BUS3059 Week 2 Discussion

Survey Questions Making Sure You Get The Data You Want Structured and Unstructured Surveys Structured Survey In a structured survey, the participants are asked closed questions, such as a series of yes/no questions. The results of such a survey are succinct and relatively easy to analyze, but they may not provide as many details as an unstructured survey. Unstructured Survey In an unstructured survey, the participants are asked open-ended questions that do not limit the participants’ responses—for example, “Describe what your perfect house would look like.” This type of survey should be used when you are looking for more details and have more time to analyze the participants’ results. Disguised and Undisguised Questions Disguised Question The real purpose of a disguised question is hidden, otherwise (according to researchers) the results of the study could be negatively affected. For example, a surveyor for ABC Airlines wants to collect unbiased data and therefore includes the following disguised question in the survey: “What aspects of air travel do you like the most?” Undisguised Question The real purpose of an undisguised question is not hidden. For example, in a survey about the preferences for seafood, the surveyor asks, “Do you eat seafood regularly, sometimes, or occasionally?” Here the objective of the question (frequency of eating seafood) is not disguised. Creating Effective Questionnaire Items Correct Wording Carefully determine the correct wording to use in a question. For example, use terms and vocabulary that the participants can understand. Response Strategy Use a response strategy that ranges from unstructured responses to structured responses. Multiple-Choice Questions Ask multiple-choice questions when there are over two alternatives to choose from. Rating vs. Ranking Use rating questions when asking the participants to judge various factors on a scale. If the order of responses is important, use ranking questions. Checklist Use a checklist if the order of responses is unimportant. For example, ask the participants to use a checklist to select various items that illustrate the participants’ attitude toward a product.

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