In quantitative research, the data collection technique commonly used is distributing questionnaires, namely a list of research questions that must be answered by respondents. Although it seems easy, actually creating an effective questionnaire is quite complicated; In addition, it takes a long time and process to distribute questionnaires to respondents. Do you need to create a questionnaire to support the research data collection process? Read on for this article to discover effective questionnaire creation and distribution strategies.
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Part 1 of 3: Designing a Questionnaire
Step 1. Determine the purpose of the questionnaire
What data or information would you like to collect from the questionnaire? What is the main goal of your research? Are questionnaires an effective data collection technique for your type of research?
- Define the research question. Research questions are one or more questions that are the main focus of your questionnaire.
- Develop one or more hypotheses that you want to test. The questions in your questionnaire should be directed in such a way as to test the validity of the hypothesis.
Step 2. Select a question type
There are several types of questions commonly used in research questionnaires; each type has its own advantages and disadvantages, and is highly dependent on the data or information you wish to collect. Several types of questions are commonly used in questionnaires:
- Dichotomous questions: dichotomous questions can only be answered with “yes” or “no”; sometimes, there are also questionnaires that provide “agree” or “disagree” answers. This type of question is the easiest to analyze, but cannot be used as an accurate and detailed measuring tool.
- Open-ended questions: open-ended questions allow the respondent to elaborate on the answers. In general, this type of question is useful for understanding the respondent's point of view, but is very difficult to analyze. This type of question should be used to answer “why” questions.
- Multiple choice questions: this type of question is equipped with three or more conflicting answer choices; Respondents were then asked to choose one or several answers that they thought were the most appropriate. Multiple-choice questions can be analyzed easily, but may not involve the answers that respondents want most.
- Questions in the form of an ordinal scale / rating scale: This type of question asks the respondent to rank the answer choices provided. For example, respondents may be asked to rank five answer choices from least important to most important. This type of question indirectly forces the respondent to discriminate between the available choices, but is unable to explain the reasons behind the respondent's choice.
- Graded scale questions: this type of question allows respondents to rate an issue based on the available measuring scale. You can provide a measuring scale in the form of numbers 1-5; The number 1 represents the answer "strongly disagree", while the number 5 represents the answer "strongly agree". This type of question is very flexible, but cannot answer the “why” question.
Step 3. Develop your questionnaire questions
The questions in the questionnaire should be clear, concise, and straightforward. Less verbose questions allow you to get more accurate answers from respondents.
- Write concise and simple questions. Avoid making questions that are too complex or full of technical terms; it is feared that the question will confuse respondents and prevent them from providing an accurate response.
- Ask one question in one interrogative sentence. This will help prevent the respondent from confusion or misunderstanding.
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Be wary of questions that are personal or sensitive, such as questions about the respondent's age, weight, or sexual history.
If you are forced to ask sensitive questions, at least the demographic data you collect should be anonymous or encrypted
- Decide whether you will accept an answer such as “I don't know” or “This question doesn't suit me/doesn't apply to me”. While it gives respondents the opportunity not to answer questions they don't want to answer, this kind of choice can later mess up your data analysis process.
- Put the most important question at the beginning of the questionnaire. Over time, the respondent's attention and focus can be easily distracted. To keep you with the data that is important and needed, use this method.
Step 4. Limit the length of the questionnaire
Keep your questionnaire as short and concise as possible, especially since people tend to be more comfortable filling out short questionnaires. However, make sure that your questionnaire remains comprehensive and helps you get all the important information you need. If you can make a questionnaire that only consists of 5 questions, why not?
- Ask questions that are really relevant to your research question. Remember, the questionnaire is not intended to collect information about respondents!
- Avoid vague or long-winded questions; make sure you don't confuse the respondent!
Step 5. Identify the demographics of the target respondents
Is there a specific group that your respondents are targeting? To make the research more focused, it's a good idea to first determine the demographics of the target respondents before distributing the questionnaire.
- Consider the gender of your target respondent. Is the questionnaire intended for both men and women? Or does your research only require male respondents?
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Determine the target age of your respondents. Do you only need information from adults? Or also from teenagers and children? Most of the questionnaires target respondents with a certain age range that is considered more relevant to the research topic.
Consider including an age range in the demographics of your target respondents. For example, people aged 18-29 are grouped into the category of young adults; meanwhile, people aged 30-54 years are grouped into the adult category; and people over the age of 55 are grouped into the elderly category. Undoubtedly, you will get more respondents if you don't set a specific age target
- Think about what other criteria you could include in the demographics of your target respondents. Does your respondent have to be able to drive a car? Do they have to have health insurance? Do they have to have children under 3 years old? Make sure you define the criteria as clearly as possible before distributing the questionnaire.
Step 6. Make sure you are able to protect respondent confidentiality
Define a respondent's data protection plan before you even create a questionnaire; This is one of the most important stages that you should not miss.
- Consider creating an anonymous questionnaire; in other words, there is no need to ask respondents to write their names in the questionnaire. This is a simple step to protect their confidentiality, although sometimes their identity will still be visible from other information (such as age, physical features, or postal code).
- Consider giving each of your respondents a new identity. Provide identity in the form of a unique series of numbers for each questionnaire sheet that has been filled out by the respondent), and refer your respondent only with the new identity. Erase or tear the various personal identities written by the respondent.
- Remember, it doesn't take too much information to identify a person's identity. Most likely, people are reluctant to become research respondents for this reason; if possible, make sure you don't ask for too much personal information in order to reach more respondents.
- Make sure you delete all data (especially respondent information) after your research is complete.
Part 2 of 3: Creating a Questionnaire
Step 1. Introduce yourself
State your name and background; Also explain whether you are working alone or in a group. If the questionnaire is distributed for academic or professional purposes, also state the name of the educational institution or company that houses you. Here are some examples you can emulate:
- Introducing, my name is Jack Smith and I am the author of this questionnaire. I currently work at the School of Psychology, University of Michigan. I made this research for the academic interest of the relevant university and focuses on the development of toddler intelligence.
- Introducing, my name is Kelly Smith, a third year student in the University of New Mexico Undergraduate Program. I made this questionnaire in order to collect data for the purposes of the Statistics final exam at the university concerned.
- Introducing, my name is Steve Johnson. Currently, I work as a Sales and Marketing Analyst at The Best Company. I created this questionnaire to observe drug use behavior in Canada over the past few years.
Step 2. Explain the purpose of your questionnaire
Most likely, respondents will not want to fill out the questionnaire if they do not understand its purpose. No need to give a long explanation; simply explain the purpose of the questionnaire in short and concise sentences. Here are some examples:
- I am currently collecting data on community behavior regarding gun control. The information recorded in this questionnaire will be used for the purposes of the Anthropology course at the University of Maryland.
- This questionnaire contains 15 questions about your diet and exercise. We are currently collecting data on the correlation between a healthy diet and exercise and cancer statistics in adults.
- This questionnaire contains several questions regarding your experience of traveling with international airlines over the past few years. In this questionnaire, you will find three groups of questions; The first group of questions asks you to calculate your recent trip, the second question asks you to share your feelings on each trip, and the third question asks you to share your plans for a future trip. We are currently collecting data on the effect people feel when traveling by air on their future travel plans.
Step 3. Understand and explain the purpose of data collection
Is the data used for class projects or research publications? Is the data actually used to research the market? There are several things that you need to pay attention to before distributing the questionnaire which will depend on the purpose of your data collection.
- If the questionnaire is being used for university publications, make sure you first seek permission from the review board (also known as the Institutional Review Board (IRB) before starting the questionnaire creation process. Most universities have IRB staff appointed to review the quality of research on a university scale.
- Prioritize openness. It is very important for respondents to know the process that occurs after the data has been collected.
- If necessary, attach a consent form. Remember, you will not be able to guarantee the confidentiality of respondents, but you should at least do your best to protect their personal information.
Step 4. Measure the time of filling out the questionnaire
Before the respondent starts filling out the questionnaire, it's a good idea to tell the estimated time in advance. Providing this information to the respondent increases your chances of receiving a completed questionnaire afterwards.
- Try filling out a self-made questionnaire and measuring the time. Some people may take a little longer or less time than you.
- Instead of a specific time, provide an estimate of the time span the respondent will need. For example, tell respondents that they have 15-30 minutes to fill out a questionnaire. If you ask them to complete the questionnaire within a specific time (eg 15 minutes), it is likely that some respondents will not complete the questionnaire filling process.
- As much as possible, make the questionnaire short, concise, and clear! It would be much better if you only took 20 minutes instead of 3 hours of responder time, right?
Step 5. Describe the incentives that the respondent will receive
Incentives are “thank you” that respondents will receive after completing the questionnaire. The form doesn't have to be money; You can also give unique and interesting gifts, gift certificates, candies, etc. But before that, understand the advantages and disadvantages of providing incentives first.
- Incentives risk attracting the wrong respondents. Some people tend to fill out questionnaires carelessly just to finish quickly and get the incentives you offer. This is one of the dangers of giving incentives that you should consider.
- Incentives can encourage people who were previously reluctant to fill out your questionnaire to participate. In this situation, incentives can help you meet the required number of respondents.
- Consider the strategy used by SurveyMonkey. Instead of paying respondents to fill out questionnaires, SurveyMonkey offers a donation program of 50 cents for selected social activities of respondents who are willing to fill out the questionnaire. According to them, this strategy is able to reduce the possibility of the involvement of respondents who only think about their own interests.
- Offer the opportunity to draw prizes to respondents who are willing to complete the questionnaire. You can offer gifts such as discount coupons at famous restaurants, the latest iPod, or tickets to the cinema. In this way, respondents know that they have the opportunity to receive a gift, but the opportunity is not absolute.
Step 6. Make sure your questionnaire looks professional
Earn respondents' trust with a professional display of the questionnaire.
- Always check and correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors in your questionnaire.
- Give a title to the questionnaire. The title helps make it easier for respondents to understand the purpose of the questionnaire.
- Thank the respondent at the end of the questionnaire. Thank the respondents for the time and effort they put into completing the questionnaire.
Part 3 of 3: Distributing Questionnaires
Step 1. Test your questionnaire
Ask your closest friends or relatives to fill out the questionnaire (don't count the results!), and make revisions if necessary. To test the questionnaire, ask at least 5-10 of your friends and/or relatives for help. After they have finished filling out the questionnaire, ask the questions below to get the feedback you need:
- Is this questionnaire easy to understand? Are there any confusing questions?
- Is this questionnaire easily accessible? (Especially if you distributed the questionnaire online).
- Is this questionnaire worth filling out?
- Are you comfortable answering the questions in the questionnaire?
- What suggestions can you give to improve the quality of this questionnaire?
Step 2. Distribute the questionnaire
First of all, you need to first determine the most effective way to distribute the questionnaire. Some of the commonly used ways to distribute questionnaires are:
- Distribute the questionnaire through an online site, such as SurveyMonkey.com. SurveyMonkey is a site that offers a quick and easy survey creation service. In addition to offering convenience for its users, SurveyMonkey is also equipped with various useful features such as features to purchase target audiences and analyze data more comprehensively.
- Distribute the questionnaire by post. If you use this method, make sure you also include an envelope with the return address on it so that respondents can return the completed questionnaire easily. Also make sure your questionnaire sheet can be folded and put in a standard-sized business envelope.
- Ask questions through face-to-face interviews. This method is good to use to make sure you reach your defined target demographic. In addition, this method is also usually able to provide more complete information and answers for you; mainly because the respondent will not be able to avoid or ignore the questions asked directly.
- Ask questions over the phone. This method is actually very effective; unfortunately many people are reluctant to respond to telephone-related questionnaires.
Step 3. Include information regarding the deadline for returning the questionnaire
Ask respondents to complete and return the questionnaire by a certain deadline so that you have sufficient time to analyze the data.
- Set reasonable deadlines. In general, 2 weeks is sufficient time to fill out the questionnaire. If it's longer than 2 weeks, chances are they will forget and ignore your questionnaire.
- Give a warning to the respondent. One week before the return deadline is a good time to warn respondents. Also provide a backup questionnaire in case the questionnaire in the respondent's hands is lost or tucked away.
