Question 1

The best place for questions on income is at the beginning of a questionnaire.

Accepted Answer

Placing questions about income at the beginning of a questionnaire can make respondents uncomfortable and may lead to higher dropout rates. It's generally better to ask sensitive questions like those about income later, after building rapport with the respondent.

Question 2

Open-ended questions are generally easier for a respondent to answer than closed-ended questions, which require more thought.

Accepted Answer

Open-ended questions require respondents to generate their own answers, which often demands more thought and effort than selecting from provided options in closed-ended questions.

Question 3

There are arguments for and against the inclusion of "don't know" or "not sure" as response categories and the choice depends on the individual question.

Accepted Answer

Including "don't know" or "not sure" can be helpful for respondents who genuinely do not have an answer or are unsure. However, it can also lead to ambiguous data and potentially lower data quality as it is difficult to differentiate between those who genuinely do not know and those who are avoiding the question or did not pay attention to it. Therefore, the choice to include these response categories should depend on the specific question and context.

Question 4

An interview should start with an easy, nonthreatening question and be followed by sensitive questions to catch respondents by surprise.

Accepted Answer

An interview should start with an easy, nonthreatening question to build rapport and establish trust with the respondent. However, sensitive questions should be approached with sensitivity and thoughtfulness, not to catch the respondent by surprise. The goal is to create a safe and respectful environment for the interviewee to share their experiences and perspectives.

Question 5

Computer-controlled telephone questionnaires in theory leave an interviewer with more freedom to concentrate on establishing rapport with a respondent.

Accepted Answer

Computer-controlled telephone questionnaires can handle the collection of responses, leaving the interviewer with more time to build a connection with the respondent.

Question 6

Because the disadvantages of open-ended questions usually outweigh the advantages, open-ended questions should only be used sparingly.

Accepted Answer

Open-ended questions can be time-consuming, difficult to analyze, and may not elicit specific answers. Therefore, they should be used judiciously and only when necessary.

Question 7

A questionnaire should cover no more and no less than is necessary to satisfy the research objective.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. A questionnaire should be designed to fulfill the research objective and include only necessary questions to gather the required data. Including unnecessary questions can lead to fatigue and missing important information, while not asking enough questions can lead to incomplete data.

Question 8

The appearance of a questionnaire is particularly important for self-administered surveys.

Accepted Answer

The appearance of a questionnaire can affect the respondent's motivation to complete it and the accuracy of their responses. A clear and easy-to-read format can help increase response rates and reduce errors. Therefore, the appearance of a questionnaire is particularly important for self-administered surveys.

Question 9

Responses to an open-ended question will not be influenced by pre- specified categories or by an interviewer's expectations of a respondent.

Accepted Answer

Responses to open-ended questions can still be influenced by the interviewer's non-verbal cues, tone of voice, or even the context in which the question is asked, potentially leading respondents to tailor their answers to what they perceive are the interviewer's expectations.

Question 10

Open-ended questions are harder to develop and require more exploratory work than closed-response questions.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Open-ended questions are harder to develop and...

Question 11

The split ballot technique involves the use of alternative wordings of a question.

Accepted Answer

The split ballot technique does indeed involve the use of alternative wordings of a question. This technique is often used in surveys or polls to reduce bias by randomly assigning participants to answer different versions of the same question. By using different phrasings, researchers can better understand the impact of certain words or phrases on participant responses.

Question 12

A rule-of-thumb in selecting the number of response categories is to give the respondent a choice of at least nine.Fewer than nine categories will not capture individual differences, particularly in a telephone interview.

Accepted Answer

The common rule-of-thumb for selecting the number of response categories typically suggests using between 5 to 7 options. This range is considered optimal for capturing individual differences without overwhelming the respondent.

Question 13

In multiple-choice questions, the response categories should ideally be mutually exclusive and exhaustive.

Accepted Answer

When response categories are mutually exclusive, it means that each option should not overlap with any other option, ensuring that the respondent can only choose one answer. Conversely, response categories should be exhaustive, which means that every possible answer is provided as an option.

Question 14

A researcher should not use words such as "often" or "recently" without defining a time frame because the respondents' answers will not be comparable.

Accepted Answer

This is because the interpretation of the terms "often" or "recently" may vary among respondents, leading to inconsistent or unreliable data. Defining a specific time frame will ensure that all respondents are answering based on the same reference point.

Question 15

Closed-response questions have an advantage over open-ended questions in that there is less potential error due to differences in the way questions are asked and answers are reported.

Accepted Answer

Closed-response questions typically have a set list of options for the respondent to choose from, providing more consistency in the way answers are reported. Open-ended questions, on the other hand, can lead to variation in the responses given and the way they are interpreted and recorded by the interviewer or survey administrator.

Question 16

Hypotheses play an important role in translating the research objective into information requirements.

Accepted Answer

Hypotheses provide a framework for formulating research questions, identifying variables, and determining what data needs to be collected in order to answer the research questions. They are an essential part of the research process and help researchers to create a clear plan for conducting their studies.

Question 17

A researcher who is unfamiliar with the respondents' vocabulary should use technical terms in survey questions since those terms are likely to have a common meaning.

Accepted Answer

Using technical terms may cause confusion or misunderstanding among respondents who are not familiar with those terms. Survey questions should use simple and clear language that most people can understand.

Question 18

Preceding questions establish a frame of reference which influences a respondent's answers to questions that follow.

Accepted Answer

Preceding questions can set a certain context or perspective in the mind of the respondent, which can affect how they interpret and answer subsequent questions. This is known as the framing effect.

Question 19

An example of an ordering problem is the tendency of some respondents to choose the center position in a list of categories.

Accepted Answer

This is correct. This ordering problem is known as "centering bias" and can skew data if not accounted for.

Question 20

A qualifying question can be used to make sure that a subsequent question is applicable to a respondent.

Accepted Answer

A qualifying question helps to determine whether a respondent is eligible or qualified to answer a subsequent question. It can save time by avoiding asking irrelevant questions to the respondent.

Quiz 12: Signing the Questionnaire