Designing Research Questionnaire & checklist

Questionnaires is one of the most popular tool of collecting data
They provide a convenient way to gathering information from a target population. A questionnaire is a planned self-reported form designed to elicit information though written or verbal responses of the subjects.

1. QUESTIONNAIRE & CHECKLIST Prof Dr Nilima Sonawane Principal Institute Of Nursing Education , Mumbai [email protected]

2. The contents Define questionnaire. types of questions. guidelines for designing good questionnaire. various methods of questionnaire administration. advantages and disadvantages of questionnaire. Define checklist. characteristics and construction of checklist. Discuss advantages and disadvantages of checklist.

3. Questionnaire Questionnaires is one of the most popular tool of collecting data They provide a convenient way to gathering information from a target population. They are cost-effective and easy to construct and analyze. A questionnaire is a planned self-reported form designed to elicit information though written or verbal responses of the subjects.

4. A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a series of questions for the purpose of gathering information from respondents. Questionnaires can be thought of as a kind of written  interview . They can be carried out face to face, by telephone, computer or post. Questionnaires provide a relatively cheap, quick and efficient way of obtaining large amounts of information from a large sample of people.

5. Definiti o ns A questionnaire is a structured instrument consisting of a series of data prepared by researcher that a research subject is asked t o compl e te , to gather d ata from individu a ls about know l edge, a tti t ude, be l ie f s and feelings. The instrument is called a questionnaire or sometimes a se l f- administ e red questi o nnai r e (SAQ) , wh e n respondents c o mpl e te the instrume n t themselves, usually in a paper and pencil format but occasionally directly onto a computer. A questionnaire is structured self-report paper and pencil instrument that a research subject is asked to complete.

6. Types of questions Open-format / Open ended questions provide opportunity to the respondents to express their opinions and answers in their own way. Open-ended questions enable the respondent to answer in as much detail as they like in their own words. For example: “can you tell me how happy you feel right now?”

7. Open –format questions have followings characteristics: There is no predetermined set of responses. They provide true, insightful and unexpected suggestions. An ideal questionnaire contains open-ended questions towards the end of all the questions that would ask respondents about the suggestions for changes or improvements. Ex: state your opinion about the quality of health care services in Maharashtra?

8. Open ended questions Strengths Rich  qualitative data is obtained as open questions allow the respondent to elaborate on their answer. Limitations Time-consuming to collect the data. It takes longer for the respondent to complete open questions. This is a problem as a smaller sample size may be obtained. Time-consuming to analyze the data. It takes longer for the researcher to analyze qualitative data as they have to read the answers and try to put them into categories by coding, which is often subjective a

9. Closed-format Questions These questions offer respondents a number of alternative replies, from which the subjects must choose the one that most likely matches the appropriate answer. Closed-format quest i o n s have f ol l owi n g ch a ract e ristic s : They facili t ate easy stat i stical calcul a t i on of data. Provide easy preliminary analysis Can b e as k ed t o di f ferent gr o u p s a t di f f erent intervals. Facilitate efficient tracking of opinion.

10. Subtypes of Closed-format questions Dich o tomous questions Multipl e -ch o i c e questions Cafeteria questions Rank order questions Contingency questions Rating questions Importance questions Likert questions Bipolar questions Matrix questions

11. Dichotomous Questions These requires the respondent to make a choice between two responses such as yes/no or male/female. Ex: Q) Have you ever been hospitalized? Yes No

12. Multiple-choice questions These questions require respondents to make a choice between more than two response alternatives. Ex: Q)Wh i ch of t h e fol l owi n g dise a s e i s sexual l y transmitted ? DM Hypothyroidism Syphilis HTN

13. Cafeteria Questions These are special type of MCQ’s that ask the respondents to select a response that most closely corresponds to their views. Ex: Q) What do you think about hormone replacement therapy? It is dangerous, should be avoided. One should be cautious while using it. I am uncertain about my views. It is beneficial, should be promoted.

14. Rank order Questions These questions ask respondents to rank their responses from most favorable to least favorable. Ex: Q) What according to you is most important for your life. Rank from most favorable to least favorable. Money Education Family Health

15. Contingency Questions A question that is asked further only if the respondents gives a particular response to previous question. Ex: Q) Are you stressed? No if yes what are the reasons?.........

16. Rating questions Th e se quest i o n s ask r espo n d e nts t o judge something along an ordered dimension. Re s ponde n t i s asked t o rate a part i c u lar is s ue on a scale that ranges from Poor to Good. They may provide a number of choices. Ex: Q) How you rank the education quality in India?

17. Importance questions In this, respondents are asked to rate the importance of a particular issue, on a rating scale of 1-5. This helps to know that the things/issues that are important to a respondent. Ex: Q) Exercising every day is ……..for the health.

18. Likert questions Likert questions help to know how strongly the respondent agrees with a particular statement. These questions help to assess how respondent feels towards a certain issue/ services. Ex: Q) This community a good place to raise children?

19. Bipolar questions Bipolar questions are q u estions t h a t have two extreme answers. Res p o n dent ha s t o ma r k his o r her r esponse between two opposite ends of the scale. Ex: Q) what is your balance of preference here? I Like Going For Walks [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] I Like Watching Movie

20. Matrix question s It incl u de mul t i p le quest i ons an d identi c al response categories are assigned. Q u e s t i ons are placed one under anoth e r , forming a matrix. Re s po n se c a tego r ies are placed along t he t op and a list of questions down the side. EX: please let us know your weekly schedule of the following:

21. Guidelines for Designing a good Questionnai re General points: The questionnaire must be developed exactly in accordance with study objectives The drafting of the questionnaire should be concise, precise and brief, be because the lengthy questionnaires may lead to boredom among should begin with the instructions for the respondents. The language of the questionnaire should be according to the respondents knowledge about a particular knowledge.

22. Questions outside the respondents experience should not be asked. In asking questions about past events, too much reliance should not be placed on the respondents memory. Questions which are likely to lead to bias in the respondents should be avoided. Questions should be very clear and simple. Avoid professional jargons. Guidelines for Designing a good Questionnai re

23. As f or a s possible, open en d ed q u estions s hou l d be avoided. Avoid questions with difficult concept, which are not easily understandable for respondents. Controversial and ambiguous questions should be avoided. The st r ucture o f the questionn a i re s hould be , according to the form in which the responses are to be recorded. Guidelines for Designing a good Questionnai re

24. Cross check the respondents by asking the same information in two different ways. A mailed questionnaire should be accompanied by introduction to the study, purpose and directions to fill the questionnaire. Abrupt ending of the questions and questionnaire should be avoided. Guidelines for Designing a good Questionnai re

25. Sequence of the Questions There should be logical sequence of the questions in the questionnaire. Researcher must ensure that the answer to question is not influenced by previous question. Questions should flow from more general to more specific. Questions should be flow from least to most sensitive. Sandwich theory states that a questionnaire should generally start with demographic profile of subjects, followed by specific questions according to the objectives of the study.

26. Question Construction Use statements whi c h can b e in t erpreted i n sa m e way by all subjects. Use statements where perso n s that have di f f erent opinions or traits will give different answers. Use only one aspect of the construct in which you are interested. A v o i d asking doubl e -ba r reled q u estions which contain two distinct ideas or concepts. Ex: are you satisfied with pay and fringe benefits? A v o i d l e a di n g, loaded, am b ig u ous an d lo n g questions.

27. Questions Researcher must consider before developing a Questionnaire

28. Avoid negative and double negative questions Use a positive statements Do not make assumptions about respondent. Use clear and comprehensible wording. Use co r re c t sp e ll i ng, grammar and punctuation. Guidelines for Designing a good Questionnai re

29. Methods of Questionnaire Administration A questionnaire may be administered with following methods; each method has it unique advantage as listed below. Postal Phone Electronic Personally administered

30. Advantage of Questionnaire Questionnaire are cost-effective. They are easy to analyze. They require less time and energy to administer. Questionnaire offer the possibility of anonymity. They reduce bias as interviewer not present. Questionnaire are used for large sample size. Qu e st i onn a i r e are less in t rusive than p h one or face-to-face interview.

31. Disadvantage of Questionnaire Questionnaire are not suitable for all. Ex: children, blind and illiterates. Low response rate. Questionnaire sent by mail may be fi l led by someone other than the intended person. Questionnaire provide only superficial information. Probing of response is not possible. There are chances of misinterpretation. People can lie and answer the question vaguely.

32. Checklist It is one of the most commonly used instruments for performance evaluation. Checklist enables the observer to note only whether or not a trait is present. It consist of listing the steps, activities and behaviors which the observer records when an incident occurs.

33. Definition A checklist is a simple instrument consisting prepared list of expected items of performance or attributes, which are checked by researcher for their presence or absence.

34. Characteristics of Checklists Observe one respondent at one time. Clearly specify the characteristics of behavior to be observed. Use only carefully prepared checklist. The observer should be trained how to observe, what to observe,& how to record the observed behavior. Use checklist only when you are interested in calculating, a particular characteristic.

35. Construction of Checklists Following points should be kept in mind : Express each item in clear, simple language. An intensive survey of literature is made to determine type of checklist to be used. Checklist items may be continuous or divided into groups. Checklist items formulated on the basis of judgement of experts. Avoid negative statements whenever possible. Each item should have clear responses: yes or no, true or false,& the like. Checklist must have quality of completeness & comprehensiveness.

36. Advantages of Checklist It allow inter-individual comparisons. A simple method to record observation. Adaptable to subject matter areas. Useful in evaluating learning activities & procedural work. Decreases the chances of error in observation. It allow the observer to contain the direct attention .

37. Disadvantages of Checklist Does not indicate quality of performance. Only a limited component of clinical performance can be evaluated. Degree of accuracy of performance can not be assessed. Limited use in qualitative research studies.