Questionnaires Flashcards
What is a questionnaire?
A self- report technique- state own feelings or experiences on topic
A set of written QUs
Used as a DV in an experiment
Explain the 2 types of questionnaire QU styles
OPEN: No fixed response- can answer however they want
•Produces QUALITATIVE data - rich in depth + detail
CLOSED: Fixed set of responses “yes” or “no” option or rating scale
•Produces QUANTITATIVE data easy to analyse as it lacks depth
What are the 3 types of rating scales with closed QUs?
A likert scale
A rating scale
A fixed choice
What is a likert scale?
Respondant indicates agreement on 5 point scale=
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
What is a rating scale?
Respondants choose value that represents strength of their feeling on topics
E.g. how entertaining was this film? Very or not at all
What are fixed choices options?
List of possible options
Respondants choose all that apply to them
Why is clarity key when designing questionnaires?
Without it…
resppondants may get confused
= misinterpreting QUs
= negative impact on quality of info
What are the 5 most common errors in QU design for questionnaires?
Overuse of jargon
Emotive language
Leading questions
Double- barrelled questions
Double negatives
What is jargon?
Technical terms only profs know
Confusing to most people
Best QUs should be simple+ easily understood
What is emotive language and leading questions?
EMOTIVE LANG= When the authors feelings are clear
E.g. “boxing is barbaric” = suggests they don’t like it
A LEADING QU guides respondant an answer
E.g. when did you last drive over the speeding limit?
What are double- barrelled QUs and double negatives?
DOUBLE- BARRELLED= two QUs in one.
Respondants may agree with one point of QU but not the other
DOUBLE NEGATIVES= hard for respondants to understand and should be more straightforward
E.g. “ I am not unhappy with my job”
What are the strengths of questionnaires?
STRENGTHS:
+ COST EFFECTIVE:
can gather and distribute to large No. of people quickly
+ CAN BE COMPLETED WITHOUT RESEARCHER PRESENT
reduces amount of time and effort involved for them
+ STRAIGHTFORWARD TO ANALYSE
easy to analyse closed QUs and comparisons between groups through graphs and charts
What are the limitations of questionnaires?
- RESPONSES MAY NOT BE TRUTHFUL
they may be keen to present themselves in a positive light = answers influenced - MAY PRODUCE A RESPONSE BIAS
thet may just tick ‘yes’ as want to complete it quickly and may not read properly
= acquiescence bias: tendancy to agree with QUs despite content
