We will discuss types of questionnaire in research which is considered as very important topic for students in order to know the difference of questionnaire and how to design it to be suitable for your research. Historically, the questionnaire was designed by Sir Francis Galton who was a British anthropologist. It is known that the questionnaire is the backbone of any survey and the success of it depends on designing of a questionnaire.
Some scholars define questionnaire as a set of questions on a topic which are designed in order to be answered by the respondent. Other defines questionnaire it is like vehicle used to act the questions which the researcher needs other respondents to listen.
Advantages of types of questionnaire in research
- Less pressure
- Needs less skills
- Cheaper
- Impersonal
- Appropriate for a geographically dispersed population
- Namelessness
The disadvantage of types of questionnaire in research
- Less response
- No help
- Less control over the environment of the respondent’s
- Less reliable
- Not suitable for illiterates
- May be answers obtained are wrong
- Occurrence of errors
Types of questionnaire in research
It is known that there are four types of questionnaires in research. All of these types are designed according to the aim of the study.
- Contingency questions
- Matrix questions
- Closed-ended questions
- Open – ended questions
Contingency Questions for types of questionnaire in research
A question that can only be answered if the respondent delivers a specific answer to a preceding question. This prevents people from being asked questions that are irrelevant to them.
Matrix Questions for types of questionnaire in research
Multiple questions have the same response categories allocated to them. The questions are stacked one on top of the other to create a matrix with response categories on the top and a list of questions on the bottom. This makes good use of both page space and respondents' time.
Closed-ended Questions for types of questionnaire in research
The responses of respondents are limited to a set of options. The majority of scales have a closed-end. Closed-ended inquiries include the following:
- Yes/No questions: the respondent has to answer whether yes or no
- Multiple choice: the respondent has many options to choose.
- Scaled questions: the respondent has to rate or measure through using a scale from 1 to 10 for example.
Advantages of ended-questions according to types of questionnaire in research
- No need for extended writing
- It is easy to process
- Suitable for testing some specific hypothesis
Disadvantages of ended-questions
- The inability to respond spontaneously
- Answer categories with bias
- May irritate respondents
Open-ended Questions according to types of questionnaire in research
There are no suggested options or specified categories. The respondent responds in their own words, rather than being limited by a predetermined list of options. There are types of open-ended questions include:
- Completely unstructured: For example “what is your opinion about the questionnaire?
- Word association: The respondent is given a list of words and is asked to say the first word that comes to mind.
Advantage of open-ended questions
- The replies' spontaneity and freedom
- A chance to delve further
- It's useful for putting ideas to the test.
Disadvantage of open-ended questions
- Time consuming
- Coding : very costly and slow to process
- Requires more effort from the respondents
Types of questions in different types of questionnaire in research
- Factual Questions
- Opinion and Attitude Questions
- Information Questions
- Self-perception Questions
- Projective Questions
- Directional Questions
- Intensity Questions
Methods to reach target respondents according to types of questionnaire in research
- Face to face (interview)
- Telephone
- Internet questions
Conclusion
A questionnaire is a versatile instrument that can be used in a variety of studies. This article is designed to provide in-depth information about requirements such as creating a questionnaire, pilot testing it, standardizing it, and rephrasing bad questions.
A small sample of respondents should be used to 'pilot' or pretest your questionnaire. Highlight it before utilizing it to test people's comprehension and ability to answer questions.
Emtyiaz is the only office in Gulf and Middle East to design different types of questionnaire in research, we are standing beside our dear student to help them as we know how difficulty is to design a questionnaire only,
so you have just to order now the service, do not hesitate😉
