INFO 380 - Questionnaires Notes By: Egaas, Fortier, Prins Major Topics: > Question types > Scales > Validity and Reliability > Formatting the questionnaire > Administering the questionnaire > Web questionnaires Questionnaires > Questionnaires are useful in gathering information from key organization members about - Attitudes - Beliefs - Behaviors - Characteristics Advantages > Anonymity > Don't have to be there > Larger sample When to use Questionnaires > Questionnaires are valuable if - Organization members are widely dispersed - Many members are involved with the project - Exploratory work is needed - Problem solving prior to interviews is necessary Idea: Rate problems on a scale of 1-10 Question Types > Questions are designed as either - Open-ended * Try to anticipate the response you will get * Well suited for getting opinions * Useful in explanatory - Closed * Use when all the options may be listed * When the options are mutually exclusive Open-Ended and Closed Questions Open-Ended Closed Questions -------------------------------------------------------- Slow Speed of completion Fast High Exploratory nature Low High Breadth and depth Low Easy Ease of preparation Difficult Difficult Ease of analysis Easy Questionnaire Language > Questionnaire language should be - Simple * Don't use acronyms - Specific - Free of Bias - Non patronizing - Technically Accurate * Test out your questionnaire - Addressed to those who are knowledgeable - Appropriate for the reading level of the respondent Scales Scales are Devised to - Measure the attitudes or characteristics of respondents - Have respondents act as judges for the subject of the questionnaire Measures of Scales Nominal Scales > Nominal scales are used to classify things into categories > It is the weakest form of measurement > Data may be totaled > Example Q: What type of software do you use the most? 1 = Word processor 2 = Spreadsheet 3 = Database 4 = An Email Program Ordinal Scales > Allow classification > Ordinal scales also imply rank ordering > There is no difference between the importance of the choices > Example Q: The support staff of the Tech Support Group is: 1) Extremely Helpful 2) Very Helpful 3) Moderately Helpful 4) Not Very Helpful 5) Not Helpful At All Interval Scales > An interval scale is used when the intervals are equal > There's no Absolute 0 > Examples of interval scales include the Fahrenheit or centigrade scale > Example Q: How useful is the support given the Technical Support Group? Not Useful At All Extremely Useful 1 2 3 4 5 Ratio Scales > The intervals between numbers are equal > Ratio scales have an absolute zero > Example Q: Approximately how many hours do you spend on the Internet daily 0 2 4 6 8 Validity and reliability > Questionnaires must be valid and reliable - Reliability of scales refers to consistency - Getting the same results if the same questionnaire was administered again under the same conditions - Validity is the degree to which the questionnaires measures what the analyze intends to measure Problems with Scales There are Three .... - Leniency * caused by easy raters - Central Tendency - Halo Effect Formatting the Questionnaire > Good response rates can be achieved with consistent control of the questionnaire - Format - Style - Meaningful ordering - Clustering like questions together > When designing questionnaires - Allow ample white space - Allow enough space for responses to be typed for open-ended questions - Ask respondents to clearly mark their answers - User objectives to help determine format - Be consistent in style Order of Question > Most important questions go first > Similar questions should be clustered > Randomization of questions tries the patience of respondents > Controversial questions should be positioned after less controversial questions Web form Questionnaires > Controls (fields) used on Web Forms - Single line text box - Scrolling text box, used for one or more paragraphs of text - Check box for yes-no or true-false answers - Drop-down menu for selection from a list - Submit AND Clear buttons Methods of Administering the Questionnaire > Methods of administering the questionnaire include - Convening all concerned respondents together at one time - Personally administering the questionnaire - Allowing respondents to self-administer the questionnaire - Mailing questionnaires - Administering over the Web or via email Electronically Submitting Questionnaires > Administering a questionnaire electronically has many benefits - Reduced cost - Collecting and storing the results electronically THANK YOU!