how to make a questionnaire for research examples

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21 Questionnaire Templates: Examples and Samples

Questionnaire: Definition

A questionnaire is defined a market research instrument that consists of questions or prompts to elicit and collect responses from a sample of respondents. A questionnaire is typically a mix of open-ended questions and close-ended questions ; the latter allowing for respondents to enlist their views in detail.

A questionnaire can be used in both, qualitative market research as well as quantitative market research with the use of different types of questions .

LEARN ABOUT: Open-Ended Questions

Types of Questionnaires

We have learnt that a questionnaire could either be structured or free-flow. To explain this better:

• Structured Questionnaires: A structured questionnaires helps collect quantitative data . In this case, the questionnaire is designed in a way that it collects very specific type of information. It can be used to initiate a formal enquiry on collect data to prove or disprove a prior hypothesis.
• Unstructured Questionnaires: An unstructured questionnaire collects qualitative data . The questionnaire in this case has a basic structure and some branching questions but nothing that limits the responses of a respondent. The questions are more open-ended.

LEARN ABOUT:   Structured Question

Types of Questions used in a Questionnaire

A questionnaire can consist of many types of questions . Some of the commonly and widely used question types though, are:

• Open-Ended Questions: One of the commonly used question type in questionnaire is an open-ended question . These questions help collect in-depth data from a respondent as there is a huge scope to respond in detail.
• Dichotomous Questions: The dichotomous question is a “yes/no” close-ended question . This question is generally used in case of the need of basic validation. It is the easiest question type in a questionnaire.
• Multiple-Choice Questions: An easy to administer and respond to, question type in a questionnaire is the multiple-choice question . These questions are close-ended questions with either a single select multiple choice question or a multiple select multiple choice question. Each multiple choice question consists of an incomplete stem (question), right answer or answers, close alternatives, distractors and incorrect answers. Depending on the objective of the research, a mix of the above option types can be used.
• Net Promoter Score (NPS) Question: Another commonly used question type in a questionnaire is the Net Promoter Score (NPS) Question where one single question collects data on the referencability of the research topic in question.
• Scaling Questions: Scaling questions are widely used in a questionnaire as they make responding to the questionnaire, very easy. These questions are based on the principles of the 4 measurement scales – nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio .

Questionnaires help enterprises collect valuable data to help them make well-informed business decisions. There are powerful tools available in the market that allows using multiple question types, ready to use survey format templates, robust analytics, and many more features to conduct comprehensive market research.

LEARN ABOUT: course evaluation survey examples

For example, an enterprise wants to conduct market research to understand what pricing would be best for their new product to capture a higher market share. In such a case, a questionnaire for competitor analysis can be sent to the targeted audience using a powerful market research survey software which can help the enterprise conduct 360 market research that will enable them to make strategic business decisions.

Now that we have learned what a questionnaire is and its use in market research , some examples and samples of widely used questionnaire templates on the QuestionPro platform are as below:

LEARN ABOUT: Speaker evaluation form

Customer Questionnaire Templates: Examples and Samples

QuestionPro specializes in end-to-end Customer Questionnaire Templates that can be used to evaluate a customer journey right from indulging with a brand to the continued use and referenceability of the brand. These templates form excellent samples to form your own questionnaire and begin testing your customer satisfaction and experience based on customer feedback.

LEARN ABOUT: Structured Questionnaire

USE THIS FREE TEMPLATE

Employee & Human Resource (HR) Questionnaire Templates: Examples and Samples

QuestionPro has built a huge repository of employee questionnaires and HR questionnaires that can be readily deployed to collect feedback from the workforce on an organization on multiple parameters like employee satisfaction, benefits evaluation, manager evaluation , exit formalities etc. These templates provide a holistic overview of collecting actionable data from employees.

Community Questionnaire Templates: Examples and Samples

The QuestionPro repository of community questionnaires helps collect varied data on all community aspects. This template library includes popular questionnaires such as community service, demographic questionnaires, psychographic questionnaires, personal questionnaires and much more.

Academic Evaluation Questionnaire Templates: Examples and Samples

Another vastly used section of QuestionPro questionnaire templates are the academic evaluation questionnaires . These questionnaires are crafted to collect in-depth data about academic institutions and the quality of teaching provided, extra-curricular activities etc and also feedback about other educational activities.

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Creating a Questionnaire

Create the perfect questionnaire and collect actionable data using our online guide!

Table of Contents

• How to Create

Questionnaire Types

• Collecting Responses
• Analyzing Results
• Getting Started

What is a Questionnaire?

Definition: A questionnaire is a convenient way to collect feedback. A questionnaire can be used to measure customer satisfaction, capture employee feedback, or even conduct product research. Responses can be collected via email, web link, QR code, or using a survey panel.

The term "survey" and "questionnaire" are commonly used interchangeably. A questionnaire refers to the questions used to collect feedback (the form itself). A survey relates to the entire research process, including summarizing and analyzing questionnaire data.

Getting Started + Tips

How to make a questionnaire: Keep questions short and focused on one topic at a time. Use multiple-choice questions to fit answers into a specific category. Use an open-ended question to capture comments. A Likert scale or MaxDiff question can be used for market research. Collect responses for your questionnaire using an email collector, an anonymous link, or even a QR code.

The following 6 tips will help you create the perfect questionnaire:

1) Use 10 Questions or Less

The shorter you keep your survey, the higher your completion rates. Longer questionnaires usually tend to have a high drop-off percentage. Keeping your surveys to 10 questions or fewer forces you to draft a study that only includes important questions; you should remove trivial questions during the draft process.

2) One Idea Per Question

Make sure each question only covers one topic. Try to include only one topic at a time. For example, in an employee survey, you would not want to ask, "Do you feel satisfied with your compensation and career advancement?". Instead, you would like to separate "compensation" and "career advancement" into two questions or use a Likert scale , putting each question on a separate row.

3) Group Similar Questions Together

Suppose the survey is more than ten questions; similar questions should be grouped on separate pages. If you don't want to use more than one page, add extra spacing between groups of the question; extra white space can increase the increase the readability of your questionnaire.

4) Use Skip/Display Logic

If you have questions that only apply to certain people, consider using skip or display logic to show those questions conditionally. This will help reduce the length of your survey and boost response rates.

If you have questions that only apply to certain people, consider using skip or display logic to show those questions conditionally. This will help reduce the length of your survey and boost response rates. For example, if you asked, "Are you currently looking for new employment opportunities?". If the answer were "yes," a follow-up question would ask, "Why?"

5) Use Research Questions Like MaxDiff

Research questions are an excellent tool for customer or product questionnaires. Instead of asking multiple questions on which features are essential or what price is desirable, question types like MaxDiff and Conjoint will provide you with high-quality, actionable data that can be used for feature prioritization and product pricing. In addition, these question types will reduce the length of your questionnaire.

6) Keep the Audience in Mind

An employee questionnaire should use an anonymous link to collect responses; this will help boost trust and increase honest answers. If doing a customer study, consider adding custom data to the weblink to help identify responses. A survey panel and current customers can lend fresh perspectives for general market research.

Questionnaire Templates

Adding customer surveys to your Google review strategy will add additional data points to improve customer satisfaction. In addition, surveys are a valuable tool to identify ways to improve, establish internal benchmarks, and conduct pricing and product research to improve your company's products.

While there are numerous types of questionnaires (or survey types), these are the five most common general categories:

1) Customer Satisfaction

Capturing customer feedback is one of the most common uses of questionnaires. A good customer satisfaction survey will always revolve around a Net Promoter Score question. When the Net Promoter Score question results are tallied, one number from -100 is 100 is displayed. This number is ideal for benchmarks. Net Promoter provides quick and actionable feedback when combined with an open-ended text question.

2) Customer Effort

Measuring how easily customers can complete a purchase or take a specific action is crucial for the customer experience strategy. A customer effort score question is a rating scale from 1 to 7 (disagree to agree). Results for this question are averaged; the higher the score, the easier it is for your customers to complete tasks.

3) Employee Satisfaction & Engagement

Employee satisfaction and engagement are often used interchangeably but measure different things. Both types of surveys often use opinion scales to ask questions.

Employee satisfaction measures how satisfied employees are with their job and work environment. Standard measures of employee satisfaction include salary, benefits, and co-worker relationships.

Employee engagement relates to the emotional commitment employees have to an organization. It goes beyond simple satisfaction. Standard measures of engagement include belief in the company mission, opportunities for career growth, and being inspired to perform at a high level.

4) Employee Exit Interviews

When employees leave for new opportunities, sending a questionnaire is a great way to understand why that employee is leaving. The feedback obtained here can be used to improve the workplace and reduce employee turnover.

5) Product Research

MaxDiff is used to identify what is most important to your audience. For example, if building a new mobile application, asking a group of users what they think is least and most important will help guide product strategy; your team should only focus on the important areas.

For pricing a new product, Van Westendorp will give you a range of prices the market is willing to expect. You could price your product too high or too low without a question like this, reducing your market penetration.

Collecting Responses For Your Questionnaire

There are a few different ways to collect feedback for questionnaires. Depending on your needs, each one could have an advantage.

With email distribution, you would upload a list of email addresses, and the platform would automatically place a link to your questionnaire inside the email body. One advantage is sending email reminders to respondents who still need to complete your survey. In addition, the email links are unique for each respondent, so you can track email open and click rates. As a result, email surveys are ideal for customer research.

A web link is a convenient way to collect feedback at your convenience. You can place a web link on social media, your website, or even inside your CRM email program (instead of an email collector with a unique link to each person). Custom data can be included in the link, such as store location. This custom data can be used to segment and filter results.

Anonymous Link

When you want to protect your respondents' identities, you use an anonymous link . Anonymous inks do not store respondent information, IP address, or email address. Because of this, anonymous survey links are perfect for employee surveys.

QR code Surveys

QR code surveys can be placed on paper receipts, product packaging, or flyers. In addition, QR codes are a great way to collect feedback after or during an event or even during in-person focus groups.

Survey Panels

If you're conducting market research and need access to a customer base, using a survey panel will get you the responses required. A good survey panel will allow you to target specific demographics, job titles, or interest levels (such as car enthusiasts). When using survey panels, you'll want to double-check and clean your data for low-quality responses. People who speed through your survey or mark the first answer for all questions should be removed.

How to Analyze Questionnaire Data

When analyzing the data from a questionnaire, consider a few advanced techniques like the ones below. These techniques will give you better insights than just simple graphs and charts.

Creating a segment or a cross-tabulation is the easiest way to dive deeper into your results. For example, if you conducted an employee satisfaction survey, the overall scores for the company could be high. But that might only tell part of the story. For example, if your company has multiple departments, you should create a cross-tabulation for each department. You might notice that there is one department with low scores. or one department with high scores.

If your company conducted its first Net Promoter Score survey and the results were -10, that score would be your benchmark. Each subsequent customer survey you run should be compared against that initial number to improve it each time.

TURF Analysis

This is an advanced research technique but very valuable. TURF analysis analysis stands for "Total Unduplicated Reach and Frequency" and is used to find the combination of items that would provide the highest reach level. For example, suppose you ask, "Which of the following flavor of ice cream would you buy?" If you run a TURF analysis on the results, you could find the top 3 or 4 combinations of flavors that would result in the highest sales.

Unsure Where to Start?

Creating a questionnaire can be a challenging process. However, these three suggestions can help you with the perfect questionnaire strategy.

1) Talk With Your Team

Some departments might want to conduct pricing research and do simple Net Promoter Score surveys. Having your organization aligned on strategy will simplify the process and eliminate any possibility of re-work. An aligned strategy will also mean a shorter study with fewer overlapping questions.

2) Start with a Template

A pre-made template will show you how to format and word questions. Next, try multiple templates to understand the various question types.

3) Look at Competitor Surveys

You might notice competitors asking specific questions - this would be a sign that those questions provide valuable metrics. If you can incorporate the great things your competition does while making it more efficient for respondents, your questionnaire campaigns will have a greater chance of success.

Get Started Now

We have you covered on anything from customer surveys, employee surveys, to market research. Get started and create your first survey for free.

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Writing Survey Questions

Perhaps the most important part of the survey process is the creation of questions that accurately measure the opinions, experiences and behaviors of the public. Accurate random sampling will be wasted if the information gathered is built on a shaky foundation of ambiguous or biased questions. Creating good measures involves both writing good questions and organizing them to form the questionnaire.

Questionnaire design is a multistage process that requires attention to many details at once. Designing the questionnaire is complicated because surveys can ask about topics in varying degrees of detail, questions can be asked in different ways, and questions asked earlier in a survey may influence how people respond to later questions. Researchers are also often interested in measuring change over time and therefore must be attentive to how opinions or behaviors have been measured in prior surveys.

Surveyors may conduct pilot tests or focus groups in the early stages of questionnaire development in order to better understand how people think about an issue or comprehend a question. Pretesting a survey is an essential step in the questionnaire design process to evaluate how people respond to the overall questionnaire and specific questions, especially when questions are being introduced for the first time.

For many years, surveyors approached questionnaire design as an art, but substantial research over the past forty years has demonstrated that there is a lot of science involved in crafting a good survey questionnaire. Here, we discuss the pitfalls and best practices of designing questionnaires.

Question development

There are several steps involved in developing a survey questionnaire. The first is identifying what topics will be covered in the survey. For Pew Research Center surveys, this involves thinking about what is happening in our nation and the world and what will be relevant to the public, policymakers and the media. We also track opinion on a variety of issues over time so we often ensure that we update these trends on a regular basis to better understand whether people’s opinions are changing.

At Pew Research Center, questionnaire development is a collaborative and iterative process where staff meet to discuss drafts of the questionnaire several times over the course of its development. We frequently test new survey questions ahead of time through qualitative research methods such as  focus groups , cognitive interviews, pretesting (often using an  online, opt-in sample ), or a combination of these approaches. Researchers use insights from this testing to refine questions before they are asked in a production survey, such as on the ATP.

Measuring change over time

Many surveyors want to track changes over time in people’s attitudes, opinions and behaviors. To measure change, questions are asked at two or more points in time. A cross-sectional design surveys different people in the same population at multiple points in time. A panel, such as the ATP, surveys the same people over time. However, it is common for the set of people in survey panels to change over time as new panelists are added and some prior panelists drop out. Many of the questions in Pew Research Center surveys have been asked in prior polls. Asking the same questions at different points in time allows us to report on changes in the overall views of the general public (or a subset of the public, such as registered voters, men or Black Americans), or what we call “trending the data”.

When measuring change over time, it is important to use the same question wording and to be sensitive to where the question is asked in the questionnaire to maintain a similar context as when the question was asked previously (see  question wording  and  question order  for further information). All of our survey reports include a topline questionnaire that provides the exact question wording and sequencing, along with results from the current survey and previous surveys in which we asked the question.

The Center’s transition from conducting U.S. surveys by live telephone interviewing to an online panel (around 2014 to 2020) complicated some opinion trends, but not others. Opinion trends that ask about sensitive topics (e.g., personal finances or attending religious services ) or that elicited volunteered answers (e.g., “neither” or “don’t know”) over the phone tended to show larger differences than other trends when shifting from phone polls to the online ATP. The Center adopted several strategies for coping with changes to data trends that may be related to this change in methodology. If there is evidence suggesting that a change in a trend stems from switching from phone to online measurement, Center reports flag that possibility for readers to try to head off confusion or erroneous conclusions.

Open- and closed-ended questions

One of the most significant decisions that can affect how people answer questions is whether the question is posed as an open-ended question, where respondents provide a response in their own words, or a closed-ended question, where they are asked to choose from a list of answer choices.

For example, in a poll conducted after the 2008 presidential election, people responded very differently to two versions of the question: “What one issue mattered most to you in deciding how you voted for president?” One was closed-ended and the other open-ended. In the closed-ended version, respondents were provided five options and could volunteer an option not on the list.

When explicitly offered the economy as a response, more than half of respondents (58%) chose this answer; only 35% of those who responded to the open-ended version volunteered the economy. Moreover, among those asked the closed-ended version, fewer than one-in-ten (8%) provided a response other than the five they were read. By contrast, fully 43% of those asked the open-ended version provided a response not listed in the closed-ended version of the question. All of the other issues were chosen at least slightly more often when explicitly offered in the closed-ended version than in the open-ended version. (Also see  “High Marks for the Campaign, a High Bar for Obama”  for more information.)

Researchers will sometimes conduct a pilot study using open-ended questions to discover which answers are most common. They will then develop closed-ended questions based off that pilot study that include the most common responses as answer choices. In this way, the questions may better reflect what the public is thinking, how they view a particular issue, or bring certain issues to light that the researchers may not have been aware of.

When asking closed-ended questions, the choice of options provided, how each option is described, the number of response options offered, and the order in which options are read can all influence how people respond. One example of the impact of how categories are defined can be found in a Pew Research Center poll conducted in January 2002. When half of the sample was asked whether it was “more important for President Bush to focus on domestic policy or foreign policy,” 52% chose domestic policy while only 34% said foreign policy. When the category “foreign policy” was narrowed to a specific aspect – “the war on terrorism” – far more people chose it; only 33% chose domestic policy while 52% chose the war on terrorism.

In most circumstances, the number of answer choices should be kept to a relatively small number – just four or perhaps five at most – especially in telephone surveys. Psychological research indicates that people have a hard time keeping more than this number of choices in mind at one time. When the question is asking about an objective fact and/or demographics, such as the religious affiliation of the respondent, more categories can be used. In fact, they are encouraged to ensure inclusivity. For example, Pew Research Center’s standard religion questions include more than 12 different categories, beginning with the most common affiliations (Protestant and Catholic). Most respondents have no trouble with this question because they can expect to see their religious group within that list in a self-administered survey.

In addition to the number and choice of response options offered, the order of answer categories can influence how people respond to closed-ended questions. Research suggests that in telephone surveys respondents more frequently choose items heard later in a list (a “recency effect”), and in self-administered surveys, they tend to choose items at the top of the list (a “primacy” effect).

Because of concerns about the effects of category order on responses to closed-ended questions, many sets of response options in Pew Research Center’s surveys are programmed to be randomized to ensure that the options are not asked in the same order for each respondent. Rotating or randomizing means that questions or items in a list are not asked in the same order to each respondent. Answers to questions are sometimes affected by questions that precede them. By presenting questions in a different order to each respondent, we ensure that each question gets asked in the same context as every other question the same number of times (e.g., first, last or any position in between). This does not eliminate the potential impact of previous questions on the current question, but it does ensure that this bias is spread randomly across all of the questions or items in the list. For instance, in the example discussed above about what issue mattered most in people’s vote, the order of the five issues in the closed-ended version of the question was randomized so that no one issue appeared early or late in the list for all respondents. Randomization of response items does not eliminate order effects, but it does ensure that this type of bias is spread randomly.

Questions with ordinal response categories – those with an underlying order (e.g., excellent, good, only fair, poor OR very favorable, mostly favorable, mostly unfavorable, very unfavorable) – are generally not randomized because the order of the categories conveys important information to help respondents answer the question. Generally, these types of scales should be presented in order so respondents can easily place their responses along the continuum, but the order can be reversed for some respondents. For example, in one of Pew Research Center’s questions about abortion, half of the sample is asked whether abortion should be “legal in all cases, legal in most cases, illegal in most cases, illegal in all cases,” while the other half of the sample is asked the same question with the response categories read in reverse order, starting with “illegal in all cases.” Again, reversing the order does not eliminate the recency effect but distributes it randomly across the population.

Question wording

The choice of words and phrases in a question is critical in expressing the meaning and intent of the question to the respondent and ensuring that all respondents interpret the question the same way. Even small wording differences can substantially affect the answers people provide.

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An example of a wording difference that had a significant impact on responses comes from a January 2003 Pew Research Center survey. When people were asked whether they would “favor or oppose taking military action in Iraq to end Saddam Hussein’s rule,” 68% said they favored military action while 25% said they opposed military action. However, when asked whether they would “favor or oppose taking military action in Iraq to end Saddam Hussein’s rule  even if it meant that U.S. forces might suffer thousands of casualties, ” responses were dramatically different; only 43% said they favored military action, while 48% said they opposed it. The introduction of U.S. casualties altered the context of the question and influenced whether people favored or opposed military action in Iraq.

There has been a substantial amount of research to gauge the impact of different ways of asking questions and how to minimize differences in the way respondents interpret what is being asked. The issues related to question wording are more numerous than can be treated adequately in this short space, but below are a few of the important things to consider:

First, it is important to ask questions that are clear and specific and that each respondent will be able to answer. If a question is open-ended, it should be evident to respondents that they can answer in their own words and what type of response they should provide (an issue or problem, a month, number of days, etc.). Closed-ended questions should include all reasonable responses (i.e., the list of options is exhaustive) and the response categories should not overlap (i.e., response options should be mutually exclusive). Further, it is important to discern when it is best to use forced-choice close-ended questions (often denoted with a radio button in online surveys) versus “select-all-that-apply” lists (or check-all boxes). A 2019 Center study found that forced-choice questions tend to yield more accurate responses, especially for sensitive questions.  Based on that research, the Center generally avoids using select-all-that-apply questions.

It is also important to ask only one question at a time. Questions that ask respondents to evaluate more than one concept (known as double-barreled questions) – such as “How much confidence do you have in President Obama to handle domestic and foreign policy?” – are difficult for respondents to answer and often lead to responses that are difficult to interpret. In this example, it would be more effective to ask two separate questions, one about domestic policy and another about foreign policy.

In general, questions that use simple and concrete language are more easily understood by respondents. It is especially important to consider the education level of the survey population when thinking about how easy it will be for respondents to interpret and answer a question. Double negatives (e.g., do you favor or oppose  not  allowing gays and lesbians to legally marry) or unfamiliar abbreviations or jargon (e.g., ANWR instead of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) can result in respondent confusion and should be avoided.

Similarly, it is important to consider whether certain words may be viewed as biased or potentially offensive to some respondents, as well as the emotional reaction that some words may provoke. For example, in a 2005 Pew Research Center survey, 51% of respondents said they favored “making it legal for doctors to give terminally ill patients the means to end their lives,” but only 44% said they favored “making it legal for doctors to assist terminally ill patients in committing suicide.” Although both versions of the question are asking about the same thing, the reaction of respondents was different. In another example, respondents have reacted differently to questions using the word “welfare” as opposed to the more generic “assistance to the poor.” Several experiments have shown that there is much greater public support for expanding “assistance to the poor” than for expanding “welfare.”

We often write two versions of a question and ask half of the survey sample one version of the question and the other half the second version. Thus, we say we have two  forms  of the questionnaire. Respondents are assigned randomly to receive either form, so we can assume that the two groups of respondents are essentially identical. On questions where two versions are used, significant differences in the answers between the two forms tell us that the difference is a result of the way we worded the two versions.

One of the most common formats used in survey questions is the “agree-disagree” format. In this type of question, respondents are asked whether they agree or disagree with a particular statement. Research has shown that, compared with the better educated and better informed, less educated and less informed respondents have a greater tendency to agree with such statements. This is sometimes called an “acquiescence bias” (since some kinds of respondents are more likely to acquiesce to the assertion than are others). This behavior is even more pronounced when there’s an interviewer present, rather than when the survey is self-administered. A better practice is to offer respondents a choice between alternative statements. A Pew Research Center experiment with one of its routinely asked values questions illustrates the difference that question format can make. Not only does the forced choice format yield a very different result overall from the agree-disagree format, but the pattern of answers between respondents with more or less formal education also tends to be very different.

One other challenge in developing questionnaires is what is called “social desirability bias.” People have a natural tendency to want to be accepted and liked, and this may lead people to provide inaccurate answers to questions that deal with sensitive subjects. Research has shown that respondents understate alcohol and drug use, tax evasion and racial bias. They also may overstate church attendance, charitable contributions and the likelihood that they will vote in an election. Researchers attempt to account for this potential bias in crafting questions about these topics. For instance, when Pew Research Center surveys ask about past voting behavior, it is important to note that circumstances may have prevented the respondent from voting: “In the 2012 presidential election between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, did things come up that kept you from voting, or did you happen to vote?” The choice of response options can also make it easier for people to be honest. For example, a question about church attendance might include three of six response options that indicate infrequent attendance. Research has also shown that social desirability bias can be greater when an interviewer is present (e.g., telephone and face-to-face surveys) than when respondents complete the survey themselves (e.g., paper and web surveys).

Lastly, because slight modifications in question wording can affect responses, identical question wording should be used when the intention is to compare results to those from earlier surveys. Similarly, because question wording and responses can vary based on the mode used to survey respondents, researchers should carefully evaluate the likely effects on trend measurements if a different survey mode will be used to assess change in opinion over time.

Question order

Once the survey questions are developed, particular attention should be paid to how they are ordered in the questionnaire. Surveyors must be attentive to how questions early in a questionnaire may have unintended effects on how respondents answer subsequent questions. Researchers have demonstrated that the order in which questions are asked can influence how people respond; earlier questions can unintentionally provide context for the questions that follow (these effects are called “order effects”).

One kind of order effect can be seen in responses to open-ended questions. Pew Research Center surveys generally ask open-ended questions about national problems, opinions about leaders and similar topics near the beginning of the questionnaire. If closed-ended questions that relate to the topic are placed before the open-ended question, respondents are much more likely to mention concepts or considerations raised in those earlier questions when responding to the open-ended question.

For closed-ended opinion questions, there are two main types of order effects: contrast effects ( where the order results in greater differences in responses), and assimilation effects (where responses are more similar as a result of their order).

An example of a contrast effect can be seen in a Pew Research Center poll conducted in October 2003, a dozen years before same-sex marriage was legalized in the U.S. That poll found that people were more likely to favor allowing gays and lesbians to enter into legal agreements that give them the same rights as married couples when this question was asked after one about whether they favored or opposed allowing gays and lesbians to marry (45% favored legal agreements when asked after the marriage question, but 37% favored legal agreements without the immediate preceding context of a question about same-sex marriage). Responses to the question about same-sex marriage, meanwhile, were not significantly affected by its placement before or after the legal agreements question.

Another experiment embedded in a December 2008 Pew Research Center poll also resulted in a contrast effect. When people were asked “All in all, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way things are going in this country today?” immediately after having been asked “Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling his job as president?”; 88% said they were dissatisfied, compared with only 78% without the context of the prior question.

Responses to presidential approval remained relatively unchanged whether national satisfaction was asked before or after it. A similar finding occurred in December 2004 when both satisfaction and presidential approval were much higher (57% were dissatisfied when Bush approval was asked first vs. 51% when general satisfaction was asked first).

Several studies also have shown that asking a more specific question before a more general question (e.g., asking about happiness with one’s marriage before asking about one’s overall happiness) can result in a contrast effect. Although some exceptions have been found, people tend to avoid redundancy by excluding the more specific question from the general rating.

Assimilation effects occur when responses to two questions are more consistent or closer together because of their placement in the questionnaire. We found an example of an assimilation effect in a Pew Research Center poll conducted in November 2008 when we asked whether Republican leaders should work with Obama or stand up to him on important issues and whether Democratic leaders should work with Republican leaders or stand up to them on important issues. People were more likely to say that Republican leaders should work with Obama when the question was preceded by the one asking what Democratic leaders should do in working with Republican leaders (81% vs. 66%). However, when people were first asked about Republican leaders working with Obama, fewer said that Democratic leaders should work with Republican leaders (71% vs. 82%).

The order questions are asked is of particular importance when tracking trends over time. As a result, care should be taken to ensure that the context is similar each time a question is asked. Modifying the context of the question could call into question any observed changes over time (see  measuring change over time  for more information).

A questionnaire, like a conversation, should be grouped by topic and unfold in a logical order. It is often helpful to begin the survey with simple questions that respondents will find interesting and engaging. Throughout the survey, an effort should be made to keep the survey interesting and not overburden respondents with several difficult questions right after one another. Demographic questions such as income, education or age should not be asked near the beginning of a survey unless they are needed to determine eligibility for the survey or for routing respondents through particular sections of the questionnaire. Even then, it is best to precede such items with more interesting and engaging questions. One virtue of survey panels like the ATP is that demographic questions usually only need to be asked once a year, not in each survey.

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How to Design Effective Research Questionnaires for Robust Findings

As a staple in data collection, questionnaires help uncover robust and reliable findings that can transform industries, shape policies, and revolutionize understanding. Whether you are exploring societal trends or delving into scientific phenomena, the effectiveness of your research questionnaire can make or break your findings.

In this article, we aim to understand the core purpose of questionnaires, exploring how they serve as essential tools for gathering systematic data, both qualitative and quantitative, from diverse respondents. Read on as we explore the key elements that make up a winning questionnaire, the art of framing questions which are both compelling and rigorous, and the careful balance between simplicity and depth.

Table of Contents

The Role of Questionnaires in Research

So, what is a questionnaire? A questionnaire is a structured set of questions designed to collect information, opinions, attitudes, or behaviors from respondents. It is one of the most commonly used data collection methods in research. Moreover, questionnaires can be used in various research fields, including social sciences, market research, healthcare, education, and psychology. Their adaptability makes them suitable for investigating diverse research questions.

Questionnaire and survey  are two terms often used interchangeably, but they have distinct meanings in the context of research. A survey refers to the broader process of data collection that may involve various methods. A survey can encompass different data collection techniques, such as interviews , focus groups, observations, and yes, questionnaires.

Pros and Cons of Using Questionnaires in Research:

While questionnaires offer numerous advantages in research, they also come with some disadvantages that researchers must be aware of and address appropriately. Careful questionnaire design, validation, and consideration of potential biases can help mitigate these disadvantages and enhance the effectiveness of using questionnaires as a data collection method.

Structured vs Unstructured Questionnaires

Structured questionnaire:.

A structured questionnaire consists of questions with predefined response options. Respondents are presented with a fixed set of choices and are required to select from those options. The questions in a structured questionnaire are designed to elicit specific and quantifiable responses. Structured questionnaires are particularly useful for collecting quantitative data and are often employed in surveys and studies where standardized and comparable data are necessary.

Advantages of Structured Questionnaires:

• Easy to analyze and interpret: The fixed response options facilitate straightforward data analysis and comparison across respondents.
• Efficient for large-scale data collection: Structured questionnaires are time-efficient, allowing researchers to collect data from a large number of respondents.
• Reduces response bias: The predefined response options minimize potential response bias and maintain consistency in data collection.

Limitations of Structured Questionnaires:

• Lack of depth: Structured questionnaires may not capture in-depth insights or nuances as respondents are limited to pre-defined response choices. Hence, they may not reveal the reasons behind respondents’ choices, limiting the understanding of their perspectives.
• Limited flexibility: The fixed response options may not cover all potential responses, therefore, potentially restricting respondents’ answers.

Unstructured Questionnaire:

An unstructured questionnaire consists of questions that allow respondents to provide detailed and unrestricted responses. Unlike structured questionnaires, there are no predefined response options, giving respondents the freedom to express their thoughts in their own words. Furthermore, unstructured questionnaires are valuable for collecting qualitative data and obtaining in-depth insights into respondents’ experiences, opinions, or feelings.

Advantages of Unstructured Questionnaires:

• Rich qualitative data: Unstructured questionnaires yield detailed and comprehensive qualitative data, providing valuable and novel insights into respondents’ perspectives.
• Flexibility in responses: Respondents have the freedom to express themselves in their own words. Hence, allowing for a wide range of responses.

Limitations of Unstructured Questionnaires:

• Time-consuming analysis: Analyzing open-ended responses can be time-consuming, since, each response requires careful reading and interpretation.
• Subjectivity in interpretation: The analysis of open-ended responses may be subjective, as researchers interpret and categorize responses based on their judgment.
• May require smaller sample size: Due to the depth of responses, researchers may need a smaller sample size for comprehensive analysis, making generalizations more challenging.

Types of Questions in a Questionnaire

In a questionnaire, researchers typically use the following most common types of questions to gather a variety of information from respondents:

1. Open-Ended Questions:

These questions allow respondents to provide detailed and unrestricted responses in their own words. Open-ended questions are valuable for gathering qualitative data and in-depth insights.

Example: What suggestions do you have for improving our product?

2. Multiple-Choice Questions

Respondents choose one answer from a list of provided options. This type of question is suitable for gathering categorical data or preferences.

Example: Which of the following social media/academic networking platforms do you use to promote your research?

• ResearchGate
• Academia.edu

3. Dichotomous Questions

Respondents choose between two options, typically “yes” or “no”, “true” or “false”, or “agree” or “disagree”.

Example: Have you ever published in open access journals before?

4. Scaling Questions

These questions, also known as rating scale questions, use a predefined scale that allows respondents to rate or rank their level of agreement, satisfaction, importance, or other subjective assessments. These scales help researchers quantify subjective data and make comparisons across respondents.

There are several types of scaling techniques used in scaling questions:

i. Likert Scale:

The Likert scale is one of the most common scaling techniques. It presents respondents with a series of statements and asks them to rate their level of agreement or disagreement using a range of options, typically from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree”.For example: Please indicate your level of agreement with the statement: “The content presented in the webinar was relevant and aligned with the advertised topic.”

• Strongly Agree
• Strongly Disagree

ii. Semantic Differential Scale:

The semantic differential scale measures respondents’ perceptions or attitudes towards an item using opposite adjectives or bipolar words. Respondents rate the item on a scale between the two opposites. For example:

• Easy —— Difficult
• Satisfied —— Unsatisfied
• Very likely —— Very unlikely

iii. Numerical Rating Scale:

This scale requires respondents to provide a numerical rating on a predefined scale. It can be a simple 1 to 5 or 1 to 10 scale, where higher numbers indicate higher agreement, satisfaction, or importance.

iv. Ranking Questions:

Respondents rank items in order of preference or importance. Ranking questions help identify preferences or priorities.

Example: Please rank the following features of our app in order of importance (1 = Most Important, 5 = Least Important):

• User Interface
• Functionality
• Customer Support

By using a mix of question types, researchers can gather both quantitative and qualitative data, providing a comprehensive understanding of the research topic and enabling meaningful analysis and interpretation of the results. The choice of question types depends on the research objectives , the desired depth of information, and the data analysis requirements.

Methods of Administering Questionnaires

There are several methods for administering questionnaires, and the choice of method depends on factors such as the target population, research objectives , convenience, and resources available. Here are some common methods of administering questionnaires:

Each method has its advantages and limitations. Online surveys offer convenience and a large reach, but they may be limited to individuals with internet access. Face-to-face interviews allow for in-depth responses but can be time-consuming and costly. Telephone surveys have broad reach but may be limited by declining response rates. Researchers should choose the method that best suits their research objectives, target population, and available resources to ensure successful data collection.

How to Design a Questionnaire

Designing a good questionnaire is crucial for gathering accurate and meaningful data that aligns with your research objectives. Here are essential steps and tips to create a well-designed questionnaire:

1. Define Your Research Objectives : Clearly outline the purpose and specific information you aim to gather through the questionnaire.

2. Identify Your Target Audience : Understand respondents’ characteristics and tailor the questionnaire accordingly.

3. Develop the Questions :

• Write Clear and Concise Questions
• Avoid Leading or Biasing Questions
• Sequence Questions Logically
• Group Related Questions
• Include Demographic Questions

4. Provide Well-defined Response Options : Offer exhaustive response choices for closed-ended questions.

5. Consider Skip Logic and Branching : Customize the questionnaire based on previous answers.

6. Pilot Test the Questionnaire : Identify and address issues through a pilot study .

7. Seek Expert Feedback : Validate the questionnaire with subject matter experts.

8. Obtain Ethical Approval : Comply with ethical guidelines , obtain consent, and ensure confidentiality before administering the questionnaire.

9. Administer the Questionnaire : Choose the right mode and provide clear instructions.

10. Test the Survey Platform : Ensure compatibility and usability for online surveys.

By following these steps and paying attention to questionnaire design principles, you can create a well-structured and effective questionnaire that gathers reliable data and helps you achieve your research objectives.

Characteristics of a Good Questionnaire

A good questionnaire possesses several essential elements that contribute to its effectiveness. Furthermore, these characteristics ensure that the questionnaire is well-designed, easy to understand, and capable of providing valuable insights. Here are some key characteristics of a good questionnaire:

1. Clarity and Simplicity : Questions should be clear, concise, and unambiguous. Avoid using complex language or technical terms that may confuse respondents. Simple and straightforward questions ensure that respondents interpret them consistently.

2. Relevance and Focus : Each question should directly relate to the research objectives and contribute to answering the research questions. Consequently, avoid including extraneous or irrelevant questions that could lead to data clutter.

3. Mix of Question Types : Utilize a mix of question types, including open-ended, Likert scale, and multiple-choice questions. This variety allows for both qualitative and quantitative data collections .

4. Validity and Reliability : Ensure the questionnaire measures what it intends to measure (validity) and produces consistent results upon repeated administration (reliability). Validation should be conducted through expert review and previous research.

5. Appropriate Length : Keep the questionnaire’s length appropriate and manageable to avoid respondent fatigue or dropouts. Long questionnaires may result in incomplete or rushed responses.

6. Clear Instructions : Include clear instructions at the beginning of the questionnaire to guide respondents on how to complete it. Explain any technical terms, formats, or concepts if necessary.

7. User-Friendly Format : Design the questionnaire to be visually appealing and user-friendly. Use consistent formatting, adequate spacing, and a logical page layout.

8. Data Validation and Cleaning : Incorporate validation checks to ensure data accuracy and reliability. Consider mechanisms to detect and correct inconsistent or missing responses during data cleaning.

By incorporating these characteristics, researchers can create a questionnaire that maximizes data quality, minimizes response bias, and provides valuable insights for their research.

In the pursuit of advancing research and gaining meaningful insights, investing time and effort into designing effective questionnaires is a crucial step. A well-designed questionnaire is more than a mere set of questions; it is a masterpiece of precision and ingenuity. Each question plays a vital role in shaping the narrative of our research, guiding us through the labyrinth of data to meaningful conclusions. Indeed, a well-designed questionnaire serves as a powerful tool for unlocking valuable insights and generating robust findings that impact society positively.

Have you ever designed a research questionnaire? Reflect on your experience and share your insights with researchers globally through Enago Academy’s Open Blogging Platform . Join our diverse community of 1000K+ researchers and authors to exchange ideas, strategies, and best practices, and together, let’s shape the future of data collection and maximize the impact of questionnaires in the ever-evolving landscape of research.

Frequently Asked Questions

A research questionnaire is a structured tool used to gather data from participants in a systematic manner. It consists of a series of carefully crafted questions designed to collect specific information related to a research study.

Questionnaires play a pivotal role in both quantitative and qualitative research, enabling researchers to collect insights, opinions, attitudes, or behaviors from respondents. This aids in hypothesis testing, understanding, and informed decision-making, ensuring consistency, efficiency, and facilitating comparisons.

Questionnaires are a versatile tool employed in various research designs to gather data efficiently and comprehensively. They find extensive use in both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, making them a fundamental component of research across disciplines. Some research designs that commonly utilize questionnaires include: a) Cross-Sectional Studies b) Longitudinal Studies c) Descriptive Research d) Correlational Studies e) Causal-Comparative Studies f) Experimental Research g) Survey Research h) Case Studies i) Exploratory Research

A survey is a comprehensive data collection method that can include various techniques like interviews and observations. A questionnaire is a specific set of structured questions within a survey designed to gather standardized responses. While a survey is a broader approach, a questionnaire is a focused tool for collecting specific data.

The choice of questionnaire type depends on the research objectives, the type of data required, and the preferences of respondents. Some common types include: • Structured Questionnaires: These questionnaires consist of predefined, closed-ended questions with fixed response options. They are easy to analyze and suitable for quantitative research. • Semi-Structured Questionnaires: These questionnaires combine closed-ended questions with open-ended ones. They offer more flexibility for respondents to provide detailed explanations. • Unstructured Questionnaires: These questionnaires contain open-ended questions only, allowing respondents to express their thoughts and opinions freely. They are commonly used in qualitative research.

Following these steps ensures effective questionnaire administration for reliable data collection: • Choose a Method: Decide on online, face-to-face, mail, or phone administration. • Online Surveys: Use platforms like SurveyMonkey • Pilot Test: Test on a small group before full deployment • Clear Instructions: Provide concise guidelines • Follow-Up: Send reminders if needed

Thank you, Riya. This is quite helpful. As discussed, response bias is one of the disadvantages in the use of questionnaires. One way to help limit this can be to use scenario based questions. These type of questions may help the respondents to be more reflective and active in the process.

Thank you, Dear Riya. This is quite helpful.

Great insights there Doc

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How to Develop a Questionnaire for Research

Last Updated: July 21, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed. . Alexander Ruiz is an Educational Consultant and the Educational Director of Link Educational Institute, a tutoring business based in Claremont, California that provides customizable educational plans, subject and test prep tutoring, and college application consulting. With over a decade and a half of experience in the education industry, Alexander coaches students to increase their self-awareness and emotional intelligence while achieving skills and the goal of achieving skills and higher education. He holds a BA in Psychology from Florida International University and an MA in Education from Georgia Southern University. There are 12 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 592,659 times.

A questionnaire is a technique for collecting data in which a respondent provides answers to a series of questions. [1] X Research source To develop a questionnaire that will collect the data you want takes effort and time. However, by taking a step-by-step approach to questionnaire development, you can come up with an effective means to collect data that will answer your unique research question.

Designing Your Questionnaire

• Come up with a research question. It can be one question or several, but this should be the focal point of your questionnaire.
• Develop one or several hypotheses that you want to test. The questions that you include on your questionnaire should be aimed at systematically testing these hypotheses.

• Dichotomous question: this is a question that will generally be a “yes/no” question, but may also be an “agree/disagree” question. It is the quickest and simplest question to analyze, but is not a highly sensitive measure.
• Open-ended questions: these questions allow the respondent to respond in their own words. They can be useful for gaining insight into the feelings of the respondent, but can be a challenge when it comes to analysis of data. It is recommended to use open-ended questions to address the issue of “why.” [2] X Research source
• Multiple choice questions: these questions consist of three or more mutually-exclusive categories and ask for a single answer or several answers. [3] X Research source Multiple choice questions allow for easy analysis of results, but may not give the respondent the answer they want.
• Rank-order (or ordinal) scale questions: this type of question asks your respondent to rank items or choose items in a particular order from a set. For example, it might ask your respondents to order five things from least to most important. These types of questions forces discrimination among alternatives, but does not address the issue of why the respondent made these discriminations. [4] X Research source
• Rating scale questions: these questions allow the respondent to assess a particular issue based on a given dimension. You can provide a scale that gives an equal number of positive and negative choices, for example, ranging from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” [5] X Research source These questions are very flexible, but also do not answer the question “why.”

• Write questions that are succinct and simple. You should not be writing complex statements or using technical jargon, as it will only confuse your respondents and lead to incorrect responses.
• Ask only one question at a time. This will help avoid confusion
• Asking questions such as these usually require you to anonymize or encrypt the demographic data you collect.
• Determine if you will include an answer such as “I don’t know” or “Not applicable to me.” While these can give your respondents a way of not answering certain questions, providing these options can also lead to missing data, which can be problematic during data analysis.
• Put the most important questions at the beginning of your questionnaire. This can help you gather important data even if you sense that your respondents may be becoming distracted by the end of the questionnaire.

• Only include questions that are directly useful to your research question. [8] X Trustworthy Source Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations Specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for leading international efforts to end world hunger and improve nutrition Go to source A questionnaire is not an opportunity to collect all kinds of information about your respondents.
• Avoid asking redundant questions. This will frustrate those who are taking your questionnaire.

• Consider if you want your questionnaire to collect information from both men and women. Some studies will only survey one sex.
• Consider including a range of ages in your target demographic. For example, you can consider young adult to be 18-29 years old, adults to be 30-54 years old, and mature adults to be 55+. Providing the an age range will help you get more respondents than limiting yourself to a specific age.
• Consider what else would make a person a target for your questionnaire. Do they need to drive a car? Do they need to have health insurance? Do they need to have a child under 3? Make sure you are very clear about this before you distribute your questionnaire.

• Consider an anonymous questionnaire. You may not want to ask for names on your questionnaire. This is one step you can take to prevent privacy, however it is often possible to figure out a respondent’s identity using other demographic information (such as age, physical features, or zipcode).
• Consider de-identifying the identity of your respondents. Give each questionnaire (and thus, each respondent) a unique number or word, and only refer to them using that new identifier. Shred any personal information that can be used to determine identity.
• Remember that you do not need to collect much demographic information to be able to identify someone. People may be wary to provide this information, so you may get more respondents by asking less demographic questions (if it is possible for your questionnaire).
• Make sure you destroy all identifying information after your study is complete.

Writing your questionnaire

• My name is Jack Smith and I am one of the creators of this questionnaire. I am part of the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan, where I am focusing in developing cognition in infants.
• I’m Kelly Smith, a 3rd year undergraduate student at the University of New Mexico. This questionnaire is part of my final exam in statistics.
• My name is Steve Johnson, and I’m a marketing analyst for The Best Company. I’ve been working on questionnaire development to determine attitudes surrounding drug use in Canada for several years.

• I am collecting data regarding the attitudes surrounding gun control. This information is being collected for my Anthropology 101 class at the University of Maryland.
• This questionnaire will ask you 15 questions about your eating and exercise habits. We are attempting to make a correlation between healthy eating, frequency of exercise, and incidence of cancer in mature adults.
• This questionnaire will ask you about your recent experiences with international air travel. There will be three sections of questions that will ask you to recount your recent trips and your feelings surrounding these trips, as well as your travel plans for the future. We are looking to understand how a person’s feelings surrounding air travel impact their future plans.

• Beware that if you are collecting information for a university or for publication, you may need to check in with your institution’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) for permission before beginning. Most research universities have a dedicated IRB staff, and their information can usually be found on the school’s website.
• Remember that transparency is best. It is important to be honest about what will happen with the data you collect.
• Include an informed consent for if necessary. Note that you cannot guarantee confidentiality, but you will make all reasonable attempts to ensure that you protect their information. [11] X Research source

• Time yourself taking the survey. Then consider that it will take some people longer than you, and some people less time than you.
• Provide a time range instead of a specific time. For example, it’s better to say that a survey will take between 15 and 30 minutes than to say it will take 15 minutes and have some respondents quit halfway through.
• Use this as a reason to keep your survey concise! You will feel much better asking people to take a 20 minute survey than you will asking them to take a 3 hour one.

• Incentives can attract the wrong kind of respondent. You don’t want to incorporate responses from people who rush through your questionnaire just to get the reward at the end. This is a danger of offering an incentive. [12] X Research source
• Incentives can encourage people to respond to your survey who might not have responded without a reward. This is a situation in which incentives can help you reach your target number of respondents. [13] X Research source
• Consider the strategy used by SurveyMonkey. Instead of directly paying respondents to take their surveys, they offer 50 cents to the charity of their choice when a respondent fills out a survey. They feel that this lessens the chances that a respondent will fill out a questionnaire out of pure self-interest. [14] X Research source
• Consider entering each respondent in to a drawing for a prize if they complete the questionnaire. You can offer a 25$ gift card to a restaurant, or a new iPod, or a ticket to a movie. This makes it less tempting just to respond to your questionnaire for the incentive alone, but still offers the chance of a pleasant reward.

• Always proof read. Check for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors.
• Include a title. This is a good way for your respondents to understand the focus of the survey as quickly as possible.
• Thank your respondents. Thank them for taking the time and effort to complete your survey.

Distributing Your Questionnaire

• Was the questionnaire easy to understand? Were there any questions that confused you?
• Was the questionnaire easy to access? (Especially important if your questionnaire is online).
• Do you feel the questionnaire was worth your time?
• Were you comfortable answering the questions asked?
• Are there any improvements you would make to the questionnaire?

• Use an online site, such as SurveyMonkey.com. This site allows you to write your own questionnaire with their survey builder, and provides additional options such as the option to buy a target audience and use their analytics to analyze your data. [18] X Research source
• Consider using the mail. If you mail your survey, always make sure you include a self-addressed stamped envelope so that the respondent can easily mail their responses back. Make sure that your questionnaire will fit inside a standard business envelope.
• Conduct face-to-face interviews. This can be a good way to ensure that you are reaching your target demographic and can reduce missing information in your questionnaires, as it is more difficult for a respondent to avoid answering a question when you ask it directly.
• Try using the telephone. While this can be a more time-effective way to collect your data, it can be difficult to get people to respond to telephone questionnaires.

• Make your deadline reasonable. Giving respondents up to 2 weeks to answer should be more than sufficient. Anything longer and you risk your respondents forgetting about your questionnaire.
• Consider providing a reminder. A week before the deadline is a good time to provide a gentle reminder about returning the questionnaire. Include a replacement of the questionnaire in case it has been misplaced by your respondent.

Community Q&A

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.questionpro.com/blog/what-is-a-questionnaire/
• ↑ https://www.hotjar.com/blog/open-ended-questions/
• ↑ https://www.questionpro.com/a/showArticle.do?articleID=survey-questions
• ↑ https://surveysparrow.com/blog/ranking-questions-examples/
• ↑ https://www.lumoa.me/blog/rating-scale/
• ↑ http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/Soc_survey.shtml
• ↑ http://www.fao.org/docrep/W3241E/w3241e05.htm
• ↑ http://managementhelp.org/businessresearch/questionaires.htm
• ↑ https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/survey-rewards/
• ↑ http://www.ideafit.com/fitness-library/how-to-develop-a-questionnaire
• ↑ https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/take-a-tour/?ut_source=header

About This Article

To develop a questionnaire for research, identify the main objective of your research to act as the focal point for the questionnaire. Then, choose the type of questions that you want to include, and come up with succinct, straightforward questions to gather the information that you need to answer your questions. Keep your questionnaire as short as possible, and identify a target demographic who you would like to answer the questions. Remember to make the questionnaires as anonymous as possible to protect the integrity of the person answering the questions! For tips on writing out your questions and distributing the questionnaire, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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How to create an effective survey in 15 simple tips

Updated August 15, 2023

You don’t have to be an expert to create a survey, but by following a few survey best practices you can make sure you’re collecting the best data possible.

Access 50+ expert-designed survey templates with a free Qualtrics Surveys account

From working out what you want to achieve to providing incentives for respondents, survey design can take time.

But when you don’t have hours to devote to becoming a survey-creation guru, a quick guide to the essentials is a great way to get started.

In this article, we’re going to reveal how to create a survey that’s easy to complete, encourages collecting feedback, hits the research questions you’re interested in, and produces data that’s easy to work with at the analysis stage .

15 Tips when creating surveys

1. define the purpose of the survey.

Before you even think about your survey questions , you need to define their purpose.

The survey’s purpose should be a clear, attainable, and relevant goal. For example, you might want to understand why customer engagement is dropping off during the middle of the sales process.

Your goal could then be something like: “I want to understand the key factors that cause engagement to dip at the middle of the sales process, including both internal and external elements.”

Or maybe you want to understand customer satisfaction post-sale. If so, the goal of your survey could be: “I want to understand how customer satisfaction is influenced by customer service and support post-sale, including through online and offline channels.”

The idea is to come up with a specific, measurable, and relevant goal for your survey. This way you ensure that your questions are tailored to what you want to achieve and that the data captured can be compared against your goal.

2. Make every question count

You’re building your survey questionnaire to obtain important insights, so every question should play a direct role in hitting that target.

Make sure each question adds value and drives survey responses that relate directly to your research goals. For example, if your participant’s precise age or home state is relevant to your results, go ahead and ask. If not, save yourself and your respondents some time and skip it.

It’s best to plan your survey by first identifying the data you need to collect and then writing your questions.

You can also incorporate multiple-choice questions to get a range of responses that provide more detail than a solid yes or no. It’s not always black and white.

For a deeper dive into the art and science of question-writing and survey best practices, check out Survey questions 101 .

3. Keep it short and simple

Although you may be deeply committed to your survey, the chances are that your respondents... aren’t.

As a survey designer, a big part of your job is keeping their attention and making sure they stay focused until the end of the survey.

Respondents are less likely to complete long surveys or surveys that bounce around haphazardly from topic to topic. Make sure your survey follows a logical order and takes a reasonable amount of time to complete.

Although they don’t need to know everything about your research project, it can help to let respondents know why you’re asking about a certain topic. Knowing the basics about who you are and what you’re researching means they’re more likely to keep their responses focused and in scope.

Access 50+ expert-designed survey templates now

4. Ask direct questions

Vaguely worded survey questions confuse respondents and make your resulting data less useful. Be as specific as possible, and strive for clear and precise language that will make your survey questions easy to answer.

It can be helpful to mention a specific situation or behavior rather than a general tendency. That way you focus the respondent on the facts of their life rather than asking them to consider abstract beliefs or ideas .

See an example:

Good survey design isn’t just about getting the information you need, but also encouraging respondents to think in different ways.

Get access to the top downloaded survey templates here

5. Ask one question at a time

Although it’s important to keep your survey as short and sweet as possible, that doesn’t mean doubling up on questions. Trying to pack too much into a single question can lead to confusion and inaccuracies in the responses.

Take a closer look at questions in your survey that contain the word “and” – it can be a red flag that your question has two parts. For example: “Which of these cell phone service providers has the best customer support and reliability?” This is problematic because a respondent may feel that one service is more reliable, but another has better customer support.

Also, if you want to go beyond surveys and develop a multi-faceted listening approach to drive meaningful change and glean actionable insights, make sure to download our guide .

6. Avoid leading and biased questions

Although you don’t intend them to, certain words and phrases can introduce bias into your questions or point the respondent in the direction of a particular answer.

As a rule of thumb, when you conduct a survey it’s best to provide only as much wording as a respondent needs to give an informed answer. Keep your question wording focused on the respondent and their opinions, rather than introducing anything that could be construed as a point of view of your own.

In particular, scrutinize adjectives and adverbs in your questions. If they’re not needed, take them out.

7. Speak your respondent's language

This tip goes hand in hand with many others in this guide – it’s about making language only as complex or as detailed as it needs to be when conducting great surveys.

Create surveys that use language and terminology that your respondents will understand. Keep the language as plain as possible, avoid technical jargon and keep sentences short. However, beware of oversimplifying a question to the point that its meaning changes.

8. Use response scales whenever possible

Response scales capture the direction and intensity of attitudes, providing rich data. In contrast, categorical or binary response options, such as true/false or yes/no response options, generally produce less informative data.

If you’re in the position of choosing between the two, the response scale is likely to be the better option.

Avoid using scales that ask your target audience to agree or disagree with statements, however. Some people are biased toward agreeing with statements , and this can result in invalid and unreliable data.

9. Avoid using grids or matrices for responses

Grids or matrices of answers demand a lot more thinking from your respondent than a scale or multiple choice question. They need to understand and weigh up multiple items at once, and oftentimes they don’t fill in grids accurately or according to their true feelings .

Another pitfall to be aware of is that grid question types aren’t mobile-friendly. It’s better to separate questions with grid responses into multiple questions in your survey with a different structure such as a response scale.

See an example using our survey tool:

10. Rephrase yes/no questions if possible in online survyes

As we’ve described, yes/no questions provide less detailed data than a response scale or multiple-choice, since they only yield one of two possible answers.

Many yes/no questions can be reworked by including phrases such as “How much,” “How often,” or “How likely.” Make this change whenever possible and include a response scale for richer data.

By rephrasing your questions in this way, your survey results will be far more comprehensive and representative of how your respondents feel.

Next? Find out how to write great questions .

11. Start with the straightforward stuff

Ease your respondent into the survey by asking easy questions at the start of your questionnaire, then moving on to more complex or thought-provoking elements once they’re engaged in the process.

This is especially valuable if you need to cover any potentially sensitive topics in your survey. Never put sensitive questions at the start of the questionnaire where they’re more likely to feel off-putting.

Your respondent will probably become more prone to fatigue and distraction towards the end of the survey, so keep your most complex or contentious questions in the middle of the survey flow rather than saving them until last.

12. Use unbalanced scales with care

Unbalanced response scales and poorly worded questions can mislead respondents.

For example, if you’ve asked them to rate a product or service and you provide a scale that includes “poor”, “satisfactory”, “good” and “excellent”, they could be swayed towards the “excellent” end of the scale because there are more positive options available.

Make sure your response scales have a definitive, neutral midpoint (aim for odd numbers of possible responses) and that they cover the whole range of possible reactions to the question .

13. Consider adding incentives

To increase the number of responses, incentives — discounts, offers, gift cards, or sweepstakes — can prove helpful.

Of course, while the benefits of offering incentives sound appealing (more respondents), there’s the possibility of attracting the opinions of the wrong audiences, such as those who are only in it for the incentive.

With this in mind, make sure you limit your surveys to your target population and carefully assess which incentives would be most valuable to them.

14. Take your survey for a test drive

Want to know how to make a survey a potential disaster? Send it out before you pre-test .

However short or straightforward your questionnaire is, it’s always a good idea to pre-test your survey before you roll it out fully so that you can catch any possible errors before they have a chance to mess up your survey results.

Share your survey with at least five people, so that they can test your survey to help you catch and correct problems before you distribute it.

15. Let us help you

Survey design doesn’t have to be difficult — even less so with the right expertise, digital solutions, and survey templates.

At Qualtrics, we provide survey software that’s used by more than 11,000 of the top brands and 99 of the top business schools worldwide.

Furthermore, we have a library of high-quality, ready-to-use, and easy-to-configure survey templates that can improve your surveys significantly.

You can check out our template marketplace here . As a free or existing customer, you have access to the complete collection and can filter by the core experiences you want to drive.

As for our survey software , it’s completely free to use and powers more than 1 billion surveys a year. Using it, you can get answers to your most important brand, market, customer, and product questions, build your own surveys, get insights from your audience wherever they are, and much, much more.

If you want to learn more about how to use our survey tool to create a survey, as well as what else it can do — check out our blog on how to create a free online survey using Qualtrics .

See instant results with our online free survey maker

Sarah Fisher

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• Writing Strong Research Questions | Criteria & Examples

Writing Strong Research Questions | Criteria & Examples

Published on October 26, 2022 by Shona McCombes . Revised on November 21, 2023.

A research question pinpoints exactly what you want to find out in your work. A good research question is essential to guide your research paper , dissertation , or thesis .

All research questions should be:

• Focused on a single problem or issue
• Researchable using primary and/or secondary sources
• Feasible to answer within the timeframe and practical constraints
• Specific enough to answer thoroughly
• Complex enough to develop the answer over the space of a paper or thesis
• Relevant to your field of study and/or society more broadly

Table of contents

How to write a research question, what makes a strong research question, using sub-questions to strengthen your main research question, research questions quiz, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about research questions.

You can follow these steps to develop a strong research question:

• Choose your topic
• Do some preliminary reading about the current state of the field
• Narrow your focus to a specific niche
• Identify the research problem that you will address

The way you frame your question depends on what your research aims to achieve. The table below shows some examples of how you might formulate questions for different purposes.

Using your research problem to develop your research question

Note that while most research questions can be answered with various types of research , the way you frame your question should help determine your choices.

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Research questions anchor your whole project, so it’s important to spend some time refining them. The criteria below can help you evaluate the strength of your research question.

Focused and researchable

Feasible and specific

Complex and arguable

Relevant and original

Chances are that your main research question likely can’t be answered all at once. That’s why sub-questions are important: they allow you to answer your main question in a step-by-step manner.

Good sub-questions should be:

• Less complex than the main question
• Focused only on 1 type of research
• Presented in a logical order

Here are a few examples of descriptive and framing questions:

• Descriptive: According to current government arguments, how should a European bank tax be implemented?
• Descriptive: Which countries have a bank tax/levy on financial transactions?
• Framing: How should a bank tax/levy on financial transactions look at a European level?

Keep in mind that sub-questions are by no means mandatory. They should only be asked if you need the findings to answer your main question. If your main question is simple enough to stand on its own, it’s okay to skip the sub-question part. As a rule of thumb, the more complex your subject, the more sub-questions you’ll need.

Try to limit yourself to 4 or 5 sub-questions, maximum. If you feel you need more than this, it may be indication that your main research question is not sufficiently specific. In this case, it’s is better to revisit your problem statement and try to tighten your main question up.

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If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Methodology

• Sampling methods
• Simple random sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Likert scales
• Reproducibility

 Statistics

• Null hypothesis
• Statistical power
• Probability distribution
• Effect size
• Poisson distribution

Research bias

• Optimism bias
• Cognitive bias
• Implicit bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Anchoring bias
• Explicit bias

The way you present your research problem in your introduction varies depending on the nature of your research paper . A research paper that presents a sustained argument will usually encapsulate this argument in a thesis statement .

A research paper designed to present the results of empirical research tends to present a research question that it seeks to answer. It may also include a hypothesis —a prediction that will be confirmed or disproved by your research.

As you cannot possibly read every source related to your topic, it’s important to evaluate sources to assess their relevance. Use preliminary evaluation to determine whether a source is worth examining in more depth.

This involves:

• Reading abstracts , prefaces, introductions , and conclusions
• Looking at the table of contents to determine the scope of the work
• Consulting the index for key terms or the names of important scholars

A research hypothesis is your proposed answer to your research question. The research hypothesis usually includes an explanation (“ x affects y because …”).

A statistical hypothesis, on the other hand, is a mathematical statement about a population parameter. Statistical hypotheses always come in pairs: the null and alternative hypotheses . In a well-designed study , the statistical hypotheses correspond logically to the research hypothesis.

Formulating a main research question can be a difficult task. Overall, your question should contribute to solving the problem that you have defined in your problem statement .

However, it should also fulfill criteria in three main areas:

• Researchability
• Feasibility and specificity
• Relevance and originality

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Example of a good questionnaire: Learn all about it

Questionnaire versus survey: what is the difference, an example of a good questionnaire: which criteria should survey questionnaires fulfill, 1. to create an example of a good questionnaire, develop a clear objective, which type of questions should you ask in your research, 3. the wording of questions is crucial for an example of a good questionnaire for research, 4. pay attention to the design of your questionnaire, 5. data analysis and result reporting as the final step of a survey research, good and bad questionnaire examples, product questionnaire examples, example of a good questionnaire for students.

What is an example of a good questionnaire? A well-written survey questionnaire must be engaging and easy to answer . Respondents should find it simple to complete while at the same time providing the researcher with valuable information.

Whether it is a customer satisfaction survey or an education survey, each question should be carefully chosen and well-worded so respondents aren’t confused about how to answer.

One of the most common questions many beginner researchers ask themselves is how to make a good questionnaire for research.

The truth is, it’s nothing complicated . In fact, it is rather simple. But you will need to have some basic knowledge about the process of creating a survey questionnaire. Additionally, using the right survey software will be of great help.

If you’re looking for examples of good survey questionnaires, keep reading. This article will give you examples of good questionnaires and how to use them in your next survey!

People usually think a survey and a questionnaire are the same, but that’s not quite true. Questionnaires and surveys are closely linked, but there is an important difference.

The term “survey” refers to the whole research process and includes both collecting information and then analyzing the gathered data. A questionnaire , on the other hand, is the research instrument with which you collect the information for research.

So, questionnaires are integral parts of surveys . They are sets of questions that respondents need to answer.

A survey questionnaire is the key element of your survey research. It is a tool that allows the gathering of valuable information. If not used correctly, it can lead to errors in survey data that can greatly affect research results.

Before diving into survey templates, which provide example questions you can use, we first need to understand how a questionnaire should be made. In practice, you can find both good and bad questionnaire examples; the key is knowing how to differentiate between them. Once you know everything that is behind a survey questionnaire, you will be able to recognize the dos and dont’s when creating your own great templates.

To be considered an example of a good questionnaire, it should fulfill many criteria, from setting up a research objective to interpreting the gathered data. Here’s how to write a good questionnaire for research.

Making what is an example of a good questionnaire starts by setting up a clear objective for your survey research.

There are many different kinds of surveys and questionnaires. Customer satisfaction surveys can garner information about both satisfaction with a brand’s customer service and the products themselves. Then there are market research surveys , brand awareness surveys, and many more.

Before you start conducting your survey—or even try to make a sample of a good questionnaire—you first need to determine the goal you want to achieve with your research. Only after determining your objective can you choose what survey sample you will be using, how you will ask your questions, and how you will analyze the data .

2. Use appropriate questions for a suitable sample of a good questionnaire

Questions are the most important part of a survey, and each one is equally important. That’s why you will make an example of a good questionnaire for research only if you use the right questions.

Which question types to use depends on the type of research you have chosen. SurveyPlanet gives you access to numerous survey templates and pre-made questions to choose from. Our question library contains queries suitable for every survey type.

The two largest groups of survey questions are open-ended and closed-ended. Closed-ended questions are further divided into subtypes.

The most common closed-ended question types include:

• Yes or no questions.
• Multiple-choice questions.
• Likert scale questions.
• NPS questions or net promoter score questions.

Combine our pre-made questions with your own custom-made ones, or base your questionnaire entirely on our survey templates. Whichever method you choose, with our help you will make an example of a good questionnaire in no time! Sign up for a free SurveyPlanet account!

A beginner in the survey-making world might think they need to decide between closed-ended and open-ended questions. However, using both is always recommended for the best results.

As we already mentioned, there are numerous types of questions you can use that fall under the closed-ended question category. The most common ones are multiple-choice, yes-or-no, and Likert scale . All of these questions offer respondents a set of pre-made answers they must choose from .

When you ask open-ended questions, respondents get the chance to answer in their own words. These questions can offer you access to valuable data and give you deeper insight into the field you are researching. However, because respondents answer with their own words, the data collected through open-ended questions are much harder to analyze.

If you want to get the most thorough feedback possible, always use a couple of different question types in your surveys. For example, Likert scale questions are great for rating customer experience with a particular product or customer service. Net promoter score questions, on the other hand, are great when measuring overall customer satisfaction with your entire brand.

But depending on only numbers and agree-disagree scales won’t give your research much depth. That’s why you need to use diverse multiple-choice questions, as well as open-ended questions, so respondents can freely express their opinions by answering each question in their own words .

When you’re putting together your survey questions, you need to pay attention to every little detail. The biggest difference between good and bad questionnaire examples is usually how their questions are worded.

First, you must make sure you use clear and unambiguous language . If your questions are poorly worded and can be interpreted in more than one way, you risk making errors that will lead to inaccurate results .

Besides using clear language, keep questions brief and to the point. Questions that are too long can cause confusion, are harder to answer, and more likely to be skipped, all of which risk creating the same errors previously mentioned.

Many aspects of a questionnaire affect a survey’s response rate , not just the way questions are worded.

For your survey to be a proper example of a good questionnaire, it needs to be engaging. Engaging surveys offer the best feedback. Apart from using captivating language in questions, you also need to pay attention to the visuals.

The way your survey looks is the other most important detail in engaging a customer and making them willing to share their feedback.

The best survey questionnaire design is one that is eye-catching and fun but not too overwhelming . If you are unsure of how to accomplish this, you can choose one of our beautiful pre-made templates. If you already have something in mind, use our custom theme feature to create your own survey theme!

Your survey is not done after collecting all the data. To finalize the whole research project, and ensure you’ve done a great job, you have to analyze the data effectively and present your findings in a comprehensible way.

With SurveyPlanet, you can analyze data in many different ways. Result filtering helps you focus on the answers of one particular group of respondents, while cross-tabulation helps you compare the answers of different subgroups. SurveyPlanet allows you to export results to different file formats so data can be analyzed more efficiently.

When you’ve analyzed the data , all that is left is to make a report that will accurately communicate your findings . To do so, start by providing the objective and the methodology of your research. When presenting the data, ensure it isn’t just plain and boring numbers. Instead, focus on the actual changes and improvements they imply.

Whether you are conducting a market research survey, event planning questionnaire , or student survey, there are always examples of good and bad questionnaires and individual questions.

A well-written survey questionnaire has everything we’ve previously mentioned: a clear objective, appropriate and well-worded questions, and an exquisite design. Bad questionnaire examples are the complete opposite—they are too long , poorly worded, incomprehensible, and contain many errors.

When creating surveys about products, first include a couple of questions about your brand to understand how customers relate to it. Do they recognize your brand, and are they familiar with its products? With answers to these questions, you then know if placing a product in a certain category makes sense.

Next, focus on the ** individual features of your product**. You can research your market by sending out satisfaction surveys to evaluate the customer experience with your existing products. With these surveys, ask which features a customer values most or the features a new product should have.

Get coverage for each category of features to gain insights into every detail. Then adjust new products to your customers’ needs and wishes.

Student surveys are used to gain valuable feedback from students about their classroom experiences, such as how satisfied they are with their teachers, curricular and extracurricular activities, and the methods used for evaluating their knowledge.

The type of questions you use depends on the topic you want to explore. Student surveys are often used to get students’ thoughts on a particular area of education but can also be used ** to better understand students and their preferred learning methods**.

If you are a principal at a school, you can ask students about the quality of education or their relationship with teachers. If you are a teacher, the most common questionnaire will be the course evaluation questionnaire. You can find more student survey templates on our site.

These are some basic tips to follow to create an adequate survey questionnaire. Knowing them will give you a great advantage and it will be even easier to accomplish your goal with the help of our online tools.

So, what are you waiting for? Sign up for free and create your first survey questionnaire in no time.

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Harvard University Program on Survey Research

• Questionnaire Design Tip Sheet

This PSR Tip Sheet provides some basic tips about how to write good survey questions and design a good survey questionnaire.

PSR Resources

• Managing and Manipulating Survey Data: A Beginners Guide
• Finding and Hiring Survey Contractors
• How to Frame and Explain the Survey Data Used in a Thesis
• Overview of Cognitive Testing and Questionnaire Evaluation
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• Introduction to Surveys for Honors Thesis Writers
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Research Questionnaire

Questionnaire generator.

When a researcher creates a research paper using the scientific method they will need to use a gathering method that is adjacent to the research topic. This means that the researcher will use a quantitative research method for a quantitive topic and a qualitative method for a qualitative  one.  The research questionnaire is one of the quantitative data-gathering methods a researcher can use in their research paper.

1. Market Research Questionnaire Template Example

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13. Graudate Research Student Questionnaires

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15. Market Research Questionnaire Example

16. Research Survey Questionnaire Example

17. Product X Research Study Questionnaire Example

What Is a Research Questionnaire?

A research questionnaire is a physical or digital questionnaire that researchers use to obtain quantitative data. The research questionnaire is a more in-depth version of a survey   as its questions often delve deeper than survey questions .

How to Write a Research Questionnaire

A well-made research questionnaire can effectively and efficiently gather data from the population. Creating a good research questionnaire does not require that many writing skills , soft skills , or hard skills , it just requires the person to properly understand the data set they are looking for.

Step 1: Select a Topic or Theme for the Research Questionnaire

Begin by choosing a topic or theme   for the research questionnaire as this will provide much-needed context for the research questionnaire. Not only that but the topic will also dictate the tone of the questions in the questionnaire.

Step 2: Obtain or Use a Research Questionnaire Outline

You may opt to use a research questionnaire outline or outline format for your research questionnaire. This outline will provide you with a structure you can use to easily make your research questionnaire.

Step 3: Create your Research Questionnaire

Start by creating questions that will help provide you with the necessary data to prove or disprove your research question. You may conduct brainstorming sessions to formulate the questions for your research questionnaire.

Step 4: Edit and Have Someone Proofread the Questionnaire

After you have created and completed the research questionnaire, you must edit the contents of the questionnaire. Not only that but it is wise to have someone proofread the contents of your questionnaire before deploying the questionnaire. 

How does a research questionnaire help businesses?

A successful business or company utilizes research questionnaires to not only obtain data from their customers but also to gather data about the performance and quality of the employees in the business. The research questionnaire provides the business or company with actionable data, which they can use to improve the product, service, or commodity to obtain more customers.

Do I need to provide a consent form when I ask someone to answer the research questionnaire?

Yes, consent is very important as without this the data you have gathered from your questionnaires or surveys are useless. Therefore it is important to provide a consent form with your research questionnaire when you are asking a participant to answer the document.

What type of answers are allowed in the research questionnaire?

Research questionnaires can host a multitude of types of questions each with its specific way of answering.  A questionnaire can use multiple-choice questions, open-ended questions, and closed questions. Just be sure to properly pace the questions as having too many different types of answering styles can demotivate or distract the target audience, which might lead to errors.

A research questionnaire is a data-gathering document people can use to obtain information and data from a specific group of people. Well-made and crafted research questionnaires will provide much-needed information one can use to answer a specific research question.

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How to Write a Thesis or Dissertation Questionnaire?

Published by Alvin Nicolas at August 7th, 2024 , Revised On August 7, 2024

Do you know the first questionnaire was developed in 1838? It was designed to collect responses from individuals to understand their behaviour towards various stimuli. Since then, scientists have been using questionnaires to collect statistical data. The invention of the questionnaire gave birth to subjects like Sociology and Statistics .

Nowadays, sociology or psychology students also collect statistical data and information using questionnaires to understand individuals’ behaviour. Excellent questionnaires help produce high-quality research results.

This blog comprehensively discusses what a thesis or dissertation questionnaire is and the steps involved in writing one. Learn how to write a questionnaire and optimise your research process .

What is a Thesis or Dissertation Questionnaire?

A questionnaire is a set of specific questions that are particularly designed to assess the preferences, intentions, experiences, opinions, and behaviour of the individuals. In a thesis or dissertation, students use questionnaires to collect qualitative or quantitative data relevant to their subjects.

However, using questionnaires to collect data and information is a very tiresome and hectic task because researchers have to wait for the respondents to answer all the questions.

Importance of Thesis & Dissertation Questionnaire

Imagine you want to ask one or two questions from an individual. You can easily ask him/her those questions. What would you do when you have to record their thorough response to multiple questions? In that case, the questionnaire is the best option for collecting individual responses.

A thesis or dissertation questionnaire does not specify precisely whether it is used for simple research or a survey. In the case of a survey, there would always be a questionnaire. Here are the reasons why a thesis or dissertation questionnaire is important during the research process:

• Questionnaires help researchers collect data in an organised and systematic manner.
• With questionnaires, data can be efficiently analysed and quick conclusions can be drawn.
• There are no extensive costs involved in to design research questionnaires. It is a cost-effective method to collect data.
• Researchers can ask multiple questions to record the response about a specific topic thoroughly.

Several formalities are involved in collecting data through a questionnaire. One basic consideration is the dissertation questionnaire consent form.

Dissertation Questionnaire Consent Form

The questionnaire consent form is the document the participants sign to indicate their consent to participate in the research process. It is crucial to ask for their consent because data and information are used for research purposes. Also, inform them about the topic so they can decide efficiently.

The questionnaire consent form is usually presented on the first page of the thesis or dissertation questionnaire. It contains the participant’s personal and contact information.

Online Dissertation Questionnaire

As you know, in this digital age, everything is shifting to digital platforms. There was a time when researchers had to wait for the individuals to fill out the questionnaire paper. No doubt, it was a tiresome task. Now, researchers send the thesis or dissertation questionnaires to digital platforms such as email, inbox, and social media.

Online dissertation questionnaire tools such as Google Forms, Microsoft Forms, and SurveyPlanet have made data analysis and collection much more convenient and reliable.

Components of an Excellent Dissertation Questionnaire

These are the components of an excellent thesis or dissertation questionnaire:

It has a Structured Design

The best property of a good dissertation questionnaire is its structured design. When questions and their categories are efficiently structured in a questionnaire, it provides an eye-catching look. This helps the participants to fill out the questionnaire more proficiently.

It Contains Unique and Exploratory Questions

An outstanding questionnaire always has unique and well-researched questions rather than overly used typical ones. Every question can provide a sufficient response. It contains exploratory questions to explore even minor information about the participants thoroughly.

It has Likert Scales

Likert scales are a measurement method in research to assess attitudes, opinions, and perceptions. They are widely used in the questionnaires to generate responses accurately. When a questionnaire has Likert scales, it makes it easy for the researchers to derive results from that.

It has Consistency of Questions

Another sign of an excellent question is its consistency. It contains perfectly categorised questions that make sense to the participants from start to end. Every question follows an appropriate question systematically.

Difference Between Questionnaire and Survey

Steps Involved in Writing a Dissertation Questionnaire

Writing a thesis or dissertation questionnaire requires different methods. These methods can be modified accordingly to make your questionnaire relevant to your research objectives. However, the essential steps involved in writing a dissertation questionnaire are given as follows:

Step 1: Establish Your Research Objectives To Ese Your Research Process

The first step in writing a thesis or dissertation question is establishing the research objectives. You have to be clear about your research goals. The research is usually done to fill an already-present gap in the data. It is done to find significant solutions to specific problems. It is crucial to have the goals to solve a problem.

Step 2: Assess the Requirements to Ensure They Are Achievable

It is also important to assess the research requirements. Requirements will help you know what you need and what you don’t need to write your research questionnaire. It is easy to start a research process when all the requirements are easily achievable. Also, the time and money spent on the questionnaire should be considered.

Step 3: Choose the Right Data Collection Method To Derive Authentic Results

There are many data collection methods , such as in-person, telephone, email, direct mail, and online platforms. It is essential to choose the proper data collection method that can be easily used to deliver authentic results. You should also design your questionnaire according to the collection method.

Methodology

Methodology is the collection of particular techniques for collecting and processing data. Create an efficient research methodology to collect data accurately. It will help you optimise and streamline your research process.

Step 4: Develop the Unique and Logical Questions for Data Collection

After selecting an appropriate data collection method, it is time to develop unique questionnaire questions. The questions should be logical and follow a series of numbers. Close-ended questions are used in the writing of dissertation or thesis questionnaires.

Step 5: Set the Perfect Scaling According to Your Questions

Scaling is used to calculate the response of the participants. Researchers should set the perfect scaling according to the nature of the questions. The Likert scale is the most widely used in questionnaires. It allows researchers to generate responses of participants from the right extreme to the left extreme.

Step 6: Creatively Design the Questionnaire to Enhance Its Visual Appeal

The next step is designing the layout of the questionnaire. It is crucial to enhance the visual appeal of the questionnaire. The design and colour of the questionnaire should be selected according to the theme of the topic. Moreover, a graphically appealing questionnaire also enhances the engagement of readers.

Step 7: Analysing & Evaluation the Questionnaire To Remove Discrepancies

The most important step after designing is analysing and evaluating. This step will allow you to fill gaps if there are any. Check the alignment of the questions and scaling. The numbering should be perfect. The colouring and design should also be on point. This step proceeds with the testing.

Step 8: Pretest With a Small Population and Collect Necessary Feedback

After completing the questionnaire, prepare to pretest it with a small population. Check the responses of the participants thoroughly. Be open to feedback and criticism. It will help you consider revisions and alterations and improve your questionnaire.

Step 9: Revise to Make Changes To Enhance the Quality

If there are any changes required in the questionnaire, make them immediately. Revise your questionnaire again and again to illuminate even a minor mistake. Also, take feedback from your peers to further enhance the quality of your questionnaire.

Step 10: Finalising the Questionnaire and Launching it for the Research

When all the required changes and revisions are made, it’s time to finalise the questionnaire. Again, go through all its important obligations and ensure everything is in perfect shape. When everything is done from your side, it’s time to finalise and launch it for the actual research.

Dissertation Questionnaire Examples

Here, we’ll discuss the sample and template of the dissertation questionnaire to understand how it looks. This will significantly help us create our dissertation questionnaire.

Dissertation Questionnaire Template

Here is a template of the dissertation questionnaire:

[Introduction of the Researcher with all the key objectives briefly explained.]

[Questionnaire consent Form]

Dissertation Questionnaire Example

Introduction: Hello. My name is ……….. I am currently studying at………………. and doing my …………………………. I am conducting this research to [agenda of the study].This research will help me to provide solutions to all these problems:

[Problems and solutions]

This questionnaire contains XX questions. It will just take 15 minutes to complete it. All your personal information and responses will be kept anonymous from other participants. There are both open-ended and close-ended questions. Answer them honestly. Thank you.

Part 1: Multiple Choice Questions

• Are you a male or a female?

• Have you completed your bachelor’s degree?

• Did you study your major according to your passion?
• Are you doing a job related to your degree?
• Are you satisfied with your current job?

Frequently Asked Questions

How long should a dissertation questionnaire be.

The length of your questionnaire should be according to your objectives. There is no fixed number of questions in a questionnaire. Some questionnaires are basic, some are exploratory, and some are in-depth. However, an ideal questionnaire should be completed in 25 to 30 minutes without losing the participant’s interest. 

How many questions should a dissertation questionnaire have?

It’s entirely up to you to add as many questions as you want. Remember that you should add enough questions to complete your research objectives. Avoid adding excessive questions, as they can be boring for participants.

How to analyse a questionnaire for a dissertation?

These are the necessary tips to analyse a questionnaire for a dissertation: 

• Pile up all the responses 
• Analyse all the questions
• Visualise the collected data
• Interpretation of results

You May Also Like

Here are the steps to make a theoretical framework for dissertation. You can define, discuss and evaluate theories relevant to the research problem.

Appendices or Appendixes are used to provide additional date related to your dissertation research project. Here we explain what is appendix in dissertation

Anyone who supports you in your research should be acknowledged in dissertation acknowledgments. Learn more on how to write dissertation acknowledgements.

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9 Best Marketing Research Methods to Know Your Buyer Better [+ Examples]

Published: August 08, 2024

One of the most underrated skills you can have as a marketer is marketing research — which is great news for this unapologetic cyber sleuth.

From brand design and product development to buyer personas and competitive analysis, I’ve researched a number of initiatives in my decade-long marketing career.

And let me tell you: having the right marketing research methods in your toolbox is a must.

Market research is the secret to crafting a strategy that will truly help you accomplish your goals. The good news is there is no shortage of options.

How to Choose a Marketing Research Method

Thanks to the Internet, we have more marketing research (or market research) methods at our fingertips than ever, but they’re not all created equal. Let’s quickly go over how to choose the right one.

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1. Identify your objective.

What are you researching? Do you need to understand your audience better? How about your competition? Or maybe you want to know more about your customer’s feelings about a specific product.

Before starting your research, take some time to identify precisely what you’re looking for. This could be a goal you want to reach, a problem you need to solve, or a question you need to answer.

For example, an objective may be as foundational as understanding your ideal customer better to create new buyer personas for your marketing agency (pause for flashbacks to my former life).

Or if you’re an organic sode company, it could be trying to learn what flavors people are craving.

2. Determine what type of data and research you need.

Next, determine what data type will best answer the problems or questions you identified. There are primarily two types: qualitative and quantitative. (Sound familiar, right?)

• Qualitative Data is non-numerical information, like subjective characteristics, opinions, and feelings. It’s pretty open to interpretation and descriptive, but it’s also harder to measure. This type of data can be collected through interviews, observations, and open-ended questions.
• Quantitative Data , on the other hand, is numerical information, such as quantities, sizes, amounts, or percentages. It’s measurable and usually pretty hard to argue with, coming from a reputable source. It can be derived through surveys, experiments, or statistical analysis.

Understanding the differences between qualitative and quantitative data will help you pinpoint which research methods will yield the desired results.

For instance, thinking of our earlier examples, qualitative data would usually be best suited for buyer personas, while quantitative data is more useful for the soda flavors.

However, truth be told, the two really work together.

Qualitative conclusions are usually drawn from quantitative, numerical data. So, you’ll likely need both to get the complete picture of your subject.

For example, if your quantitative data says 70% of people are Team Black and only 30% are Team Green — Shout out to my fellow House of the Dragon fans — your qualitative data will say people support Black more than Green.

(As they should.)

Primary Research vs Secondary Research

You’ll also want to understand the difference between primary and secondary research.

Primary research involves collecting new, original data directly from the source (say, your target market). In other words, it’s information gathered first-hand that wasn’t found elsewhere.

Some examples include conducting experiments, surveys, interviews, observations, or focus groups.

Meanwhile, secondary research is the analysis and interpretation of existing data collected from others. Think of this like what we used to do for school projects: We would read a book, scour the internet, or pull insights from others to work from.

So, which is better?

Personally, I say any research is good research, but if you have the time and resources, primary research is hard to top. With it, you don’t have to worry about your source's credibility or how relevant it is to your specific objective.

You are in full control and best equipped to get the reliable information you need.

3. Put it all together.

Once you know your objective and what kind of data you want, you’re ready to select your marketing research method.

For instance, let’s say you’re a restaurant trying to see how attendees felt about the Speed Dating event you hosted last week.

You shouldn’t run a field experiment or download a third-party report on speed dating events; those would be useless to you. You need to conduct a survey that allows you to ask pointed questions about the event.

This would yield both qualitative and quantitative data you can use to improve and bring together more love birds next time around.

Best Market Research Methods for 2024

Now that you know what you’re looking for in a marketing research method, let’s dive into the best options.

Note: According to HubSpot’s 2024 State of Marketing report, understanding customers and their needs is one of the biggest challenges facing marketers today. The options we discuss are great consumer research methodologies , but they can also be used for other areas.

Primary Research

1. interviews.

Interviews are a form of primary research where you ask people specific questions about a topic or theme. They typically deliver qualitative information.

I’ve conducted many interviews for marketing purposes, but I’ve also done many for journalistic purposes, like this profile on comedian Zarna Garg . There’s no better way to gather candid, open-ended insights in my book, but that doesn’t mean they’re a cure-all.

What I like: Real-time conversations allow you to ask different questions if you’re not getting the information you need. They also push interviewees to respond quickly, which can result in more authentic answers.

What I dislike: They can be time-consuming and harder to measure (read: get quantitative data) unless you ask pointed yes or no questions.

Best for: Creating buyer personas or getting feedback on customer experience, a product, or content.

2. Focus Groups

Focus groups are similar to conducting interviews but on a larger scale.

In marketing and business, this typically means getting a small group together in a room (or Zoom), asking them questions about various topics you are researching. You record and/or observe their responses to then take action.

They are ideal for collecting long-form, open-ended feedback, and subjective opinions.

One well-known focus group you may remember was run by Domino’s Pizza in 2009 .

After poor ratings and dropping over $100 million in revenue, the brand conducted focus groups with real customers to learn where they could have done better.

It was met with comments like “worst excuse for pizza I’ve ever had” and “the crust tastes like cardboard.” But rather than running from the tough love, it took the hit and completely overhauled its recipes.

The team admitted their missteps and returned to the market with better food and a campaign detailing their “Pizza Turn Around.”

The result? The brand won a ton of praise for its willingness to take feedback, efforts to do right by its consumers, and clever campaign. But, most importantly, revenue for Domino’s rose by 14.3% over the previous year.

The brand continues to conduct focus groups and share real footage from them in its promotion:

What I like: Similar to interviewing, you can dig deeper and pivot as needed due to the real-time nature. They’re personal and detailed.

What I dislike: Once again, they can be time-consuming and make it difficult to get quantitative data. There is also a chance some participants may overshadow others.

Best for: Product research or development

Pro tip: Need help planning your focus group? Our free Market Research Kit includes a handy template to start organizing your thoughts in addition to a SWOT Analysis Template, Survey Template, Focus Group Template, Presentation Template, Five Forces Industry Analysis Template, and an instructional guide for all of them. Download yours here now.

3. Surveys or Polls

Surveys are a form of primary research where individuals are asked a collection of questions. It can take many different forms.

They could be in person, over the phone or video call, by email, via an online form, or even on social media. Questions can be also open-ended or closed to deliver qualitative or quantitative information.

A great example of a close-ended survey is HubSpot’s annual State of Marketing .

In the State of Marketing, HubSpot asks marketing professionals from around the world a series of multiple-choice questions to gather data on the state of the marketing industry and to identify trends.

The survey covers various topics related to marketing strategies, tactics, tools, and challenges that marketers face. It aims to provide benchmarks to help you make informed decisions about your marketing.

It also helps us understand where our customers’ heads are so we can better evolve our products to meet their needs.

Apple is no stranger to surveys, either.

In 2011, the tech giant launched Apple Customer Pulse , which it described as “an online community of Apple product users who provide input on a variety of subjects and issues concerning Apple.”

"For example, we did a large voluntary survey of email subscribers and top readers a few years back."

While these readers gave us a long list of topics, formats, or content types they wanted to see, they sometimes engaged more with content types they didn’t select or favor as much on the surveys when we ran follow-up ‘in the wild’ tests, like A/B testing.”  

Pepsi saw similar results when it ran its iconic field experiment, “The Pepsi Challenge” for the first time in 1975.

The beverage brand set up tables at malls, beaches, and other public locations and ran a blindfolded taste test. Shoppers were given two cups of soda, one containing Pepsi, the other Coca-Cola (Pepsi’s biggest competitor). They were then asked to taste both and report which they preferred.

People overwhelmingly preferred Pepsi, and the brand has repeated the experiment multiple times over the years to the same results.

What I like: It yields qualitative and quantitative data and can make for engaging marketing content, especially in the digital age.

What I dislike: It can be very time-consuming. And, if you’re not careful, there is a high risk for scientific error.

Best for: Product testing and competitive analysis

Pro tip:  " Don’t make critical business decisions off of just one data set," advises Pamela Bump. "Use the survey, competitive intelligence, external data, or even a focus group to give you one layer of ideas or a short-list for improvements or solutions to test. Then gather your own fresh data to test in an experiment or trial and better refine your data-backed strategy."

Secondary Research

8. public domain or third-party research.

While original data is always a plus, there are plenty of external resources you can access online and even at a library when you’re limited on time or resources.

Some reputable resources you can use include:

• Pew Research Center
• McKinley Global Institute
• Relevant Global or Government Organizations (i.e United Nations or NASA)

It’s also smart to turn to reputable organizations that are specific to your industry or field. For instance, if you’re a gardening or landscaping company, you may want to pull statistics from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

If you’re a digital marketing agency, you could look to Google Research or HubSpot Research . (Hey, I know them!)

What I like: You can save time on gathering data and spend more time on analyzing. You can also rest assured the data is from a source you trust.

What I dislike: You may not find data specific to your needs.

Best for: Companies under a time or resource crunch, adding factual support to content

Pro tip: Fellow HubSpotter Iskiev suggests using third-party data to inspire your original research. “Sometimes, I use public third-party data for ideas and inspiration. Once I have written my survey and gotten all my ideas out, I read similar reports from other sources and usually end up with useful additions for my own research.”

9. Buy Research

If the data you need isn’t available publicly and you can’t do your own market research, you can also buy some. There are many reputable analytics companies that offer subscriptions to access their data. Statista is one of my favorites, but there’s also Euromonitor , Mintel , and BCC Research .

What I like: Same as public domain research

What I dislike: You may not find data specific to your needs. It also adds to your expenses.

Best for: Companies under a time or resource crunch or adding factual support to content

Which marketing research method should you use?

You’re not going to like my answer, but “it depends.” The best marketing research method for you will depend on your objective and data needs, but also your budget and timeline.

My advice? Aim for a mix of quantitative and qualitative data. If you can do your own original research, awesome. But if not, don’t beat yourself up. Lean into free or low-cost tools . You could do primary research for qualitative data, then tap public sources for quantitative data. Or perhaps the reverse is best for you.

Whatever your marketing research method mix, take the time to think it through and ensure you’re left with information that will truly help you achieve your goals.

Don't forget to share this post!

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Home » Research Methodology – Types, Examples and writing Guide

Research Methodology – Types, Examples and writing Guide

Table of Contents

Research Methodology

Definition:

Research Methodology refers to the systematic and scientific approach used to conduct research, investigate problems, and gather data and information for a specific purpose. It involves the techniques and procedures used to identify, collect , analyze , and interpret data to answer research questions or solve research problems . Moreover, They are philosophical and theoretical frameworks that guide the research process.

Structure of Research Methodology

Research methodology formats can vary depending on the specific requirements of the research project, but the following is a basic example of a structure for a research methodology section:

I. Introduction

• Provide an overview of the research problem and the need for a research methodology section
• Outline the main research questions and objectives

II. Research Design

• Explain the research design chosen and why it is appropriate for the research question(s) and objectives
• Discuss any alternative research designs considered and why they were not chosen
• Describe the research setting and participants (if applicable)

III. Data Collection Methods

• Describe the methods used to collect data (e.g., surveys, interviews, observations)
• Explain how the data collection methods were chosen and why they are appropriate for the research question(s) and objectives
• Detail any procedures or instruments used for data collection

IV. Data Analysis Methods

• Describe the methods used to analyze the data (e.g., statistical analysis, content analysis )
• Explain how the data analysis methods were chosen and why they are appropriate for the research question(s) and objectives
• Detail any procedures or software used for data analysis

V. Ethical Considerations

• Discuss any ethical issues that may arise from the research and how they were addressed
• Explain how informed consent was obtained (if applicable)
• Detail any measures taken to ensure confidentiality and anonymity

VI. Limitations

• Identify any potential limitations of the research methodology and how they may impact the results and conclusions

VII. Conclusion

• Summarize the key aspects of the research methodology section
• Explain how the research methodology addresses the research question(s) and objectives

Research Methodology Types

Types of Research Methodology are as follows:

Quantitative Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that involves the collection and analysis of numerical data using statistical methods. This type of research is often used to study cause-and-effect relationships and to make predictions.

Qualitative Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that involves the collection and analysis of non-numerical data such as words, images, and observations. This type of research is often used to explore complex phenomena, to gain an in-depth understanding of a particular topic, and to generate hypotheses.

Mixed-Methods Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that combines elements of both quantitative and qualitative research. This approach can be particularly useful for studies that aim to explore complex phenomena and to provide a more comprehensive understanding of a particular topic.

Case Study Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that involves in-depth examination of a single case or a small number of cases. Case studies are often used in psychology, sociology, and anthropology to gain a detailed understanding of a particular individual or group.

Action Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that involves a collaborative process between researchers and practitioners to identify and solve real-world problems. Action research is often used in education, healthcare, and social work.

Experimental Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that involves the manipulation of one or more independent variables to observe their effects on a dependent variable. Experimental research is often used to study cause-and-effect relationships and to make predictions.

Survey Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that involves the collection of data from a sample of individuals using questionnaires or interviews. Survey research is often used to study attitudes, opinions, and behaviors.

Grounded Theory Research Methodology

This is a research methodology that involves the development of theories based on the data collected during the research process. Grounded theory is often used in sociology and anthropology to generate theories about social phenomena.

Research Methodology Example

An Example of Research Methodology could be the following:

Research Methodology for Investigating the Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Reducing Symptoms of Depression in Adults

Introduction:

The aim of this research is to investigate the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in reducing symptoms of depression in adults. To achieve this objective, a randomized controlled trial (RCT) will be conducted using a mixed-methods approach.

Research Design:

The study will follow a pre-test and post-test design with two groups: an experimental group receiving CBT and a control group receiving no intervention. The study will also include a qualitative component, in which semi-structured interviews will be conducted with a subset of participants to explore their experiences of receiving CBT.

Participants:

Participants will be recruited from community mental health clinics in the local area. The sample will consist of 100 adults aged 18-65 years old who meet the diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder. Participants will be randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group.

Intervention :

The experimental group will receive 12 weekly sessions of CBT, each lasting 60 minutes. The intervention will be delivered by licensed mental health professionals who have been trained in CBT. The control group will receive no intervention during the study period.

Data Collection:

Quantitative data will be collected through the use of standardized measures such as the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7). Data will be collected at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and at a 3-month follow-up. Qualitative data will be collected through semi-structured interviews with a subset of participants from the experimental group. The interviews will be conducted at the end of the intervention period, and will explore participants’ experiences of receiving CBT.

Data Analysis:

Quantitative data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, and mixed-model analyses of variance (ANOVA) to assess the effectiveness of the intervention. Qualitative data will be analyzed using thematic analysis to identify common themes and patterns in participants’ experiences of receiving CBT.

Ethical Considerations:

This study will comply with ethical guidelines for research involving human subjects. Participants will provide informed consent before participating in the study, and their privacy and confidentiality will be protected throughout the study. Any adverse events or reactions will be reported and managed appropriately.

Data Management:

All data collected will be kept confidential and stored securely using password-protected databases. Identifying information will be removed from qualitative data transcripts to ensure participants’ anonymity.

Limitations:

One potential limitation of this study is that it only focuses on one type of psychotherapy, CBT, and may not generalize to other types of therapy or interventions. Another limitation is that the study will only include participants from community mental health clinics, which may not be representative of the general population.

Conclusion:

This research aims to investigate the effectiveness of CBT in reducing symptoms of depression in adults. By using a randomized controlled trial and a mixed-methods approach, the study will provide valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying the relationship between CBT and depression. The results of this study will have important implications for the development of effective treatments for depression in clinical settings.

How to Write Research Methodology

Writing a research methodology involves explaining the methods and techniques you used to conduct research, collect data, and analyze results. It’s an essential section of any research paper or thesis, as it helps readers understand the validity and reliability of your findings. Here are the steps to write a research methodology:

• Start by explaining your research question: Begin the methodology section by restating your research question and explaining why it’s important. This helps readers understand the purpose of your research and the rationale behind your methods.
• Describe your research design: Explain the overall approach you used to conduct research. This could be a qualitative or quantitative research design, experimental or non-experimental, case study or survey, etc. Discuss the advantages and limitations of the chosen design.
• Discuss your sample: Describe the participants or subjects you included in your study. Include details such as their demographics, sampling method, sample size, and any exclusion criteria used.
• Describe your data collection methods : Explain how you collected data from your participants. This could include surveys, interviews, observations, questionnaires, or experiments. Include details on how you obtained informed consent, how you administered the tools, and how you minimized the risk of bias.
• Explain your data analysis techniques: Describe the methods you used to analyze the data you collected. This could include statistical analysis, content analysis, thematic analysis, or discourse analysis. Explain how you dealt with missing data, outliers, and any other issues that arose during the analysis.
• Discuss the validity and reliability of your research : Explain how you ensured the validity and reliability of your study. This could include measures such as triangulation, member checking, peer review, or inter-coder reliability.
• Acknowledge any limitations of your research: Discuss any limitations of your study, including any potential threats to validity or generalizability. This helps readers understand the scope of your findings and how they might apply to other contexts.
• Provide a summary: End the methodology section by summarizing the methods and techniques you used to conduct your research. This provides a clear overview of your research methodology and helps readers understand the process you followed to arrive at your findings.

When to Write Research Methodology

Research methodology is typically written after the research proposal has been approved and before the actual research is conducted. It should be written prior to data collection and analysis, as it provides a clear roadmap for the research project.

The research methodology is an important section of any research paper or thesis, as it describes the methods and procedures that will be used to conduct the research. It should include details about the research design, data collection methods, data analysis techniques, and any ethical considerations.

The methodology should be written in a clear and concise manner, and it should be based on established research practices and standards. It is important to provide enough detail so that the reader can understand how the research was conducted and evaluate the validity of the results.

Applications of Research Methodology

Here are some of the applications of research methodology:

• To identify the research problem: Research methodology is used to identify the research problem, which is the first step in conducting any research.
• To design the research: Research methodology helps in designing the research by selecting the appropriate research method, research design, and sampling technique.
• To collect data: Research methodology provides a systematic approach to collect data from primary and secondary sources.
• To analyze data: Research methodology helps in analyzing the collected data using various statistical and non-statistical techniques.
• To test hypotheses: Research methodology provides a framework for testing hypotheses and drawing conclusions based on the analysis of data.
• To generalize findings: Research methodology helps in generalizing the findings of the research to the target population.
• To develop theories : Research methodology is used to develop new theories and modify existing theories based on the findings of the research.
• To evaluate programs and policies : Research methodology is used to evaluate the effectiveness of programs and policies by collecting data and analyzing it.
• To improve decision-making: Research methodology helps in making informed decisions by providing reliable and valid data.

Purpose of Research Methodology

Research methodology serves several important purposes, including:

• To guide the research process: Research methodology provides a systematic framework for conducting research. It helps researchers to plan their research, define their research questions, and select appropriate methods and techniques for collecting and analyzing data.
• To ensure research quality: Research methodology helps researchers to ensure that their research is rigorous, reliable, and valid. It provides guidelines for minimizing bias and error in data collection and analysis, and for ensuring that research findings are accurate and trustworthy.
• To replicate research: Research methodology provides a clear and detailed account of the research process, making it possible for other researchers to replicate the study and verify its findings.
• To advance knowledge: Research methodology enables researchers to generate new knowledge and to contribute to the body of knowledge in their field. It provides a means for testing hypotheses, exploring new ideas, and discovering new insights.
• To inform decision-making: Research methodology provides evidence-based information that can inform policy and decision-making in a variety of fields, including medicine, public health, education, and business.

Advantages of Research Methodology

Research methodology has several advantages that make it a valuable tool for conducting research in various fields. Here are some of the key advantages of research methodology:

• Systematic and structured approach : Research methodology provides a systematic and structured approach to conducting research, which ensures that the research is conducted in a rigorous and comprehensive manner.
• Objectivity : Research methodology aims to ensure objectivity in the research process, which means that the research findings are based on evidence and not influenced by personal bias or subjective opinions.
• Replicability : Research methodology ensures that research can be replicated by other researchers, which is essential for validating research findings and ensuring their accuracy.
• Reliability : Research methodology aims to ensure that the research findings are reliable, which means that they are consistent and can be depended upon.
• Validity : Research methodology ensures that the research findings are valid, which means that they accurately reflect the research question or hypothesis being tested.
• Efficiency : Research methodology provides a structured and efficient way of conducting research, which helps to save time and resources.
• Flexibility : Research methodology allows researchers to choose the most appropriate research methods and techniques based on the research question, data availability, and other relevant factors.
• Scope for innovation: Research methodology provides scope for innovation and creativity in designing research studies and developing new research techniques.

Research Methodology Vs Research Methods

Research Methodology	Research Methods
Research methodology refers to the philosophical and theoretical frameworks that guide the research process.	refer to the techniques and procedures used to collect and analyze data.
It is concerned with the underlying principles and assumptions of research.	It is concerned with the practical aspects of research.
It provides a rationale for why certain research methods are used.	It determines the specific steps that will be taken to conduct research.
It is broader in scope and involves understanding the overall approach to research.	It is narrower in scope and focuses on specific techniques and tools used in research.
It is concerned with identifying research questions, defining the research problem, and formulating hypotheses.	It is concerned with collecting data, analyzing data, and interpreting results.
It is concerned with the validity and reliability of research.	It is concerned with the accuracy and precision of data.
It is concerned with the ethical considerations of research.	It is concerned with the practical considerations of research.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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• Questionnaire Design | Methods, Question Types & Examples

Questionnaire Design | Methods, Question Types & Examples

Published on 6 May 2022 by Pritha Bhandari . Revised on 10 October 2022.

A questionnaire is a list of questions or items used to gather data from respondents about their attitudes, experiences, or opinions. Questionnaires can be used to collect quantitative and/or qualitative information.

Questionnaires are commonly used in market research as well as in the social and health sciences. For example, a company may ask for feedback about a recent customer service experience, or psychology researchers may investigate health risk perceptions using questionnaires.

Table of contents

Questionnaires vs surveys, questionnaire methods, open-ended vs closed-ended questions, question wording, question order, step-by-step guide to design, frequently asked questions about questionnaire design.

A survey is a research method where you collect and analyse data from a group of people. A questionnaire is a specific tool or instrument for collecting the data.

Designing a questionnaire means creating valid and reliable questions that address your research objectives, placing them in a useful order, and selecting an appropriate method for administration.

But designing a questionnaire is only one component of survey research. Survey research also involves defining the population you’re interested in, choosing an appropriate sampling method , administering questionnaires, data cleaning and analysis, and interpretation.

Sampling is important in survey research because you’ll often aim to generalise your results to the population. Gather data from a sample that represents the range of views in the population for externally valid results. There will always be some differences between the population and the sample, but minimising these will help you avoid sampling bias .

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Questionnaires can be self-administered or researcher-administered . Self-administered questionnaires are more common because they are easy to implement and inexpensive, but researcher-administered questionnaires allow deeper insights.

Self-administered questionnaires

Self-administered questionnaires can be delivered online or in paper-and-pen formats, in person or by post. All questions are standardised so that all respondents receive the same questions with identical wording.

Self-administered questionnaires can be:

• Cost-effective
• Easy to administer for small and large groups
• Anonymous and suitable for sensitive topics

But they may also be:

• Unsuitable for people with limited literacy or verbal skills
• Susceptible to a nonreponse bias (most people invited may not complete the questionnaire)
• Biased towards people who volunteer because impersonal survey requests often go ignored

Researcher-administered questionnaires

Researcher-administered questionnaires are interviews that take place by phone, in person, or online between researchers and respondents.

Researcher-administered questionnaires can:

• Help you ensure the respondents are representative of your target audience
• Allow clarifications of ambiguous or unclear questions and answers
• Have high response rates because it’s harder to refuse an interview when personal attention is given to respondents

But researcher-administered questionnaires can be limiting in terms of resources. They are:

• Costly and time-consuming to perform
• More difficult to analyse if you have qualitative responses
• Likely to contain experimenter bias or demand characteristics
• Likely to encourage social desirability bias in responses because of a lack of anonymity

Your questionnaire can include open-ended or closed-ended questions, or a combination of both.

Using closed-ended questions limits your responses, while open-ended questions enable a broad range of answers. You’ll need to balance these considerations with your available time and resources.

Closed-ended questions

Closed-ended, or restricted-choice, questions offer respondents a fixed set of choices to select from. Closed-ended questions are best for collecting data on categorical or quantitative variables.

Categorical variables can be nominal or ordinal. Quantitative variables can be interval or ratio. Understanding the type of variable and level of measurement means you can perform appropriate statistical analyses for generalisable results.

Examples of closed-ended questions for different variables

Nominal variables include categories that can’t be ranked, such as race or ethnicity. This includes binary or dichotomous categories.

It’s best to include categories that cover all possible answers and are mutually exclusive. There should be no overlap between response items.

In binary or dichotomous questions, you’ll give respondents only two options to choose from.

White Black or African American American Indian or Alaska Native Asian Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

Ordinal variables include categories that can be ranked. Consider how wide or narrow a range you’ll include in your response items, and their relevance to your respondents.

Likert-type questions collect ordinal data using rating scales with five or seven points.

When you have four or more Likert-type questions, you can treat the composite data as quantitative data on an interval scale . Intelligence tests, psychological scales, and personality inventories use multiple Likert-type questions to collect interval data.

With interval or ratio data, you can apply strong statistical hypothesis tests to address your research aims.

Pros and cons of closed-ended questions

Well-designed closed-ended questions are easy to understand and can be answered quickly. However, you might still miss important answers that are relevant to respondents. An incomplete set of response items may force some respondents to pick the closest alternative to their true answer. These types of questions may also miss out on valuable detail.

To solve these problems, you can make questions partially closed-ended, and include an open-ended option where respondents can fill in their own answer.

Open-ended questions

Open-ended, or long-form, questions allow respondents to give answers in their own words. Because there are no restrictions on their choices, respondents can answer in ways that researchers may not have otherwise considered. For example, respondents may want to answer ‘multiracial’ for the question on race rather than selecting from a restricted list.

• How do you feel about open science?
• How would you describe your personality?
• In your opinion, what is the biggest obstacle to productivity in remote work?

Open-ended questions have a few downsides.

They require more time and effort from respondents, which may deter them from completing the questionnaire.

For researchers, understanding and summarising responses to these questions can take a lot of time and resources. You’ll need to develop a systematic coding scheme to categorise answers, and you may also need to involve other researchers in data analysis for high reliability .

Question wording can influence your respondents’ answers, especially if the language is unclear, ambiguous, or biased. Good questions need to be understood by all respondents in the same way ( reliable ) and measure exactly what you’re interested in ( valid ).

Use clear language

You should design questions with your target audience in mind. Consider their familiarity with your questionnaire topics and language and tailor your questions to them.

For readability and clarity, avoid jargon or overly complex language. Don’t use double negatives because they can be harder to understand.

Use balanced framing

Respondents often answer in different ways depending on the question framing. Positive frames are interpreted as more neutral than negative frames and may encourage more socially desirable answers.

Positive frame	Negative frame
Should protests of pandemic-related restrictions be allowed?	Should protests of pandemic-related restrictions be forbidden?

Use a mix of both positive and negative frames to avoid bias , and ensure that your question wording is balanced wherever possible.

Unbalanced questions focus on only one side of an argument. Respondents may be less likely to oppose the question if it is framed in a particular direction. It’s best practice to provide a counterargument within the question as well.

Unbalanced	Balanced
Do you favour …?	Do you favour or oppose …?
Do you agree that …?	Do you agree or disagree that …?

Avoid leading questions

Leading questions guide respondents towards answering in specific ways, even if that’s not how they truly feel, by explicitly or implicitly providing them with extra information.

It’s best to keep your questions short and specific to your topic of interest.

• The average daily work commute in the US takes 54.2 minutes and costs $29 per day. Since 2020, working from home has saved many employees time and money. Do you favour flexible work-from-home policies even after it’s safe to return to offices?
• Experts agree that a well-balanced diet provides sufficient vitamins and minerals, and multivitamins and supplements are not necessary or effective. Do you agree or disagree that multivitamins are helpful for balanced nutrition?

Keep your questions focused

Ask about only one idea at a time and avoid double-barrelled questions. Double-barrelled questions ask about more than one item at a time, which can confuse respondents.

This question could be difficult to answer for respondents who feel strongly about the right to clean drinking water but not high-speed internet. They might only answer about the topic they feel passionate about or provide a neutral answer instead – but neither of these options capture their true answers.

Instead, you should ask two separate questions to gauge respondents’ opinions.

Strongly Agree Agree Undecided Disagree Strongly Disagree

Do you agree or disagree that the government should be responsible for providing high-speed internet to everyone?

You can organise the questions logically, with a clear progression from simple to complex. Alternatively, you can randomise the question order between respondents.

Logical flow

Using a logical flow to your question order means starting with simple questions, such as behavioural or opinion questions, and ending with more complex, sensitive, or controversial questions.

The question order that you use can significantly affect the responses by priming them in specific directions. Question order effects, or context effects, occur when earlier questions influence the responses to later questions, reducing the validity of your questionnaire.

While demographic questions are usually unaffected by order effects, questions about opinions and attitudes are more susceptible to them.

• How knowledgeable are you about Joe Biden’s executive orders in his first 100 days?
• Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way Joe Biden is managing the economy?
• Do you approve or disapprove of the way Joe Biden is handling his job as president?

It’s important to minimise order effects because they can be a source of systematic error or bias in your study.

Randomisation

Randomisation involves presenting individual respondents with the same questionnaire but with different question orders.

When you use randomisation, order effects will be minimised in your dataset. But a randomised order may also make it harder for respondents to process your questionnaire. Some questions may need more cognitive effort, while others are easier to answer, so a random order could require more time or mental capacity for respondents to switch between questions.

Follow this step-by-step guide to design your questionnaire.

Step 1: Define your goals and objectives

The first step of designing a questionnaire is determining your aims.

• What topics or experiences are you studying?
• What specifically do you want to find out?
• Is a self-report questionnaire an appropriate tool for investigating this topic?

Once you’ve specified your research aims, you can operationalise your variables of interest into questionnaire items. Operationalising concepts means turning them from abstract ideas into concrete measurements. Every question needs to address a defined need and have a clear purpose.

Step 2: Use questions that are suitable for your sample

Create appropriate questions by taking the perspective of your respondents. Consider their language proficiency and available time and energy when designing your questionnaire.

• Are the respondents familiar with the language and terms used in your questions?
• Would any of the questions insult, confuse, or embarrass them?
• Do the response items for any closed-ended questions capture all possible answers?
• Are the response items mutually exclusive?
• Do the respondents have time to respond to open-ended questions?

Consider all possible options for responses to closed-ended questions. From a respondent’s perspective, a lack of response options reflecting their point of view or true answer may make them feel alienated or excluded. In turn, they’ll become disengaged or inattentive to the rest of the questionnaire.

Step 3: Decide on your questionnaire length and question order

Once you have your questions, make sure that the length and order of your questions are appropriate for your sample.

If respondents are not being incentivised or compensated, keep your questionnaire short and easy to answer. Otherwise, your sample may be biased with only highly motivated respondents completing the questionnaire.

Decide on your question order based on your aims and resources. Use a logical flow if your respondents have limited time or if you cannot randomise questions. Randomising questions helps you avoid bias, but it can take more complex statistical analysis to interpret your data.

Step 4: Pretest your questionnaire

When you have a complete list of questions, you’ll need to pretest it to make sure what you’re asking is always clear and unambiguous. Pretesting helps you catch any errors or points of confusion before performing your study.

Ask friends, classmates, or members of your target audience to complete your questionnaire using the same method you’ll use for your research. Find out if any questions were particularly difficult to answer or if the directions were unclear or inconsistent, and make changes as necessary.

If you have the resources, running a pilot study will help you test the validity and reliability of your questionnaire. A pilot study is a practice run of the full study, and it includes sampling, data collection , and analysis.

You can find out whether your procedures are unfeasible or susceptible to bias and make changes in time, but you can’t test a hypothesis with this type of study because it’s usually statistically underpowered .

A questionnaire is a data collection tool or instrument, while a survey is an overarching research method that involves collecting and analysing data from people using questionnaires.

Closed-ended, or restricted-choice, questions offer respondents a fixed set of choices to select from. These questions are easier to answer quickly.

Open-ended or long-form questions allow respondents to answer in their own words. Because there are no restrictions on their choices, respondents can answer in ways that researchers may not have otherwise considered.

A Likert scale is a rating scale that quantitatively assesses opinions, attitudes, or behaviours. It is made up of four or more questions that measure a single attitude or trait when response scores are combined.

To use a Likert scale in a survey , you present participants with Likert-type questions or statements, and a continuum of items, usually with five or seven possible responses, to capture their degree of agreement.

You can organise the questions logically, with a clear progression from simple to complex, or randomly between respondents. A logical flow helps respondents process the questionnaire easier and quicker, but it may lead to bias. Randomisation can minimise the bias from order effects.

Questionnaires can be self-administered or researcher-administered.

Researcher-administered questionnaires are interviews that take place by phone, in person, or online between researchers and respondents. You can gain deeper insights by clarifying questions for respondents or asking follow-up questions.

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Measure & Enhance CX With the Right Feedback Questions 

Use Zonka Feedback to create surveys and ask relevant feedback form questions. Collect customer feedback, gather actionable insights, and close the feedback loop. 

40+ Examples of Feedback Survey Questions

The success of your business depends on how the customers perceive their experiences with your products, services, and the overall business.  The most efficient way to gauge customer experience and  measure customer satisfaction  is through a feedback survey. However, when creating feedback surveys, several factors need to be considered while deciding on the feedback survey questions.

What touchpoints are you looking to collect customer feedback at? What feedback goal are you trying to achieve? How are you planning to use the feedback that your customers share? When you focus on finding the right answers to these questions, you can create the most accurate and effective feedback survey questionnaires. A paragraph writer can also help compose well-written questionnaires and introductions that engage respondents.

To make it easier for you and get you started right away, we have talked in this article about the topmost examples of feedback survey questions that brands usually use. With each question, we have also explained when and how to use it. You can choose among them the ones that suit your survey requirements and straightaway use them in your feedback surveys. Let's start with defining a feedback survey!

Customer experience is the core of the success of any business, and feedback surveys are the most effective way to measure customers' satisfaction levels with their experiences with your products and services.

The effectiveness of the feedback surveys depends largely on the questions you include in them and choosing the right feedback survey questions depends on the core purpose and objectives of your feedback survey.

Choose among the various questions for different objectives like measuring customers' overall experience, measuring product experience, measuring service experience, measuring website experience, conducting market research, and more.

You can use a variety of feedback survey questions like Net Promoter Score (NPS) survey questions, Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) survey questions, and Customer Effort Score (CES) survey questions to get a quantifiable measure of customer loyalty, satisfaction and perceived efforts.

Zonka Feedback is an effective customer feedback software that provides you with ready-to-use customizable survey templates with various question types. It also offers a free trial for 14 days .

Build and send a survey today 🔥

Choose from over 30+ question types, add your own themes and create amazing surveys that people love answering.

What is a Feedback Survey?

A feedback survey is a structured questionnaire or set of questions designed to gather information, opinions, and insights from individuals or groups regarding a particular product, service, experience, or topic. The purpose of a feedback survey is to collect valuable data that can be analyzed to understand the perceptions, preferences, and satisfaction levels of respondents. Including professional logo design in your surveys can significantly enhance your brand’s identity, making your surveys appear more credible and engaging to respondents.

The questions in a feedback survey can range from multiple-choice options to open-ended inquiries, providing a flexible means to gather diverse perspectives. Analyzing the collected feedback allows you to make informed decisions, improve your products or services, and enhance overall customer experiences.

Here is an example of a feedback survey.

You can use this customer satisfaction survey template to collect feedback and measure the satisfaction of your customers. You can customize this template as per your survey requirements.

Top Examples of Customer Feedback Survey Questions

On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate your overall experience with our brand?

How would you rate your in-store visit experience today?

How likely are you to recommend our brand to others on a scale of 0 to 10?

How likely are you to purchase from us again?

What do you like/dislike about our brand?

Please share your experience with our brand in your own words.

What is your biggest challenge in doing business with us?

How can we improve your experience with the company?

How would you rate your satisfaction with the product on a scale of 1 to 5?

What do you like or dislike the most about our product?

Based on your product experience, how likely are you to recommend us to others on a scale of 1 to 10?

What's your biggest roadblock when using our product?

Does the product help you achieve your goals?

What is your favorite tool or feature of the product or service?

What would you improve if you could/What is the one feature you would like to see in our product?

How would you describe the satisfaction with our product in your own words?

Please rate your satisfaction with our team in resolving your issue.

Did you feel that our team answered your inquiry promptly?

How strongly do you agree or disagree with this statement: the customer service team made it easy for me to get my issue resolved?

Based on your customer service experience with us, how likely are you to recommend our brand to others?

What can we do better to improve your customer service experience?

How would you rate the agent's performance on a scale of 1 to 5?

What did you like/dislike the most about your customer service experience with us today?

How would you rate our website on a scale of 1 to 5?

How likely are you to recommend our website to others?

How would you rate the shopping experience on our website on a scale of 1 to 5?

What did you like/dislike about our website when making a purchase?

Please share in your own words what was your experience like on our website.

We see that you didn't complete your purchase. What can we improve to help you finish shopping on our website today?

What made you purchase on our website today?

What's your most important priority when using a product like ours?

Why did you choose our product over a competitor's?

What stopped you from buying from us?

What is one thing you wish our product could do?

How did you find out about our product?

How disappointed would you be if you could no longer use our product/product feature?

Which product/service would you consider as an alternative to ours?

How would you rate the overall satisfaction of working with our organization on a scale of 1 to 5?

On a scale of 0-10, how likely are you to recommend this organization as a good place to work?

What do you like/dislike about this organization?

How would you rate the training and growth opportunities provided to employees in our organization?

Please share in your own words what your experience of working with this organization has been like.

These examples of feedback survey questions can be used for different survey goals. We have separated them into specific categories so you know when to use which question. 

Let's understand each question in detail. 

Feedback Survey Questions To Measure Customer Experience

According to PwC research, 73% of consumers are  more loyal to brands  that offer good customer experiences. This can include experiences related to purchase transactions, online experiences, customer service experiences, store visit experiences, etc.

To measure customer experiences, you will have to measure their satisfaction levels with each experience through the primary CX metrics like  CSAT and NPS . However, you can also get insightful responses in terms of customers' experiences through closed and open-ended questions.

Let's understand how to measure customers' experiences with the top feedback survey question examples.

1. On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate your overall experience with our brand?

This is the primary CSAT survey question which can be used to measure customers' happiness with the brand as a whole specific products , as well as a specific experience . In this context, the feedback survey question would help in measuring customers' overall satisfaction with your brand.

You can ask the feedback survey question at fixed milestones or specific customer journey touchpoints or after customers' certain experiences with the brand.

2. How would you rate your in-store visit experience today?

This feedback question measures your customers' store or site visit experience. When measuring overall in-store experience, the customer feedback is generalized for different aspects including billing experience, facility experience, in-store staff support, etc. To collect specific feedback, you can replace the term ‘in-store visit' with the specific aspect of your store that you're looking to collect feedback on.

3. How likely are you to recommend our brand to others on a scale of 0 to 10?

This is a Net Promoter Score question that helps in measuring customers' loyalty to your brand. Based on your customers' likeliness of recommending your business to others, you can understand whether they would keep coming back to you or choose a competitor over you.

The answer to this question helps you in identifying Promoters, Passives, and Detractors, where Promoters (scores 9-10) are your most loyal customers, Passives (scores 7-8) may be swayed by a better offer or deal, and Detractors (score 0-6) are dissatisfied and likely to churn away.

4. How likely are you to purchase from us again?

This again is a customer experience survey question that helps in understanding your customers' likeliness of doing business with you again. You can capture the answers on a 0-10 scale, where the customers who give you a low score may be retained by following up with them to resolve their challenges.

5. What do you like/dislike about our brand?

This is a close-ended customer feedback survey question to understand from customers what aspects of your business they liked or disliked. This helps you know how your brand is perceived by your customers and focus on the right things to foster customer retention. For example, if you are a SaaS product company, you can understand what customers like about you, such as  customer service , innovation, product pricing, etc.

Similarly, you can give your customers multiple choices to select from to describe what they dislike about your brand like high prices, fewer updates, poor customer service, etc. This feedback survey question helps put finger on exactly what's working for you and what's not.

For instance, you can always ask this question with other  health survey questions  or patient feedback questions to know what the patients or their guardians feel about your healthcare facility. It can offer you insight into different aspects of your offering and help you identify pain points, issues with the care delivered, and areas where you can improve. 

6. Please share your experience with our brand in your own words.

This is an open-ended question and a very important one since it allows customers to share their responses in their own words. It does not restrict customers to a set of choices and gives them a chance to vent out and share their challenges. This can help you uncover even the roadblocks you may not have been anticipating.

7. What is your biggest challenge in doing business with us?

The purpose of asking this feedback survey question is to understand the major roadblocks that may be leading to lesser conversions or purchases. The idea is to identify the factors that are obstructing brand growth and remove them to increase conversions, sales, and customer loyalty.

8. How can we improve your experience with the company?

Often, customers would refrain from complaining about an issue unless they have had an extremely terrible experience with a business. With this customer experience question, you can encourage your customers to share the challenges they experienced, no matter how small they may be.

This helps businesses align themselves completely with customers' expectations and also increases their recognition as a customer-centric brand.

Feedback Questions To Measure Product Experience

Product feedback questions collect product-specific customer feedback on different aspects like product quality, quantity, pricing, delivery, ease of use, innovation, etc. Whether it's a physical product like an electronic device or a software tool, you can restructure these examples of customer feedback questions to collect product feedback:

9. How would you rate your satisfaction with the product?

This is a simple CSAT survey question used to measure the satisfaction of customers with the product on a rating scale. This gives you general customer feedback, i.e., the overall satisfaction score for your product. However, you cannot identify the key factors leading to this score using this question.

10. What do you like or dislike the most about our product?

This can be a closed-ended question with multiple choices for customers to select answers from. Based on what you have to offer, you can include choices like pricing, product quality, speed of delivery, customer service, etc. to understand exactly what it is customers like or dislike.

11. Based on your product experience, how likely are you to recommend us to others on a scale of 1 to 10?

This is a Net Promoter Score question that helps in understanding customers' loyalty towards your brand as per their satisfaction with the product. For example, if you're offering a SaaS product, you can understand whether or not your customers are loyal to you based on their satisfaction with your product.

12. What's your biggest roadblock when using our product?

This is one of the examples of customer feedback questions when you're looking to collect product feedback. It helps in understanding the major challenges that your customers face when using your product so you can directly eliminate the issues leading to customers' dissatisfaction.

13. Does the product help you achieve your goals?

This simple customer feedback survey question helps in understanding whether or not the product is helping achieve the goals it is designed for like UI design software

14. What is your favorite tool or feature of the product or service?

This is a closed-ended question where you can give your customers multiple choices to select from. Customers can share what they like the most about your product so you can improve it further and market it further to increase leads and conversions.

15. What would you improve if you could/What is the one feature you would like to see in our product?

This question helps in capturing innovation-specific customers' opinions since it helps in understanding what is it that customers feel is missing from your product. With feedback on what customers would like to see or use in your product, you can make way for innovation.

16. How would you describe the satisfaction with our product in your own words?

This is one of the most important examples customer feedback questions for product-specific data since it makes way for unsolicited feedback and may even help you capture feedback data that you may not have anticipated. By identifying common keywords in customers' responses, you can understand what customers feel about your product.

This is a must-have feedback survey question when you're asking product-specific CSAT (customer satisfaction)and NPS questions since it helps in backing up the scores given by customers with relevant feedback and makes the whole feedback super insightful .

Feedback Survey Questions To Measure Customer Service Experience

Customer service feedback survey questions help in measuring and understanding customers' efforts in seeking support from your brand when doing business with you. There are different customer feedback questions that can help you capture customer service feedback as a whole as well as agent performance feedback. You can quickly get customer feedback for your service and agent support from the offline medium as well with the help of a QR Code. A reliable  custom QR Code creator  helps you create QR Codes that will easily direct your customer toward your service feedback survey.

Let's read about some examples of customer feedback questions for customer service feedback.

17. Please rate your satisfaction with our team in resolving your issue.

This is a simple CSAT question that helps in measuring your customers' satisfaction with the support they receive. This question captures general customer feedback in terms of the customer service as a whole, and can be coupled with other closed-ended or open-ended customer feedback questions to collect quantitative customer feedback.

18. Did you feel that our team answered your inquiry promptly?

This can be a simple Yes/No or Dichotomous question that helps in understanding whether or not the customer received the support they were expecting. This question, however, does not offer qualitative feedback, and hence, must be avoided alone. You can always follow it up with an open-ended question to understand what went wrong or what worked for your customers.

You can read our article on  Why to Avoid Dichotomous Questions . This article highlights where and where not to use such Yes/No customer feedback questions.

19. How strongly do you agree or disagree with this statement: the customer service team made it easy for me to get my issue resolved?

This is the primary CES (Customer Effort Score) survey question which helps in measuring customers' efforts in getting their issues resolved. For example, if a customer reaches out to seek service from your support team, this question can be asked after they are helped to be able to understand if the support team was efficient in helping the customer.

20. Based on your customer service experience with us, how likely are you to recommend our brand to others?

One of the most used NPS feedback survey questions, helps frontline teams understand their customers' likeliness of speaking positively about their brand and finding how many loyal customers you have with your business. This helps in measuring customers' loyalty based on their service support experience with your brand.

21. What can we do better to improve your customer service experience?

This can be an open-ended question to let customers share in their own words what can be improved so that they are more satisfied with the support received. This helps in directly working on issues that are leading to an increased customer service effort.

22. How would you rate the agent's performance on a scale of 1 to 5?

This is a direct CSAT (customer satisfaction) survey question used to measure agent performance. This can be sent to collect customer feedback after every customer service interaction and helps in internal performance reviews. You can identify agents that are doing well and agents that need more training or help in assisting customers in a better way, which can improve the overall customer service and increase the number of satisfied customers.

23. What did you like/dislike the most about your customer service experience with us today?

This can be a closed-ended question with multiple choices that customers can select from to describe their service experience. In the answer choices, you can include aspects such as speed of resolution, efficiency, communication, knowledge, etc.

Feedback Survey Questions To Measure Website Experience

A website experience survey question helps in collecting customer feedback about your website on different aspects like order placement, payment, website UI/UX, speed,  content , etc.

Let's read in detail about some examples of customer feedback questions.

24. How would you rate our website?

This simple satisfaction feedback question with  emoji surveys  or 1 to 5 rating scale can be used to measure your customers' overall satisfaction with the website. This helps in capturing general customer feedback without harping on details to understand how your website is performing.

25. How likely are you to recommend our website to others?

This NPS survey question helps in measuring customers' loyalty to your brand based on the website experience you offer. This is important since many customers may not come forward to share minor challenges, but may share their honest views when asked if they would recommend the website.

26. How would you rate the shopping experience on our website on a scale of 1 to 5?

This is one of the critical examples of  website feedback form questions when you're looking to collect eCommerce website feedback. It helps in measuring customers' overall satisfaction when making a purchase on your website. The satisfaction score may be based on various factors like product availability, payment modes, speed, pricing, etc. To understand the reason for the satisfaction score, you can follow up this question in website surveys with a closed or open-ended question to get descriptive feedback.

27. What did you like/dislike about our website when making a purchase?

This can be a closed-ended question with multiple choices so customers can share customer feedback on exactly what they liked or disliked on your website. You can include options like speed, product availability, pricing,  digital content , navigation, UI, etc.

28. Please share in your own words what your experience was like on our website.

This feedback survey question helps in capturing unanticipated feedback on the website since customers aren't limited by a list of options to choose from. Customers can share exactly how they feel shopping on your website so you can understand what works and what does not.

29. We see that you didn't complete your purchase. What can we improve to help you finish shopping on our website today?

This is a  website exit intent survey  question that is triggered especially for visitors who tend to leave the website without making a purchase. You can either give multiple choices so customers can select what stopped them from shopping or ask an open-ended question so customers can share in their own words what they would like to see on your website to be encouraged to shop from you.

30. What made you purchase on our website today?

This question is asked specifically to visitors who complete their purchase on your website. It helps in understanding what's leading to sales/conversions so you can capitalize on the factors shared by your customers and increase sales. You can also match the data to check was it a one-time or  repeat purchase , based on which you can tailor and customise your offers and discounts.

Feedback Survey Questions To Conduct Market Research

Market research feedback survey questions help in capturing customer data in terms of market demand and factors leading to that demand. Whether you're a retail brand or offer your product or services online, you can modify the market research survey questionnaire to understand what it is that makes a brand desirable.

Let's read through some examples of customer feedback questions for  market research  in detail.

31. What's your most important priority when using a product like ours?

This is a closed-ended market research survey question where you can list down all the factors that customers can choose from to describe what it is that drives them to use a product like yours. For example, if you're a SaaS product company and your customers share that source innovation matters to them the most, you can increase your efforts towards new product updates every once in a while.

32. Why did you choose our product over a competitor's?

This question helps in understanding what makes your product unique and more desirable compared to your competitors' products. You can identify factors like pricing, innovation, variety, website experience, customer service, etc., and capitalize on the leading aspects to increase conversions. You can also use the feedback received to  improve your marketing efforts  and be able to get the attention of similar customers.

33. What stopped you from buying from us?

This is a question that can be triggered for website visitors who browsed through the website but didn't make a purchase. It can also be sent out to leads that didn't convert. The purpose of asking this question is to understand what discourages customers from making a purchase. As a result, brands can understand clearly what's not working and then improve it to drive sales or conversions.

34. What is one thing you wish our product could do?

This question is a must-have since it allows an understanding of what customers tend to look for in your product. As a result, you can drive innovation in the correct direction and increase the conversion rate or the chances of customers making a purchase.

35. How did you find out about our product?

This is one of the examples of feedback survey questions that help in understanding how customers come to your website or find your brand/product. With the feedback received, you can identify the channels that drive customers to your product. For example, if you know that most of your customers come in through referrals, you can improve your referral  marketing efforts  and  increase the number of leads /conversions/sales.

36. How disappointed would you be if you could no longer use our product/product feature?

This feedback question helps in understanding the importance of your product for your customers. It captures feedback to help brands understand where they stand and identify customers who may be likely to churn away. As a result, they can follow up with them and learn what can be done to retain them.

37. Which product/service would you consider as an alternative to ours?

This is one of the examples of customer feedback survey questions that helps you identify your major competitors and compare your product to theirs. As a result, you can identify the aspects missing in your brand and work on them so you can stay competitive and a top choice of your  target audience  or customers.

Feedback Form Questions To Measure Employee Experience

It is correctly said that to keep your customers happy, you must first keep your employees happy. Therefore, to  measure employee experience , you can check out these employee experience-specific examples of feedback survey questions:

38. How would you rate the overall satisfaction of working with our organization on a scale of 1 to 5?

This is a general CSAT question used to measure the overall customer satisfaction score of employees for the company. The CSAT score is critical in representing employee satisfaction and creating the employee satisfaction strategy.

You can also use this employee satisfaction question to measure satisfaction based on various specific aspects like teamwork, compensation, work-life balance, growth opportunities, etc. All you need to do is modify the question to get specific feedback.

39. On a scale of 0-10, how likely are you to recommend this organization as a good place to work?

This is an NPS question used to accurately measure your employees' loyalty to the organization. The feedback can be critical in identifying employees that may require retaining. Similarly, it can also drive the employee referral program.

40. What do you like/dislike about this organization?

This can be one of the closed-ended feedback survey questions with multiple choices for your employees to select their answers from. You can list down various aspects of your organization, such as work culture, infrastructure, compensation, management, etc. to learn what your employees like or dislike.

41. How would you rate the training and growth opportunities provided to employees in our organization?

You can use a 1 to 5 rating scale or an emoji or star scale to understand from your employees how satisfied they are with the growth opportunities provided to them. You can follow this question up with an open-ended question to let employees share in their own words what they expect from the organization in terms of growth and development.

42. Please share in your own words what your experience of working with this organization has been like.

Closed-ended customer feedback questions restrict the employees to just a few aspects of your organization. However, an open-ended question makes employees feel heard since they can share feedback in their own words. Moreover, this question helps you capture unanticipated feedback in terms of employee satisfaction.

How to Create Feedback Surveys?

The questions mentioned above will help you create surveys effectively, but creating effective feedback surveys in not only confined to only creating questions. You should follow a proper strategy to create and leverage your feedback surveys to collect actionabel feedback and improve customer experience. 

What is a Feedback Survey Strategy?

A Feedback survey strategy is a system designed to collect and analyze customer feedback to produce insights required in improving customer experience. It helps businesses to overcome customer-facing challenges by making data-driven decisions in terms of products, services, customer interactions, etc. A feedback strategy is executed in four phases:

• Ask : Ask customers for their feedback on experiences with your brand
• Categorize : Analyze feedback to generate insights in terms of what’s working well for the brand and what needs to improve using creative programmatic approaches .
• Act : Use insights generated in the second phase to respond to customer feedback and resolve reported challenges
• Follow-Up : Let customers know how their feedback was used to improve their experience

Feedback survey strategy is important to:

• To listen to the voice of the customers.
• To convey the customers that you care about them and their feedback matters to you.
• To understand how well your product or service is performing
• To measure your service standards and track support agenets' performances.
• To ensure continuous improvement.
• To align your brand with customers' preferences.
• To encourage repeat purchases and earn customer loyalty.
• To identify miffed customers and take actions to improve their experiences and foster customer retention.
• To make better business decisions.

Creating a Feedback Survey

When you work on customer feedback strategy, you follow the following steps to create effective feedback surveys.

1. Identify the Survey Objectives

For creating effective feedback surveys, ensure that you have clear objectives and key results in mind about what you want to  achieve through these surveys. For example, some brands may want to capture the overall satisfaction score of customers for the brand. Similarly, another brand may want to identify specifically the customers who are likely to churn.

To make it simpler, you can measure customer feedback across the three primary metrics:

• Net Promoter Score (NPS) :   To measure customer loyalty based on their likeliness to recommend your brand to others
• Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) : To measure the satisfaction or happiness levels of customers with the brand or a specific transaction
• Customer Effort Score (CES) : To measure customers’ efforts in doing business with you or getting an issue resolved

2. Choose a powerful survey software

A good survey software helps you create effective surveys to fetch actionable information from your customers about their needs and preferences, and their perceptions about your products, services, and brand. An effective survey software is well equipped with powerful features like:

• Ready-to-use survey templates
• Multi-channel feedback collection
• Skip logic and question branching
• Ability to embed your surveys (on website, emails, etc.)
• Ability to measure customer satisfaction metrics like CSAT, NPS, and CES
• Real-time feedback alerts and notifications
• Closing the feedback loop

3. Design your Survey Questionnaire and make it Engaging

The next step is to design your questionnaire by crafting the relevant questions as per your survey objectives. You can choose from the above questions as mentioned with the respective objectives of your survey. To make your surveys engaging,

• use features like skip logic and question branching and make your surveys dynamic for the respondents thereby providing them personalized survey experiences.
• Brand your surveys by whitelabelling your surveys and adding your own brand logo, color, and styling to the survey.
• Use simple questions with easy language to avoid survey abandonment and inaccurate survey responses.

3. Survey customers at the right touchpoints across preferred channels

Once you’re done creating your customer feedback surveys, the next step is to send them to your customers at the right time. You have to ensure that you are asking the right feedback survey questions to your customer at the right time and right place. For this, you will have to identify touchpoints that matter. Here are some examples of feedback survey touchpoints:

• Post-Transaction : To measure satisfaction right after a transaction, for example, a purchase, subscription, renewal.
• After Customer Service Support : To measure customers’ effort in getting an issue resolved and to measure agents’ performances while offering support
• App Transaction Feedback : To collect in-app user feedback in terms of app quality, user interface, speed, accuracy, content.
• Website Feedback : To collect feedback on various aspects of your website as well on certain user behavior, for example, exiting the website without a transaction, abandoning a cart.

Once you identify all the touchpoints where you wish to send out surveys, make sure to also define channels where your survey audience is more likely to engage with surveys. Trigger surveys at relevent channels, like website surveys to collect website feedback, in-app surveys for your app users just after a transaction, email surveys or SMS surveys after a customer interaction via email or phone call.

You can also find out the mode of communication that your customers prefer and then send surveys through those specific modes.

Ask the Right Feedback Survey Questions with Zonka Feedback 

Customer feedback surveys are a great way to measure customer satisfaction and gauge the overall experience of your customers. To create effective feedback surveys, it is crucial to include the right customer feedback questions in them.

Creating a feedback survey, irrespective of your feedback goals, is fairly easy since most survey tools today are code-free. And if you're wondering where to start, readymade feedback survey templates can be helpful.

With an effective tool like Zonka Feedback, you get access to free survey templates for different industries including retail, eCommerce, hospitality, education, etc. as well as for different feedback goals.

It also provides a free trial. Try Zonka Feedback for free for 14 days and see how it helps you create the most effective customer satisfaction surveys and gather valuable customer insights.

Published on Mar 18, 2024. Updated on Jul 25, 2024.

Written by Nikhil Dawer

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• How it works

How to create a CRM questionnaire (examples included)

Researching customer relationship management (CRM) questionnaires opens a Pandora’s box of possibilities as there are a bunch of different types.

In this post, we’ll explain how to create a comprehensive questionnaire to gather insights from clients or customers. Whether you’re here to improve client interactions or streamline your sales process, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s take a look!

Professional questionnaires at your fingertips

Content Snare makes it easy to create a CRM questionnaire. Sign up to access our library of form templates, or build your questionnaire from scratch in minutes.

Types of CRM questionnaires

A CRM questionnaire is a data-gathering form for businesses to collect information about their prospects or target audience. It’s a pretty broad definition though because CRM questionnaires can have lots of different goals . Here are just a few possibilities:

• CRM implementation questionnaires : This type of questionnaire helps CRM providers or implementors understand the needs of their clients before creating a tailored offer.
• Audience research CRM questionnaires : In this case, companies create online forms to learn as much as possible about their target audience. 
• CRM data update questionnaires : Reports show that more than 90% of CRM data is incomplete, stale, or duplicated every year, so agile organizations make questionnaires to update customer-related information.

Now you know a few different purposes of using a CRM form, but how do you actually create it?

We’ll explain it in the following section. 

CRM survey questions to include in your form

We already mentioned that different types of CRM forms demand different types of questions. For this reason, we’ll create three separate lists of questions to include in your online form.

Questions for a CRM implementation questionnaire

• What industry does your business operate in?
• Can you describe your company’s products or services?
• How many employees does your company have?
• What challenges or pain points are you currently facing in your business?
• How do you currently manage your customer data and interactions?
• Have you used a CRM system before? If so, please specify.
• What specific features or functionalities are you looking for in a CRM system?
• Do you have any specific integration requirements with other software systems?
• What is your budget range for investing in a CRM solution?
• Who will be the primary users of the CRM system within your organization?
• Are there any regulatory compliance requirements (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA) that the CRM system needs to adhere to?
• What is your timeline for implementing a new CRM solution?

Questions for audience research CRM surveys

• What is your age range?
• What is your gender identity?
• Where do you live (city, state, country)?
• What is your highest level of education?
• What is your employment status?
• What social media platforms do you use regularly?
• What types of products or services do you typically purchase?
• What factors influence your purchasing decisions?
• How do you prefer to communicate with brands (e.g., email, social media, live chat)?
• What are your favorite brands and why do you like them?
• What motivates you to recommend a product or service to others?
• What are your main frustrations when interacting with brands online?

Questions for updating your CRM software data

• What is your current residential address?
• Can you confirm your email address for communication purposes?
• Are there any updates to your preferences or interests that would help us personalize your experience?
• Have you recently purchased any products or services from us or engaged with our brand in any way?
• Are there any feedback or suggestions regarding our products or services that you would like to share with us?
• Would you like to opt-in or update your preferences for receiving marketing communications from us?

Practical tips for creating your questionnaire

All of the options suggested above provide a nice blueprint for kickstarting your questionnaire creation process, but it’s important to customize it to match the peculiarities of your project. 

These tips will help you with that.

1. Clearly define your objectives

We already explain three different types of CRM questionnaires, but there are many more. For instance, you could create one for understanding customer lifecycle, conducting product research, sales analysis, or customer satisfaction analysis. 

That’s why you must clearly outline the purpose of your questionnaire to know exactly what you hope to gather. Setting clear objectives will guide the design of your CRM form to make it much more effective. 

2. Speak your respondents’ language

The second tip is just as important as you have to write questions in an easy-to-understand language. This means avoiding everything that could confuse respondents — jargon, technical terms, ambiguous phrasing, or loanwords. For example:

• Replace the word “optimize” with “improve”
• Don’t write “pro bono” when you can write “free of charge” or just “free”
• Avoid “pivot” and use “change direction” 

These are only a few simple examples, but you’ll probably find lots of opportunities to simplify the language in your CRM questionnaire. 

3. Keep it as short as possible 

Another important tip is to respect your respondents’ time by keeping the questionnaire as short as possible. That’s because complex online forms often lead to respondent fatigue and decrease completion rates. 

One solution is to prioritize questions and eliminate any unnecessary fields. 

It’s also recommended to use a form-building tool that shows respondents how much work is left to do. For instance, Content Snare does a great job in this field with its progress bar:

4. Pilot test and iterate

The last tip is to pilot test your questionnaire with a small group of representative respondents before sending it out to a larger group. This helps identify any confusing or misleading questions, and assess the overall flow of your CRM questionnaire. 

Design a questionnaire with a professional form-building tool

We’ll give one last piece of advice instead of conventional conclusion — use a professional online form builder to design your questionnaire. This gives you all the features you’ll need to create an eye-pleasing survey with intuitive navigation and questions that perfectly suit your campaign.

Content Snare ticks all of these boxes and goes the extra mile to provide you with many other advanced form-building functionalities such as:

• Automated notifications and reminders
• A fairly simple drag-and-drop builder
• In-form instructions and conversations 
• More than 20 filed and question types
• Multiple security layers

The best part about Content Snare is that you can try right now by signing up for a free two-week trial . 

Professional questionnaires at your fingertips 

Drazen Vujovic

Dražen Vujović is a journalist and content writer. More importantly, he is a father of two and a long-distance runner.

How To Design A Questionnaire: A Step-By-Step Guide

Designing a questionnaire is an essential skill for gathering accurate and meaningful data. Whether you’re conducting research, gathering feedback, or exploring opinions, a well-constructed questionnaire can significantly impact the quality of the information you collect. This guide provides practical steps and tips on how to design a questionnaire that yields valuable insights.

• Define Your Objectives

Before you start drafting questions, clearly outline the objectives of your questionnaire. What specific information are you trying to obtain? Are you exploring customer satisfaction, measuring employee engagement, or evaluating a new product? A clear understanding of your goals will guide the design process and ensure that each question contributes to the overall purpose.

• Know Your Audience

Consider the demographics and characteristics of your target respondents. Tailoring the questionnaire to suit their language, preferences, and comprehension levels will improve response rates and data quality. For instance, a questionnaire for teenagers should use different language and examples compared to one aimed at senior professionals.

• Choose the Question Types

Selecting the right question types is crucial for obtaining precise data. Common question types include:

• Closed-ended Questions: These offer predefined responses, such as yes/no or multiple-choice options. They are easy to analyze and quantify but may limit the depth of feedback.
• Open-ended Questions: These allow respondents to provide detailed, qualitative answers. They offer richer insights but can be more challenging to analyze.
• Likert Scales: These measure attitudes or opinions on a scale, such as from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” They are useful for assessing levels of agreement or satisfaction.
• Craft Clear and Concise Questions

Ensure that your questions are straightforward and unambiguous. Avoid jargon, double negatives, and complex phrasing that might confuse respondents. Each question should address a single concept to avoid confusion and improve the accuracy of responses. For example, instead of asking, “How satisfied are you with our customer service and product quality?” separate this into two distinct questions.

• Organize Your Questionnaire Logically

Structure your questionnaire in a logical flow. Start with easier, non-threatening questions to build respondent comfort, then move to more specific or sensitive topics. Group similar questions together to create a coherent narrative and prevent respondents from feeling overwhelmed. Additionally, use clear instructions and transitions between sections to guide respondents smoothly through the questionnaire.

• Pretest Your Questionnaire

Before launching your questionnaire, conduct a pretest with a small, representative sample of your target audience. This pilot phase helps identify potential issues with question clarity, response options, or technical glitches. Collect feedback from pretest participants to make necessary adjustments and ensure that the final version is user-friendly and effective.

• Analyze and Use the Data

Once you’ve collected responses, analyze the data systematically. For quantitative data, use statistical methods to identify trends and patterns. For qualitative data, perform thematic analysis to uncover underlying themes. Use the insights gained to make informed decisions and address the objectives set at the beginning of the process.

Also Read : How To Create A Payslip: A Step-By-Step Guide

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The University of Chicago The Law School

Center menu, malyi research awards 2024.

Professor Michael Albertus is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. His research examines democracy and dictatorship, inequality and redistribution, property rights, and civil conflict. The Malyi Center has awarded Professor Albertus research funding for his project, Consequences of the Legal Recognition of Ethnic Community Institutions: Evidence from Peru .

This project seeks to advance research on the consequences of the legal recognition of Indigenous community institutions. It does so in Peru, where thousands of indigenous communities gained legal recognition against a backdrop of civil war in the 1980s and 1990s. The project will geolocate communities, identify population centers within these communities, assign administrative data on the timing of community recognition and land titling, and match to communities event-level data from Peru’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission to examine how community legal recognition impacted local conflict and contestation during the country’s civil war. The project has important implications for understanding how the process of legal recognition of Indigenous communities and their institutions impacts social inclusion and contestation. It also stands to advance our understanding of conflicts where ethnic identity and legal/institutional recognition claims are at the heart of insurgencies and contested by the state and among communities themselves. 

Pegah Banihashemi is a JSD candidate at the University of Chicago Law School, where she also completed an LLM in 2022. Pegah is currently working on the history of the formation of the Iranian Constitution both before and after the Islamic Revolution of 1979. In this project, she explores the problems of implementing the constitution in Iran. Part of Pegah's project is dedicated to the issue of comparing the constitutions of different countries, and she intends to present in her work a suitable format of a constitution for Iran that can be more stable over time.

The Center assisted Pegah with research funds to gain access to materials and resources for her research.

Lingnan He is a PhD candidate in the Department of Political Science. The Malyi Center awarded Lingnan research funding for her project, Nudge through Judges: Judicial Reform as Persuasion .

How do authoritarian leaders credibly alleviate foreign economic actors’ concerns about the local business environment? This project formalizes the idea that policymakers can strategically leverage systematic judicial reforms to persuade outsider investors to act in the regime’s interest. In particular, the foreign actor is concerned about protectionism-induced distortions in the host country. Judicial reforms mobilize judges to make more pro-nonlocal firm decisions. The foreign actor then infers the level of distortions through the ruling outcomes and makes decisions about market entry. In the equilibria, the level of market optimism and the foreign actor’s entry costs across industries jointly impact the effectiveness of judicial reform as a persuasion device. Empirically, combining data from China’s civil lawsuits, tariff changes, and firm locations, the research evaluates how exposure to the trade war shapes policymakers’ incentive to implement judicial reforms and the ruling outcomes. The analysis shows that a raised trade barrier likely drives out productive domestic firms with more overseas connections, which disincentivizes policymakers from pursuing judicial independence.

Professor Jon C. Rogowski is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. His research interests are in American politics, where he studies representation and accountability, political institutions, and American political history. The Malyi Center awarded Professor Rogowski research funding for his project, The Institutionalization of the American Administrative State .

How well does the state serve its constituents? While U.S. politicians, commentators, and citizens express concerns about declining bureaucratic capacity and the politicization of personnel selection, neither these concerns nor the proposed remedies are unique to our contemporary era. On the contrary, some of the most important institutional changes in U.S. governance concern the organizational capacity of the federal bureaucracy and the role of politics in selecting its personnel. This project documents the evolution of the administrative state between the Civil War and the Cold War and examine its consequences for American governance. It examines the composition of bureaucratic positions before civil service reform, studies the consequences of merit-based protections for the selection of personnel, and identifies how changes in organizational capacity affect bureaucratic outputs. This research provides comprehensive evidence about historical changes in the American state while also addressing theoretical questions relevant to contemporary political debates.

Professor Susan Stokes is the Tiffany and Margaret Blake Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Political Science. Her research and teaching interests include democratic theory and how democracy functions in developing societies, distributive politics, and comparative political behavior. The Malyi Center awarded Professor Stokes research funding for her project, Countering Mistrust of Democratic Institutions .

Political leaders in many countries worldwide have been elected and then undermined their democracies, a phenomenon known as democratic erosion. These leaders use public statements to reduce public confidence in institutions like election administration bodies. How can confidence be restored? The research team has used survey experiments to understand one example of this process: the Mexican president’s rhetorical attacks on a key Mexican institution, the National Electoral Institute. Our experimental findings indicate that presidential criticisms do undermine democratic confidence. But we also show that rebuttals of the president’s statements can restore this confidence.

Shih-An Wang is a JSD candidate at the University of Chicago Law School. Her current research project aims to analyze how judiciaries in countries with geopolitical tensions facilitate dialogues regarding the conflicts between national security and constitutional freedoms, focusing on the Constitutional Courts of South Korea, Taiwan, and Lithuania. Her research interest is in comparative constitutional law and democracy, executive power and regulations, and East Asian comparative law. In addition to her academic work, Shih-An serves as a Project Commissioner and Director of the North American Taiwan Studies Association.

The center awarded Shih-An with research funds to finance her participation in the Law and Society Association 2024 Annual Conference in Denver, Colorado. While attending the conference, Shih-An presented her research in a talk titled "Judicial Strategies under Geopolitical Distress: The Constitutional Court of Taiwan." She also served as a moderator and discussant on a panel titled, “ Constitutionalism Outside of Courts: Foundational Norms and Principles from a Comparative Perspective”.

• Open access
• Published: 05 August 2024

Development and piloting of an online course to improve knowledge, confidence and attitudes towards triaging images of skin lesions submitted online in primary care

• Maria Ntessalen 1 ,
• Albana Krasniqi 1 &
• Peter Murchie 1  

BMC Medical Education volume  24 , Article number:  839 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

113 Accesses

Metrics details

Melanoma is the 5th commonest cancer in the UK and survivors require frequent and thorough skin checks. During the Achieving Self-directed Integrated Cancer Aftercare (ASICA) trial, melanoma survivors used an app to submit images of concerning lesions for assessment by a dermatology nurse. In the past, online courses have been used to train non-specialist primary care practitioners (PCPs) in this skill.

This study aimed to determine whether an online course could increase knowledge, confidence, and attitudes towards skin image triage in PCPs in the Grampian area.

Preliminary discussions were held with PCPs to determine the need for an online course. The course was designed at the University of Aberdeen and included an introduction to the skin, case studies and quizzes on a variety of skin conditions based on melanoma survivors’ submissions via the ASICA app. Two pre- and post-course questionnaires were administered to all participants to (1) assess knowledge gained and (2) assess any improvements in confidence and attitudes towards triaging skin lesions that could be indicative of skin cancer. All PCPs in the Grampian area were invited to participate with almost 70 medical practices contacted. Results were analysed using a paired sample T-test.

The course was advertised to all GP practices in the Grampian area and 38 PCPs completed all its stages. Undertaking the course improved all PCPs’ confidence and attitudes towards triaging ( p  < 0.001). It also improved knowledge in all non-GP PCPs ( p  = 0.01). Most participants found the course useful; thought it was at the right level of difficulty, right format and thought the design was good.

Conclusions

Our online course in triaging skin lesions submitted digitally to PCPs was able to improve knowledge, confidence, and attitudes towards triaging. The course was acceptable in its design and was deemed useful and applicable to practice. Further research should investigate the effect the course has on secondary care referral numbers.

Significance

Skin problems can make up to 15% of Primary Care appointments and patients with benign or low risk skin problems are often inappropriately referred to specialists causing delay in secondary care.

Based on the findings of the ASICA trial it was suggested that low risk concerns can be effectively triaged by non-specialist primary care practitioners (PCPs).

Previous studies showed that online courses can improve knowledge, confidence, and attitudes towards triaging images of skin lesions.

The content of this online course was designed based on the most commonly submitted lesions in the ASICA trial and allowed PCPs (including GPs, GP trainees, ANPs, practice nurses and physician associates) to complete it in their own time.

The study showed that completing the online course increased PCP confidence and attitudes towards triaging skin lesions, regardless of their prior knowledge and experience.

The course also increased knowledge of all non-GP PCPs as well as PCPs with up to 2 years in their current post.

Peer Review reports

Introduction

Melanoma is a cancer of pigment-producing cells within the skin and can result from long-term exposure to UV light [ 1 ]. It is the fifth commonest cancer in the UK and incidence is increasing, making it a significant public health concern [ 2 , 3 ]. 10 year recurrence rates for patients treated are reportedly high beginning from 20% for stage IB/ IIA melanomas (accounting for almost 28% of all primary melanomas) and up to 67% for stage IIB/C primary melanomas (accounting for almost 10% of melanomas) [ 4 ]. These patients require regular monitoring to diagnose melanoma at an early stage as early diagnosis offers better treatment outcomes [ 4 , 5 ]. However, the need for regular monitoring through skin checks in secondary care may be disadvantaging certain groups, such as rural dwellers, as it may mean longer journey times to the hospital and therefore could result in poorer outcomes [ 6 , 7 ]. Additionally, given the shortfall of dermatologists in the UK and increasing skin cancer workload, it is imperative primary care practitioners (PCPs) work together with secondary care to help meet increasing demands [ 7 , 8 ].

In recent years, digital healthcare has been increasingly used as a method for skin lesion triaging to limit unnecessary hospital attendance and to help patients facing difficulties accessing care due to geographic location [ 9 , 10 ]. In line with this, the Achieving Self-directed Integrated Cancer Aftercare (ASICA) app was developed to help melanoma patients with their monthly skin checks to aid early detection of recurrent or new melanoma [ 11 , 12 ]. The app prompted and supported Total Skin Self Examinations (TSSEs) and provided participants with the opportunity to contact a Dermatology Nurse Practitioner (DNP) and receive feedback on any worrisome skin problems they had [ 13 ]. Participants in the ASICA trial were randomised to the ASICA intervention plus standard care, or standard care alone in a 1:1 ratio using a validated remote computer-automated randomisation system hosted at the Centre for Healthcare Randomized Trials (CHaRT) in Aberdeen [ 11 , 12 ]. 120 participants used ASICA for 12 months and together submitted a total of 189 concerns with their skin to be checked by the trial dermatology specialist nurse during that period. Participants were given a tablet with a built-in digital camera preloaded with the ASICA app and received comprehensive training on how to use the app (in person, group and written instruction). No restrictions were made on the nature of skin concerns that they should report as patients all had prior experience of receiving melanoma follow-up examinations [ 11 , 12 ]. Most concerns submitted were low risk and could be resolved without the need to see the participant face to face. The DNP could usually resolve the concern by referring to images and text descriptions submitted by the patient and following up with them by telephone, sometime requesting follow-up images. A relatively small number of patients, with higher risk concerns, required to be seen face to face; 7% triggered face-to-face consultations with a General Practitioner (GP) and 10% were seen at a dermatology clinic.

During analysis of qualitative data from the DNP in the ASICA trial (unpublished data), it was suggested that many low risk concerns could be effectively and efficiently triaged by non-specialist PCPs. This could have the added advantage of offering quicker reassurance for patients and enable more efficient use of specialist time to focus on higher risk concerns. The potential is further emphasised by the fact that initial screening of skin problems is a core activity for PCPs, where approximately 15% of primary care appointments are related to the skin [ 14 ]. Not surprisingly a previous systematic review has suggested that the diagnostic accuracy of pigmented lesions is lower for primary care physicians than dermatologists [0.42-1.00 vs. 0.81-1.00] so it is important that further effective training in skin-lesion triage is made available to PCPs to support them in this role [ 3 ].

A systematic review found that brief online courses can increase confidence and knowledge of PCPs skin lesion triage [ 15 , 16 ]. Currently, however, there are few well-designed and evidence-based courses that support the development of skin problem triage skills by PCPs [ 17 , 18 ]. To address this we designed an online course informed by the concerns submitted by participants in the ASICA trial. Our aim was to determine whether this course could increase the knowledge, confidence and positive attitudes toward skin lesion triage of relevant non-dermatology specialist PCPs such that they could have a larger role in the widescale implementation of ASICA into National Health Service (NHS) practice.

Development of the course

One-to-one preliminary discussions were held with 3 Advanced Nurse Practitioners (ANPs) working in primary care in the NHS Grampian area in January 2022 to scope how useful they would perceive a course in skin lesion triage to be. Discussions focused on: (1) The current situation in Primary Care, (2) How well-equipped PCPs felt to carry out triaging, (3) How they triaged the lesions that would come to them, (4) What would be the best way to train PCPs. The discussion took place online.

Course content

The content of the course was informed by the results of the ASICA trial with the commonest diagnoses forming its basis [ 12 ]. The course consisted of 2 main sections. The first provided a general introduction to the skin, discussed skin cancer, skin protection and assessment of suspicious skin lesions using the ABCDE algorithm - a mnemonic developed to help patients and physicians identify possible melanomas early where A is for Asymmetry, B is for Border irregularity, C is for Colour variability and/or Changing colour, D is for Different, E is for Evolving (changing) [ 19 ]. This was chosen above the modified Glasgow Algorithm as despite both being validated tools for assessing pigmented skin lesions (), as the former tool was deemed to be more memorable and easier to use given it is already in a checklist/ mnemonic format.

Each case study consisted of a patient scenario intentionally presented in an e-consult format to provide a realistic reflection of how skin lesion triage scenarios may present in primary care day-to-day. E-consult cases were formatted in a way that guided participants through clinical assessment of the lesion, assessment of level of concern, management steps and the appropriate outcome. Eleven scenarios were included in the course with primary diagnoses being (1) cherry haemangioma, (2) squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), (3) basal cell carcinoma (BCC), (4) dermatofibroma, 5)skin tag, 6) seborrhoeic keratosis, 7) melanoma, 8) atypical melanocytic naevus, 9) benign melanocytic nevus, 10) benign melanocytic nevus and 11) subungual haematoma. The case studies were interactive and required participants to provide answers before receiving feedback. Cases were grouped into sections and after a few cases, participants were asked to answer MCQs relating to the cases in the section they had just completed. Each quiz question depicted four images of lesions, three correct and one differential (incorrect) answer, and feedback using ABCDE descriptors was provided upon answer selection. There was a total of 11 case studies and 27 MCQs.

Course content was written up by the authors of this paper. Course content and questionnaires were reviewed for validity of content and proofread by three GP colleagues and a final year medical student with special interests/ experience in dermatology, two research fellows and two research assistants. Feedback on the correctness of content, structure and language was provided. Unfortunately, no Dermatology Consultants in the area were available provide feedback on this.

Moodle, an online platform used by Aberdeen University Medical School, was used to host the course. Material was transferred to Moodle by a software engineer at Aberdeen University. The course was designed to take approximately 3–4 h to complete however PCPs were allowed to complete it over 6 weeks.

As is standard on Moodle courses by the medical school, all participants were asked to complete an evaluation form at the end of the course to provide feedback on the dermatology case studies.

Recruitment and participants

A member of the NHS Research Network (NRS) Primary Care Network contacted all practice managers in the Grampian area with information about the online course (January 2023). Practice managers were asked to circulate an email to PCPs. Within this study PCPs included GPs, GP trainees, ANPs, practice nurses and physician associates. A reminder was circulated 2 weeks later to notify PCPs of the final date and prompt them to join the course if they were interested. Personal networks were also contacted.

Course evaluation methods

Participants emailed the course coordinator (MN) expressing their interest and were subsequently sent two pre-course questionnaires to complete which measured knowledge, confidence and attitudes towards triaging skin lesions. A 12-item questionnaire was developed by one of the authors (AK), assessing knowledge in triaging skin lesions using MCQs. No feedback was given to participants regarding their answers. A second 33-item questionnaire was developed by two of the authors (AK, PM), to collect personal and professional information and to assess confidence and attitudes towards triaging skin lesions on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the least confident and 10 being the most. Following completion of the questionnaires, access was given to the course and participants were asked to complete it within 6 weeks. REDCap 13.1.25, an online database with in-built ability to create surveys, was used to design and distribute the pre- and post-course questionnaires.

Participants who did not complete the questionnaires within 2 weeks were sent two reminders 1 week apart as were those who had not started it within 2 weeks. All participants received a reminder email at 4 weeks since they were given access to the course and again a week later.

Following completion of the course, participants notified the course organiser and received the final two questionnaires. One was identical to the pre-course questionnaire. The other assessed confidence levels and attitudes towards triaging skin lesions.

The questionnaire was identical to the one they received at the beginning of the course, minus questions on personal information. Questions on confidence were assessed using a sliding bar. The participant chose how they felt about the question asked (using the sliding bar) and that automatically gave a number from 1 (least confident) – 10 (most confident). Confidence question examples included “How confident are you that if you find an issue of concern on an image of a skin lesion that you will take appropriate action?”. Questions on participants attitudes towards triaging skin lesions were scored using a 5-point Likert scale varying from strongly disagree- disagree- unsure- agree- strongly agree. Strongly disagree was given a value of 1 and strongly agree was given a 5. Attitude question examples include “It is important to carefully assess skin lesions submitted by patients?” and “I could find suspicious features on an image of a skin lesion if they were there.”

The values were added up before and after the course was taken to estimate a confidence score and a score on attitudes.

Statistical analysis

The pre- and post-course questionnaires were designed and sent using REDCap. After receiving all responses, the data were exported in cvs format and analysed using SPSS 28. The data were assessed for normal distribution and the appropriate test was applied (in this case a paired sample t-test). A p value of 0.05 was set as the point of significance. Only data from participants who completed both the pre- and post- test questionnaires were included in analysis.

Participants

All GP practices in Grampian, Northeast Scotland, were invited. Seventy-one PCPs contacted the course coordinator and expressed their interest. Figure  1 shows the number of people who joined the course and completed all steps. Thirty-eight out of 71 participants (53%) completed the course and all steps involved.

Flow diagram showing the number of people who joined the course and the number of people who were able to complete it and submit all questionnaires

Table  1 . shows characteristics of the participants who completed the online course. The participants were asked a number of questions at baseline that pertained to their age, gender, job role, years in their current post and previous training in dermatology and triaging.

Participants were also asked about frequency of triaging lesions, number of lesions triage and areas most commonly assessed (Table  2 ).

Course evaluation

Participants completed two questionnaires during course evaluation. A questionnaire assessing knowledge before and after they took the course, and a questionnaire assessing confidence and attitudes towards triaging skin lesions at the same time points. Table  3 shows mean values (SD) of questionnaires for the whole cohort and for different sub-groups. Notably, confidence increased significantly for the whole cohort, whereas knowledge increased significantly for non-GP PCPs and participants with just 0–2 years in their current post.

Participants feedback on course difficulty, usefulness, and overall satisfaction are seen in Table  4 . Feedback from all participants who started the course and attempted at least one question was analysed as feedback from non-completers was felt to be helpful in giving insight into barriers to course completion/ negative aspects to course design which could be useful for future improvement of the course/ similar courses.

Further information collected from the baseline questionnaire on confidence and attitude towards triaging skin lesions includes comments left by PCPs in an open textbox. Before joining the course, participants provided comments such as the following:

“Worried that I mainly rely on my experience of seeing abnormal lesions in past to guide my decision of whether lesion is abnormal rather than any “guideline” based decision making “ (Female, 46–54, GP). The time pressures in General Practice are so great at the moment that what I would want to do in an ideal world is not necessarily what I have time for currently. It would be good to look at every lesion in person and take a full history but if a patient has submitted a photo of a suspicious looking lesion I am more likely simply to refer on to dermatology. (Female, 55–65, GP)

According to participant feedback post-course, it was “useful”, “educational” and allowed them to “gain knowledge which they took directly back to practice”. Participants also found use of cases and MCQs very useful for learning and liked the realistic set-up of the course with the presentation of the e-consult.

Participants also provided opinions on the course in a free-text question (Table  5 ). These focused on suggestions to improve technical issues and praise for the course. The technical feedback was on an error that appeared during the release of the course where images on a case were no longer available. A small number of participants fed back that images could be larger to aid with identification of diseases. One participant felt not all topics in MCQs were covered in case studies. Another suggested a navigation bar plus the ability to go back to where they had left off would be a good addition to the course. A few participants suggested increasing the number of MCQs and providing more feedback on the “incorrect” answers to questions. Finally, more than a third of participants expressed how useful they found the course in increasing their knowledge, how it would help their practice and that they would like to see more of it.

Summary of findings

This study developed and evaluated a digital healthcare intervention in the form of an online course which aimed to improve the knowledge, confidence and attitudes of PCPs in triaging digital images and descriptions of skin concerns submitted by patients to support self-directed total-skin-self-examination. Of the PCPs who volunteered to take the course and complete the pre- and post-course questionnaires, 38 submitted all questionnaires and completed the course (53%). The training provided during the course increased confidence and attitudes in the cohort of PCPs ( p  < 0.001). Knowledge increased in the whole cohort but was only significantly increased when GPs were excluded from the analysis ( p  = 0.010) or among PCPs with only 0–2 years of experience in their current post ( p  = 0.008).

Context with other research

A number of online courses were previously designed aiming to improve the dermatological skills and practice of PCPs as already mentioned. Their content is variable, either covering only specific areas of dermatology/ body sites [ 20 , 21 ] or being based on referral guidelines determined by “red flags” [ 22 ]. The ASICA trial specifically analysed cases that were frequently encountered by a dermatology nurse practitioner as reported by participants. Consequently, in addition to covering cases centred around a single topic, the course provided comprehensive information and training on skin cancers and pigmented lesions, which has been proven to enhance the diagnostic accuracy of PCPs [ 23 ] .

In our study, we gathered information about training received by PCPs prior to attending the course. It was notable that out of the 38 PCPs, 26 (68.4%) had no prior training in dermatology. Specifically, none of the non-GPs had received any training (11 /11), and more than half of GPs had also received no training (15/27). Interestingly, despite the lack of formal training, a significant proportion of PCPs reported regularly triaging images submitted to their practice. Over 40% of PCPs reported triaging images on a weekly basis, 15% reported triaging 5–10 images per month and more than 10% reported triaging 10 or more images per month.

Our study assessed participants’ knowledge in dermatology before and after the course but despite an increase in mean knowledge (before: 7.38 ± 2.08 vs. after: 8.18 ± 1.96) the difference was not statistically significant ( p  = 0.056) for the whole cohort. Assessment of pre and post course knowledge was via completion of 12 MCQs on skin anatomy, risk factors for skin cancers and differential diagnoses. Similarly, other questionnaires which have been used to test PCP knowledge on skin conditions also included between nine [ 24 ] and thirty questions [ 25 ]. Once GPs were excluded from the analysis, other PCPs did demonstrate a significant increase in knowledge suggesting those with no previous formal dermatological training have much to gain from our course. This course may be more effective overall for non-GP PCPs (ANPs/ primary care nurses/ PAs) than GPs as it has achieved a significant increase in their knowledge level despite number of years in their current role. However, GPs did appear to report increased confidence after undertaking the course.

The course increased confidence in everyone and knowledge in the non-GP cohort showing that allowing the PCPs to take the course at their own pace was still beneficial to them. A number of other courses have been carried out on different time scales varying from 1 h [ 26 ] to 24 months [ 27 ]. Our course shows that increases in knowledge and confidence can still be achieved even if PCPs personalise their engagement with the material to their own schedules. This approach reflected engagement with the course in a pragmatic manner as daily pressures can make daily or even weekly engagement difficult. An important parameter that was not explored in our study was the maintenance of knowledge and confidence long-term. In other studies where knowledge and confidence were assessed long-term the average value remained increased at 6 months but dropped by 12 months [ 28 , 29 ], perhaps suggesting the need for refresher courses. Supporting this, an RCT that evaluated whether a short dermoscopy e-learning course (4 h) was non-inferior to a longer course (12 h) in terms of PCPs’ competence in selective triage of skin tumours found spaced test-based refresher training sessions appear to maintain and even increase the skills acquired by PCPs over time [ 30 ].

While only 53% of participants completed the course, this compares favourably with completion rates for other similar online courses aimed at primary care professionals for whom competing demands and workloads are high. For example, a French study by Greco et al. (2023) aiming to evaluate knowledge on the diagnosis and management of common nail conditions using a 31-minute online training session was deemed successful with an identical 53% completion rate. Furthermore, of the 47% of participants who did not complete our course, only 15% actually accessed the course at all suggesting that barriers to completing the course were unlikely to be due to intrinsic limitations of the course. The remainder who started but did not complete the course may have done so for various reasons including workload pressures.

Strengths and weaknesses

Our study is the first to create an online course in triaging skin lesions submitted to PCPs informed directly by their needs and supported by the most commonly found skin lesions as observed in the ASICA trial. This course consisted of an interactive set-up with case-studies and MCQs which proved to be well received by participants and was useful in their learning and understanding. We demonstrated the course was attractive to busy PCPs, and that they could practically complete and benefit from it within a timescale which would be realistic for widescale implementation within the NHS.

As our study depended on volunteers, the PCPs who enrolled may not have been the most representative of PCPs tasked with skin lesion image triage in general. A number of PCPs mentioned a personal interest in dermatology and attendance of every opportunity for training on the field. As our cohort included all PCPs in Primary care, we were unable to have a representative sample from all divisions (GPs, ANPs, practice nurses etc.) and some were under-represented introducing bias (60% of participants were GPs) and limiting sub-group analysis.

Future research

Our course has demonstrated short-term potential to increase the knowledge and confidence of those who are increasingly being tasked with the triage of skin lesion images in primary care. Future research should look to define the best way to consolidate and sustain these improvements. Additionally, we did not look at the impact the course had on clinical practice. Future studies could also look into specificity and sensitivity of triaging by PCPs and the number of referrals to secondary care before and after training.

This online course was able to increase knowledge and confidence in the PCPs who undertook it and appeared to be acceptable in its design, level of difficulty and usefulness and could be completed within a time commitment practical for busy PCPs. The course appeared to be particularly effective in improving scores for those with less than two-year’s experience, suggesting it may have value for those PCPs in training, and/ or new to skin lesion triage. While the content of this course was initially based on data from submissions to the ASICA trial which aimed to support detecting melanoma early in survivors, it included cases on benign lesions and non-melanoma skin cancers as differentials and in order to equip participants to triage a broad range of skin lesions/ concerns. Therefore, the knowledge gained from our course can be used in the triage of skin concerns in any patient in primary care where PCPs are increasingly being tasked with the triage of skin lesion images. Further research should look to characterise the effect this course has on the number and nature of referrals to secondary care.

Data availability

Data can be made available following request to Professor Peter Murchie ([email protected]).

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Peter Bartlam at the University of Aberdeen for his help with the technical aspects of the course and Dr Asha Venkatesh for her help setting aims for the course. We also want to thank all the Primary Care Practitioners for taking the course and providing feedback.

This work was funded by NHS Endowments Research Grants.

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PM contributed to the conception of the idea, design of the course and manuscript preparation. MN contributed to the design of the course, data collection, data analysis and manuscript preparation. AK contributed to the design of the course, data analysis and manuscript preparation.

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Correspondence to Peter Murchie .

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Ntessalen, M., Krasniqi, A. & Murchie, P. Development and piloting of an online course to improve knowledge, confidence and attitudes towards triaging images of skin lesions submitted online in primary care. BMC Med Educ 24 , 839 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-024-05840-1

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Received : 07 May 2024

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-024-05840-1

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