Survey Research

Surveying is easily one of the most popular methods used both in the professional world and in the academic world. Surveying has many beneficial elements and is relatively simple to entice people to take them since they are quick and easy. It’s a very useful way to obtain people’s perceptions and attitudes towards certain products and companies.

One way to conduct survey research is to make a questionnaire; this involves asking your respondents a series of questions that start with general questions and then ease into more specific ones towards the end. There must be an introduction explaining what the survey is about and a set of detailed instructions that explain how to complete the survey. More personal questions are asked at the end of surveys so that the respondents feel more comfortable answering them last. The questionnaire should be separated by sections and be visually appealing; this giving your respondents a sense of accomplishment as they progress through the survey. The questionnaire should also be short because if you ask too many questions respondents might get bored or frustrated by the length of time it is taking them to complete it. Another important component of a good questionnaire is to provide a scale that remains constant throughout the entire survey in order to avoid any confusion.

The data collection method is how you ask your respondents questions. Each question should have one main idea; you should avoid attempting to ask two questions in one question. It should be neutral with no bias and avoiding words like love and hate. The questions should also be exclusive, meaning there should be an answer for everyone with the exception of the response “check all that apply” or “other” if someone’s answer is not provided in the answers provided. Lastly the questions should remain exhaustive, meaning they must include the whole range of response options. For example, ranges given as answers should be clear-cut and obvious. Lastly, make sure your questions are appropriate for your perspective audience.

Things to avoid: double-barrel questions, bias questions, opinion wording, leading questions, providing limited options, non-exhaustive, using too many conditions, extreme wording, broad generalizations, acronyms, negative questions, use appropriation for your respondents.