Points to Ponder Before Constructing a Questionnaire
A questionnaire is a type of survey almost everyone is familiar with. In school, commercial establishments, or at work, it is most probable that you have had to answer a questionnaire at least once.
Questionnaires are used in research. Although a questionnaire is simple to make, there are some points to ponder before you construct a questionnaire.
What is your purpose in conducting a survey through a questionnaire? Your reasons for making a questionnaire determine what kind of questions you need to write.
Make sure it is clear to you what information you need or want to get using the questionnaire. List down all the data you need to gather to guide you in constructing the questions for your questionnaire. If the information you need is unclear, the questionnaire you make may gather only unrelated information and you may forget to write some questions.
Decide what type of questionnaire you have to make to be able to gather the necessary information. Questionnaires may be self-administered or interviewer-administered. In self-administered questionnaires, you would only distribute the questionnaires and gather them after the respondents complete them. In interviewer-administered questionnaires, an interviewer will ask the respondent the questions. Both types of questionnaire have their own advantages and disadvantages that you should consider.
Be ready to use other types of survey to complement your questionnaire. In some cases, you may not be able to gather all information you need through a questionnaire. Sometimes, respondents do not understand the questions and you would not be able to explain it to them further. The answers you get are also limited since questionnaires mostly have standardized answers. Respondents may also not finish answering the questionnaires.
When the points stated above have already been considered, make sure you know about the parts of a questionnaire. Read pointers on writing an effective questionnaire or else you could waste a lot of time and energy.
Find out more information on how questionnaire is used in research.And also find the purpose in conducting a survey through a questionnaires.