
end of the questionnaire.
• For example

An employee satisfaction survey may collect data

with a series of fixed-alternative questions, then
conclude with
“Can you provide one suggestion on how our
organization can enhance employee satisfaction?”
 Closed-ended question
• Closed-ended questions or fixed-alternative questions give respondents
specific limited-alternative responses and ask them to choose the one
closest to their own viewpoints

For instance, instead of asking the respondent to state any five

aspects of the job that she finds interesting and challenging, the
researcher might list 10 or 15 aspects that might seem interesting or
challenging in jobs and ask the respondents to rank the first five
among these in the order of their preference

• All items in a questionnaire using a nominal, ordinal, Likert, or ratio scale

are considered closed.
• Pros:
• Closed questions help the respondents to make quick
decisions to choose among the several alternatives
before them.
• Puts less strain in respondent’s memory
• They also help the researcher to code the information
easily for subsequent analysis.

• Care has to be taken to ensure that the alternatives are

mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive.
Some respondents may find even well‐delineated
categories in a closed question to be confining.

This is the reason why many questionnaires end

with a final open‐ended question that invites
respondents to comment on topics that might not
have been covered fully or adequately.
EXAMPLE – Dichotomous Questions
• … closed ended questions (or, fixed-alternative questions) that
ask the respondents to choose between two answers. Such as -
 According to your opinion, the growth rate in GDP this fiscal is
going to be
 GREATER THAN THAT OF THE PREVIOUS YEAR
 LOWER THAN THAT OF THE PREVIOUS YEAR
 Do you think playing video games can be beneficial to
children?
 Yes ___
 No ___
• Often used as filter question at the beginning of
questionnaire.
A researcher wants to study the impact of children’s exam on
parent’s productivity at work. If the questionnaire is
administered to all the employees, then the employee who do
not have children will not be able to provide the required
information accurately. In such a case, a filter question is
required to ensure that the respondent has children.

Do you have children who are studying?

Yes
No
• Filter questions measure the familiarity of the respondents with
the research topic. Helps researcher to screen out respondents
who are not adequately informed
EXAMPLE – Multiple-Choice Questions
 Do you think playing video games can be beneficial to
children?
 ___ Definitely
 ___ Definitely not
 ___ Probably
 ___ Don’t know
 Scaled response questions
Playing video games can be beneficial to children

Strongly Agree Agree Strongly

Neutral Disagree
Disagree
DETERMINE WORDING OF EACH
QUESTION
• … use simple words.
• … avoid any kind of ambiguous words.
• … avoid ambiguous questions.
• … avoid leading questions.
• … avoid implicit alternatives.
• … avoid implicit assumptions.
• … avoid generalizations and estimates.
• … avoid double barreled questions.
 1. Use simple words..
Which factors are responsible for high attrition rate in a company?
Select one or more options.
___ Bad leadership
___ Unpleasant work environment
___ Unfair appraisals
___ Low salaries
Instead simpler worded question should be used as follows:
What are the reasons due to which employees tend to leave a
company? Select one or more options
___ Bad leadership
___ Unpleasant work environment
___ Unfair appraisals
___ Low salaries
How often misused words generate misleading
thoughts.
—Herbert Spencer
 Avoid ambiguous questions

“To what extent would you say you are happy?”

 Ambiguous questions
How often do you go to beauty salon?
__ Very often
__ Often
__ Seldom
__ Rarely

How often do you go to beauty salon?

__ Twice a week
__ Once a week
__ Twice a month
__ Once a month
__ Once in a quarter
__ Once in six months
 Avoid leading questions
• “Don’t you think that in these days of escalating
costs of living, employees should be given good
pay rises?”

• Questions should not be phrased in such a way

that they lead the respondents to give the
responses that the researcher would like them to
give
• Correct ---
• “To what extent do you agree that employees
should be given higher pay rises?”
 Avoid Loaded questions
• Another type of bias in questions occurs when
they are phrased in an emotionally charged
manner.
• Loaded question: “To what extent do you
think management is likely to be vindictive if
the union decides to go on strike?”
(The words “strike” and “vindictive” are
emotionally charged terms)
 Avoid Socially desirable questions
• Questions should not be worded such that they elicit socially
desirable responses.

• “Do you think that older people should be laid off?”

Correct question: “There are advantages and

disadvantages to retaining senior citizens in the workforce.
To what extent do you think companies should continue to
keep the elderly on their payroll?”
Avoid Making Implicit Assumptions
If a researcher wants to know whether respondents prefer playing
games on mobiles instead of personal computers. A question asked as:

Do you prefer playing games on mobile?

Is it correct?

The correct question would be:

Where do you prefer playing games?
____ Mobile ____ Personal Computer
All the assumptions of researcher should be explicitly expressed in the
questions.
 Avoid Double-Barreled questions

Do you like the freshness and taste of this drink?

___ Yes ___ No

Do you like the freshness of this drink?

___ Yes ___ No
Do you like the taste of this drink?
___ Yes ___ No
Separate questions should be asked
 Avoid Double-barreled questions
• Questions that try to capture multiple
information at once are referred to as double-
barreled questions.

• Too many questions at the same time

• Results in confusing the respondents and obtain
ambiguous responses
• Do you like the freshness and taste of this drink?
• ___ Yes ___ No
 Positively and negatively worded
questions
• Advisable to include some negatively worded
questions with positively worded questions so
the tendency in respondents to mechanically
circle the points toward one end of the scale is
minimized
• If the respondent has circled 5 for a positively worded question
such as, “I feel I have been able to accomplish a number of different
things in my job,” he cannot circle number 5 again to the negatively
worded question, “I do not feel I am very effective in my job.”
• Avoid use of double negatives and excessive use
of the words “not” and “only” in negatively
worded questions because they tend to confuse
respondents
• Examples:
• “Not coming to work is greater fun than coming
to work.”
• Better to say “Coming to work is not great fun”

• “Only the rich do not need help.”

• Better to say “The rich need no help”
 Length of questions
• Short questions are preferable to long ones

• As a rule of thumb, a question or a statement

in the questionnaire should not exceed 20
words, or exceed one full line in print
 Avoid Generalizations
• Respondents should not be asked to make
generalizations or estimates.
• It becomes burdensome for them. There can be
error in estimation.
• A retailer is asked:
• How many units of detergent cake you sell in a
year?

• Correct: How many units of detergent cake you

sell in a week?
• Such recall-dependent questions should be
avoided
DETERMINE THE SEQUENCE OF
QUESTIONS
• Order of questions play an important role in generating the
interest in respondents
• Purpose of the questionnaire
• Respondents should know what would be done with the data
collected.
• May have filter questions
• To motivate the respondents
DETERMINE THE SEQUENCE OF
QUESTIONS
• … you may start with simple and interesting questions!!!
• … start with broad questions and narrow down to more specific
questions - it is called FUNNEL APPROACH.
• … beginning and ending of a questionnaire may have simple and
less demanding questions and in mid, have more demanding and
serious questions.
• … place difficult and sensitive information at the end of the
questionnaire.
• … put Personal information first so as to gain the familiarity with
the respondents. They may be kept at last because respondents
may not be willing to share their identity, or their income
Question sequence

Personal and sensitive data at the end

Funnel Approach: Example

How do you think this country is getting along in its

relations with other countries?
How do you think we are doing in our relations with
Iran?
Do you think we ought to be dealing with Iran
differently than we are now?
(If yes) What should we be doing differently?
Some people say we should get tougher with Iran and
others think we are too tough as it is; how do you
feel about it?
• The sequence of questions in the questionnaire
should be such that the respondent is led from
questions of a general nature to those that are
more specific
And
from questions that are relatively easy to answer to
those that are progressively more difficult.
• This funnel approach facilitates the easy and
smooth progress of the respondent through the
items in the questionnaire.
• Avoid placing contiguously a positively worded
and a negatively worded question tapping the
same element or dimension of a concept.
• What is wrong with this question ?????

• I have opportunities to interact with my

colleagues during work hours.
• I have few opportunities to interact with my
colleagues during work hours.
• First, there is no need to ask the very same
question in both a positive and a negative way.

• Second, if for some reason this is deemed

necessary (e.g., to check the consistency of the
responses), the two questions should be placed
in different parts of the questionnaire, as far
apart as possible.
• Order bias can result from a particular
answer’s position in a set of answers or from
the sequencing of questions.

– Asking specific questions before asking about

broader issues is a common cause of order bias.
“Are you satisfied with your marriage?”
“Are you satisfied with your life?”
Sequencing.. Personal Information
• Classification data, also known as personal information or
demographic questions, elicit such information as age,
educational level, marital status, and income
• Whether questions seeking personal information should
appear at the beginning or at the end of the questionnaire is
a matter of choice for the researcher.
– Personal data at the end: by the time respondent reaches the
end of the questionnaire he becomes convinced of the
legitimacy and genuineness of the questions framed by the
researcher
– Personal information in the beginning: once respondents
have shared some of their personal history they may have
psychologically identified themselves with the questionnaire
Sequencing.. Sensitive information
• Questions seeking details of income, or other highly
sensitive information – if deemed necessary – are best
placed at the very end
• Ask for such information by providing a range of response
options, rather than seeking exact figures.
• May explain the reason for requesting sensitive information
and the promise for keeping it confidential
Age Annual income
Under 20 Less than Rs. 20 000
20–30 Rs. 20 000–30 000
31–40 Rs. 30 001–40 000
41–50 Rs. 40 001–50 000
51–60 Rs. 50 001–70 000
Over 60 Rs. 70 001–90 000
Over Rs. 90 000
 Sensitive information at the end:
Example
• Because many people believe that income is a significant
factor in explaining the type of career decisions individuals
make, the following two questions are very important for this
research. Like all other items in this questionnaire, the
responses to these two questions will be kept confidential.
Please circle the most appropriate number that describes
your position.
• Ques:
• Is it necessary to gather certain demographic data
such as age, sex, educational level, job level,
department, and number of years in the
organization, even if the theoretical framework
does not necessitate or include these variables?
• Yes, it is advisable
• Such data help to describe the sample
characteristics in the report written after data
analysis
At the end… Open-ended question
• Allows respondents to comment on any aspect they choose.
• It should end with an expression of sincere thanks to
respondents. The last part of the questionnaire could look as
follows
The questions in the survey may not be all‐embracing and
comprehensive and may not therefore have afforded you an
opportunity to report some things you may want to say about
your job, the organization, or yourself. Please make any
additional comments needed in the space provided.
How did you feel about completing this questionnaire? Check the
face in the following diagram that reflects your feelings.
 Concluding the questionnaire
• The questionnaire should end on a courteous
note, reminding the respondent to check that
all the items have been completed

• I sincerely appreciate your time and

cooperation. Please check to make sure that
you have not skipped any questions
inadvertently
Thank you!
DETERMINE PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF
QUESTIONNAIRE

• … physical appearance of a questionnaire

may affect the cooperation and thus, the
quality of responses one can obtain.
• … ensure proper size and layout of a
questionnaire.
• … a questionnaire should not give a feeling
of cluttered or crowded appearance.
• … properly stapled/bounded and handy.
• An attractive and neat questionnaire
• appropriate introduction, instructions
• well‐arrayed set of questions and response
alternatives: arranged logically
• A good introduction
– identity of the researcher
– purpose of the survey
– establish some rapport with the respondents and
motivate them to respond
– Assurance of confidentiality of the information shall
reduce the bias
– should end on a courteous note, thanking the
respondent for taking the time
 Introduction sample
Dear Participant
This questionnaire is designed to study aspects of life at work. The information you
provide will help us better understand the quality of our work life. Because you are
the one who can give us a correct picture of how you experience your work life, I
request you to respond to the questions frankly and honestly. Your response will be
kept strictly confidential. Only members of the research team will have access to the
information you give. In order to ensure the utmost privacy, we have provided an
identification number for each participant. This number will be used by us only for
follow‐up procedures. The numbers, names, and the completed questionnaires will
not be made available to anyone other than the research team. A summary of the
results will be mailed to you after the data are analyzed.
Thank you very much for your time and cooperation. I greatly appreciate the help of
your organization and yourself in furthering this research endeavor.
Cordially,
(Sd)
A. Professor, PhD
Pretesting of structured questions
• It is important to pretest the instrument to ensure that the
questions are understood by the respondents (i.e., there is no
ambiguity in the questions) and that there are no problems with
the wording or measurement
• Pretesting involves the use of a small number of respondents to
test the appropriateness of the questions and their
comprehension
• Pilot testing means administering the questionnaire to a small
sample of respondents to identify and eliminate the potential
issues in the questionnaire
• All aspects should be assessed including content, wording,
sequence, difficulty and instructions of all questions
• Time and effort required by respondent may be known.
• At this level, inadequacy and irrelevant questions may be
determined and eliminated. Repetitive questions may be
identified
What is the problem in this question?
• A major problem in developing dichotomous or multiple-choice
alternatives is establishing the response alternatives. Alternatives
should be totally exhaustive and mutually exclusive
Example:
Rs. 10,000–Rs. 30,000
Rs. 30,000–Rs. 50,000
Rs. 50,000–Rs. 70,000
Rs. 70,000–Rs. 90,000
Rs. 90,000–Rs. 110,000
Over Rs. 110,000
• Which category would a respondent with an annual income of Rs.
30,000 check?
• no category for those earning less than Rs. 10,000 to check – not
totally exhaustive
• How many people with incomes of Rs. 30,000 – mutually
exclusivity problem
• Correct:
Less than Rs. 10,000
Rs. 10,000–Rs. 29,999
Rs. 30,000–Rs. 49,999
Rs. 50,000–Rs. 69,999
Rs. 70,000–Rs. 89,999
Rs. 90,000–Rs. 109,999
Over Rs. 110,000