method of research questionnaire

Questionnaire Method In Research

Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester

Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Learn about our Editorial Process

Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc

Associate Editor for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education

Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.

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A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a series of questions for the purpose of gathering information from respondents. Questionnaires can be thought of as a kind of written interview . They can be carried out face to face, by telephone, computer, or post.

Questionnaires provide a relatively cheap, quick, and efficient way of obtaining large amounts of information from a large sample of people.

Data can be collected relatively quickly because the researcher would not need to be present when completing the questionnaires. This is useful for large populations when interviews would be impractical.

However, a problem with questionnaires is that respondents may lie due to social desirability. Most people want to present a positive image of themselves, and may lie or bend the truth to look good, e.g., pupils exaggerate revision duration.

Questionnaires can effectively measure relatively large subjects’ behavior, attitudes, preferences, opinions, and intentions more cheaply and quickly than other methods.

Often, a questionnaire uses both open and closed questions to collect data. This is beneficial as it means both quantitative and qualitative data can be obtained.

Closed Questions

A closed-ended question requires a specific, limited response, often “yes” or “no” or a choice that fit into pre-decided categories.

Data that can be placed into a category is called nominal data. The category can be restricted to as few as two options, i.e., dichotomous (e.g., “yes” or “no,” “male” or “female”), or include quite complex lists of alternatives from which the respondent can choose (e.g., polytomous).

Closed questions can also provide ordinal data (which can be ranked). This often involves using a continuous rating scale to measure the strength of attitudes or emotions.

For example, strongly agree / agree / neutral / disagree / strongly disagree / unable to answer.

Closed questions have been used to research type A personality (e.g., Friedman & Rosenman, 1974) and also to assess life events that may cause stress (Holmes & Rahe, 1967) and attachment (Fraley, Waller, & Brennan, 2000).

• They can be economical. This means they can provide large amounts of research data for relatively low costs. Therefore, a large sample size can be obtained, which should represent the population from which a researcher can then generalize.
• The respondent provides information that can be easily converted into quantitative data (e.g., count the number of “yes” or “no” answers), allowing statistical analysis of the responses.
• The questions are standardized. All respondents are asked exactly the same questions in the same order. This means a questionnaire can be replicated easily to check for reliability . Therefore, a second researcher can use the questionnaire to confirm consistent results.

Limitations

• They lack detail. Because the responses are fixed, there is less scope for respondents to supply answers that reflect their true feelings on a topic.

Open Questions

Open questions allow for expansive, varied answers without preset options or limitations.

Open questions allow people to express what they think in their own words. Open-ended questions enable the respondent to answer in as much detail as they like in their own words. For example: “can you tell me how happy you feel right now?”

Open questions will work better if you want to gather more in-depth answers from your respondents. These give no pre-set answer options and instead, allow the respondents to put down exactly what they like in their own words.

Open questions are often used for complex questions that cannot be answered in a few simple categories but require more detail and discussion.

Lawrence Kohlberg presented his participants with moral dilemmas. One of the most famous concerns a character called Heinz, who is faced with the choice between watching his wife die of cancer or stealing the only drug that could help her.

Participants were asked whether Heinz should steal the drug or not and, more importantly, for their reasons why upholding or breaking the law is right.

• Rich qualitative data is obtained as open questions allow respondents to elaborate on their answers. This means the research can determine why a person holds a certain attitude .
• Time-consuming to collect the data. It takes longer for the respondent to complete open questions. This is a problem as a smaller sample size may be obtained.
• Time-consuming to analyze the data. It takes longer for the researcher to analyze qualitative data as they have to read the answers and try to put them into categories by coding, which is often subjective and difficult. However, Smith (1992) has devoted an entire book to the issues of thematic content analysis that includes 14 different scoring systems for open-ended questions.
• Not suitable for less educated respondents as open questions require superior writing skills and a better ability to express one’s feelings verbally.

Questionnaire Design

With some questionnaires suffering from a response rate as low as 5%, a questionnaire must be well designed.

There are several important factors in questionnaire design.

Pilot Study

Question order.

Questions should progress logically from the least sensitive to the most sensitive, from the factual and behavioral to the cognitive, and from the more general to the more specific.

The researcher should ensure that previous questions do not influence the answer to a question.

Question order effects

• Question order effects occur when responses to an earlier question affect responses to a later question in a survey. They can arise at different stages of the survey response process – interpretation, information retrieval, judgment/estimation, and reporting.
• Types of question order effects include: unconditional (subsequent answers affected by prior question topic), conditional (subsequent answers depend on the response to the prior question), and associational (correlation between two questions changes based on order).
• Question order effects have been found across different survey topics like social and political attitudes, health and safety studies, vignette research, etc. Effects may be moderated by respondent factors like age, education level, knowledge and attitudes about the topic.
• To minimize question order effects, recommendations include avoiding judgmental dependencies, separating potentially reactive questions, randomizing questions, following good survey design principles, considering respondent characteristics, and intentionally examining question context and order.

Terminology

• There should be a minimum of technical jargon. Questions should be simple, to the point, and easy to understand. The language of a questionnaire should be appropriate to the vocabulary of the group of people being studied.
• Use statements that are interpreted in the same way by members of different subpopulations of the population of interest.
• For example, the researcher must change the language of questions to match the social background of the respondent’s age / educational level / social class/ethnicity, etc.

Presentation

Ethical issues.

• The researcher must ensure that the information provided by the respondent is kept confidential, e.g., name, address, etc.
• This means questionnaires are good for researching sensitive topics as respondents will be more honest when they cannot be identified.
• Keeping the questionnaire confidential should also reduce the likelihood of psychological harm, such as embarrassment.
• Participants must provide informed consent before completing the questionnaire and must be aware that they have the right to withdraw their information at any time during the survey/ study.

Problems with Postal Questionnaires

At first sight, the postal questionnaire seems to offer the opportunity to get around the problem of interview bias by reducing the personal involvement of the researcher. Its other practical advantages are that it is cheaper than face-to-face interviews and can quickly contact many respondents scattered over a wide area.

However, these advantages must be weighed against the practical problems of conducting research by post. A lack of involvement by the researcher means there is little control over the information-gathering process.

The data might not be valid (i.e., truthful) as we can never be sure that the questionnaire was completed by the person to whom it was addressed.

That, of course, assumes there is a reply in the first place, and one of the most intractable problems of mailed questionnaires is a low response rate. This diminishes the reliability of the data

Also, postal questionnaires may not represent the population they are studying. This may be because:

• Some questionnaires may be lost in the post, reducing the sample size.
• The questionnaire may be completed by someone not a member of the research population.
• Those with strong views on the questionnaire’s subject are more likely to complete it than those without interest.

Benefits of a Pilot Study

A pilot study is a practice / small-scale study conducted before the main study.

It allows the researcher to try out the study with a few participants so that adjustments can be made before the main study, saving time and money.

It is important to conduct a questionnaire pilot study for the following reasons:

• Check that respondents understand the terminology used in the questionnaire.
• Check that emotive questions are not used, as they make people defensive and could invalidate their answers.
• Check that leading questions have not been used as they could bias the respondent’s answer.
• Ensure the questionnaire can be completed in an appropriate time frame (i.e., it’s not too long).

Frequently Asked Questions 

How do psychological researchers analyze the data collected from questionnaires.

Psychological researchers analyze questionnaire data by looking for patterns and trends in people’s responses. They use numbers and charts to summarize the information.

They calculate things like averages and percentages to see what most people think or feel. They also compare different groups to see if there are any differences between them.

By doing these analyses, researchers can understand how people think, feel, and behave. This helps them make conclusions and learn more about how our minds work.

Are questionnaires effective in gathering accurate data?

Yes, questionnaires can be effective in gathering accurate data. When designed well, with clear and understandable questions, they allow individuals to express their thoughts, opinions, and experiences.

However, the accuracy of the data depends on factors such as the honesty and accuracy of respondents’ answers, their understanding of the questions, and their willingness to provide accurate information. Researchers strive to create reliable and valid questionnaires to minimize biases and errors.

It’s important to remember that while questionnaires can provide valuable insights, they are just one tool among many used in psychological research.

Can questionnaires be used with diverse populations and cultural contexts?

Yes, questionnaires can be used with diverse populations and cultural contexts. Researchers take special care to ensure that questionnaires are culturally sensitive and appropriate for different groups.

This means adapting the language, examples, and concepts to match the cultural context. By doing so, questionnaires can capture the unique perspectives and experiences of individuals from various backgrounds.

This helps researchers gain a more comprehensive understanding of human behavior and ensures that everyone’s voice is heard and represented in psychological research.

Are questionnaires the only method used in psychological research?

No, questionnaires are not the only method used in psychological research. Psychologists use a variety of research methods, including interviews, observations , experiments , and psychological tests.

Each method has its strengths and limitations, and researchers choose the most appropriate method based on their research question and goals.

Questionnaires are valuable for gathering self-report data, but other methods allow researchers to directly observe behavior, study interactions, or manipulate variables to test hypotheses.

By using multiple methods, psychologists can gain a more comprehensive understanding of human behavior and mental processes.

What is a semantic differential scale?

The semantic differential scale is a questionnaire format used to gather data on individuals’ attitudes or perceptions. It’s commonly incorporated into larger surveys or questionnaires to assess subjective qualities or feelings about a specific topic, product, or concept by quantifying them on a scale between two bipolar adjectives.

It presents respondents with a pair of opposite adjectives (e.g., “happy” vs. “sad”) and asks them to mark their position on a scale between them, capturing the intensity of their feelings about a particular subject.

It quantifies subjective qualities, turning them into data that can be statistically analyzed.

Ayidiya, S. A., & McClendon, M. J. (1990). Response effects in mail surveys. Public Opinion Quarterly, 54 (2), 229–247. https://doi.org/10.1086/269200

Fraley, R. C., Waller, N. G., & Brennan, K. A. (2000). An item-response theory analysis of self-report measures of adult attachment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78, 350-365.

Friedman, M., & Rosenman, R. H. (1974). Type A behavior and your heart . New York: Knopf.

Gold, R. S., & Barclay, A. (2006). Order of question presentation and correlation between judgments of comparative and own risk. Psychological Reports, 99 (3), 794–798. https://doi.org/10.2466/PR0.99.3.794-798

Holmes, T. H., & Rahe, R. H. (1967). The social readjustment rating scale. Journal of psychosomatic research, 11(2) , 213-218.

Schwarz, N., & Hippler, H.-J. (1995). Subsequent questions may influence answers to preceding questions in mail surveys. Public Opinion Quarterly, 59 (1), 93–97. https://doi.org/10.1086/269460

Smith, C. P. (Ed.). (1992). Motivation and personality: Handbook of thematic content analysis . Cambridge University Press.

Further Information

• Questionnaire design and scale development
• Questionnaire Appraisal Form

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Criterion Validity: Definition & Examples

Questionnaires

Questionnaires can be classified as both, quantitative and qualitative method depending on the nature of questions. Specifically, answers obtained through closed-ended questions (also called restricted questions) with multiple choice answer options are analyzed using quantitative methods. Research findings in this case can be illustrated using tabulations, pie-charts, bar-charts and percentages.

Answers obtained to open-ended questionnaire questions (also known as unrestricted questions), on the other hand, are analyzed using qualitative methods. Primary data collected using open-ended questionnaires involve discussions and critical analyses without use of numbers and calculations.

There are following types of questionnaires:

Computer questionnaire . Respondents are asked to answer the questionnaire which is sent by mail. The advantages of the computer questionnaires include their inexpensive price, time-efficiency, and respondents do not feel pressured, therefore can answer when they have time, giving more accurate answers. However, the main shortcoming of the mail questionnaires is that sometimes respondents do not bother answering them and they can just ignore the questionnaire.

Telephone questionnaire .  Researcher may choose to call potential respondents with the aim of getting them to answer the questionnaire. The advantage of the telephone questionnaire is that, it can be completed during the short amount of time. The main disadvantage of the phone questionnaire is that it is expensive most of the time. Moreover, most people do not feel comfortable to answer many questions asked through the phone and it is difficult to get sample group to answer questionnaire over the phone.

In-house survey .  This type of questionnaire involves the researcher visiting respondents in their houses or workplaces. The advantage of in-house survey is that more focus towards the questions can be gained from respondents. However, in-house surveys also have a range of disadvantages which include being time consuming, more expensive and respondents may not wish to have the researcher in their houses or workplaces for various reasons.

Mail Questionnaire . This sort of questionnaires involve the researcher to send the questionnaire list to respondents through post, often attaching pre-paid envelope. Mail questionnaires have an advantage of providing more accurate answer, because respondents can answer the questionnaire in their spare time. The disadvantages associated with mail questionnaires include them being expensive, time consuming and sometimes they end up in the bin put by respondents.

Questionnaires can include the following types of questions:

Open question questionnaires . Open questions differ from other types of questions used in questionnaires in a way that open questions may produce unexpected results, which can make the research more original and valuable. However, it is difficult to analyze the results of the findings when the data is obtained through the questionnaire with open questions.

Multiple choice question s. Respondents are offered a set of answers they have to choose from. The downsize of questionnaire with multiple choice questions is that, if there are too many answers to choose from, it makes the questionnaire, confusing and boring, and discourages the respondent to answer the questionnaire.

Dichotomous Questions .  Thes type of questions gives two options to respondents – yes or no, to choose from. It is the easiest form of questionnaire for the respondent in terms of responding it.

Scaling Questions . Also referred to as ranking questions, they present an option for respondents to rank the available answers to questions on the scale of given range of values (for example from 1 to 10).

For a standard 15,000-20,000 word business dissertation including 25-40 questions in questionnaires will usually suffice. Questions need be formulated in an unambiguous and straightforward manner and they should be presented in a logical order.

Questionnaires as primary data collection method offer the following advantages:

• Uniformity: all respondents are asked exactly the same questions
• Cost-effectiveness
• Possibility to collect the primary data in shorter period of time
• Minimum or no bias from the researcher during the data collection process
• Usually enough time for respondents to think before answering questions, as opposed to interviews
• Possibility to reach respondents in distant areas through online questionnaire

At the same time, the use of questionnaires as primary data collection method is associated with the following shortcomings:

• Random answer choices by respondents without properly reading the question.
• In closed-ended questionnaires no possibility for respondents to express their additional thoughts about the matter due to the absence of a relevant question.
• Collecting incomplete or inaccurate information because respondents may not be able to understand questions correctly.
• High rate of non-response

Survey Monkey represents one of the most popular online platforms for facilitating data collection through questionnaires. Substantial benefits offered by Survey Monkey include its ease to use, presentation of questions in many different formats and advanced data analysis capabilities.

Survey Monkey as a popular platform for primary data collection

There are other alternatives to Survey Monkey you might want to consider to use as a platform for your survey. These include but not limited to Jotform, Google Forms, Lime Survey, Crowd Signal, Survey Gizmo, Zoho Survey and many others.

My  e-book,  The Ultimate Guide to Writing a Dissertation in Business Studies: a step by step approach  contains a detailed, yet simple explanation of quantitative methods. The e-book explains all stages of the research process starting from the selection of the research area to writing personal reflection. Important elements of dissertations such as research philosophy, research approach, research design, methods of data collection and data analysis are explained in simple words.

John Dudovskiy

Market Research

Your ultimate guide to questionnaires and how to design a good one

The written questionnaire is the heart and soul of any survey research project. Whether you conduct your survey using an online questionnaire, in person, by email or over the phone, the way you design your questionnaire plays a critical role in shaping the quality of the data and insights that you’ll get from your target audience. Keep reading to get actionable tips.

What is a questionnaire?

A questionnaire is a research tool consisting of a set of questions or other ‘prompts’ to collect data from a set of respondents.

When used in most research, a questionnaire will consist of a number of types of questions (primarily open-ended and closed) in order to gain both quantitative data that can be analyzed to draw conclusions, and qualitative data to provide longer, more specific explanations.

A research questionnaire is often mistaken for a survey - and many people use the term questionnaire and survey, interchangeably.

But that’s incorrect.

Which is what we talk about next.

Get started with our free survey maker with 50+ templates

Survey vs. questionnaire – what’s the difference?

Before we go too much further, let’s consider the differences between surveys and questionnaires.

These two terms are often used interchangeably, but there is an important difference between them.

Survey definition

A survey is the process of collecting data from a set of respondents and using it to gather insights.

Survey research can be conducted using a questionnaire, but won’t always involve one.

Questionnaire definition

A questionnaire is the list of questions you circulate to your target audience.

In other words, the survey is the task you’re carrying out, and the questionnaire is the instrument you’re using to do it.

By itself, a questionnaire doesn’t achieve much.

It’s when you put it into action as part of a survey that you start to get results.

Advantages vs disadvantages of using a questionnaire

While a questionnaire is a popular method to gather data for market research or other studies, there are a few disadvantages to using this method (although there are plenty of advantages to using a questionnaire too).

Let’s have a look at some of the advantages and disadvantages of using a questionnaire for collecting data.

Advantages of using a questionnaire

1. questionnaires are relatively cheap.

Depending on the complexity of your study, using a questionnaire can be cost effective compared to other methods.

You simply need to write your survey questionnaire, and send it out and then process the responses.

You can set up an online questionnaire relatively easily, or simply carry out market research on the street if that’s the best method.

2. You can get and analyze results quickly

Again depending on the size of your survey you can get results back from a questionnaire quickly, often within 24 hours of putting the questionnaire live.

It also means you can start to analyze responses quickly too.

3. They’re easily scalable

You can easily send an online questionnaire to anyone in the world and with the right software you can quickly identify your target audience and your questionnaire to them.

4. Questionnaires are easy to analyze

If your questionnaire design has been done properly, it’s quick and easy to analyze results from questionnaires once responses start to come back.

This is particularly useful with large scale market research projects.

Because all respondents are answering the same questions, it’s simple to identify trends.

5. You can use the results to make accurate decisions

As a research instrument, a questionnaire is ideal for commercial research because the data you get back is from your target audience (or ideal customers) and the information you get back on their thoughts, preferences or behaviors allows you to make business decisions.

6. A questionnaire can cover any topic

One of the biggest advantages of using questionnaires when conducting research is (because you can adapt them using different types and styles of open ended questions and closed ended questions) they can be used to gather data on almost any topic.

There are many types of questionnaires you can design to gather both quantitative data and qualitative data - so they’re a useful tool for all kinds of data analysis.

Disadvantages of using a questionnaire

1. respondents could lie.

This is by far the biggest risk with a questionnaire, especially when dealing with sensitive topics.

Rather than give their actual opinion, a respondent might feel pressured to give the answer they deem more socially acceptable, which doesn’t give you accurate results.

2. Respondents might not answer every question

There are all kinds of reasons respondents might not answer every question, from questionnaire length, they might not understand what’s being asked, or they simply might not want to answer it.

If you get questionnaires back without complete responses it could negatively affect your research data and provide an inaccurate picture.

3. They might interpret what’s being asked incorrectly

This is a particular problem when running a survey across geographical boundaries and often comes down to the design of the survey questionnaire.

If your questions aren’t written in a very clear way, the respondent might misunderstand what’s being asked and provide an answer that doesn’t reflect what they actually think.

Again this can negatively affect your research data.

4. You could introduce bias

The whole point of producing a questionnaire is to gather accurate data from which decisions can be made or conclusions drawn.

But the data collected can be heavily impacted if the researchers accidentally introduce bias into the questions.

This can be easily done if the researcher is trying to prove a certain hypothesis with their questionnaire, and unwittingly write questions that push people towards giving a certain answer.

In these cases respondents’ answers won’t accurately reflect what is really happening and stop you gathering more accurate data.

5. Respondents could get survey fatigue

One issue you can run into when sending out a questionnaire, particularly if you send them out regularly to the same survey sample, is that your respondents could start to suffer from survey fatigue.

In these circumstances, rather than thinking about the response options in the questionnaire and providing accurate answers, respondents could start to just tick boxes to get through the questionnaire quickly.

Again, this won’t give you an accurate data set.

Questionnaire design: How to do it

It’s essential to carefully craft a questionnaire to reduce survey error and optimize your data . The best way to think about the questionnaire is with the end result in mind.

How do you do that?

Start with questions, like:

• What is my research purpose ?
• What data do I need?
• How am I going to analyze that data?
• What questions are needed to best suit these variables?

Once you have a clear idea of the purpose of your survey, you’ll be in a better position to create an effective questionnaire.

Here are a few steps to help you get into the right mindset.

1. Keep the respondent front and center

A survey is the process of collecting information from people, so it needs to be designed around human beings first and foremost.

In his post about survey design theory, David Vannette, PhD, from the Qualtrics Methodology Lab explains the correlation between the way a survey is designed and the quality of data that is extracted.

“To begin designing an effective survey, take a step back and try to understand what goes on in your respondents’ heads when they are taking your survey.

This step is critical to making sure that your questionnaire makes it as likely as possible that the response process follows that expected path.”

From writing the questions to designing the survey flow, the respondent’s point of view should always be front and center in your mind during a questionnaire design.

2. How to write survey questions

Your questionnaire should only be as long as it needs to be, and every question needs to deliver value.

That means your questions must each have an individual purpose and produce the best possible data for that purpose, all while supporting the overall goal of the survey.

A question must also must be phrased in a way that is easy for all your respondents to understand, and does not produce false results.

To do this, remember the following principles:

Get into the respondent's head

The process for a respondent answering a survey question looks like this:

• The respondent reads the question and determines what information they need to answer it.
• They search their memory for that information.
• They make judgments about that information.
• They translate that judgment into one of the answer options you’ve provided. This is the process of taking the data they have and matching that information with the question that’s asked.

When wording questions, make sure the question means the same thing to all respondents. Words should have one meaning, few syllables, and the sentences should have few words.

Only use the words needed to ask your question and not a word more .

Note that it’s important that the respondent understands the intent behind your question.

If they don’t, they may answer a different question and the data can be skewed.

Some contextual help text, either in the introduction to the questionnaire or before the question itself, can help make sure the respondent understands your goals and the scope of your research.

Use mutually exclusive responses

Be sure to make your response categories mutually exclusive.

Consider the question:

What is your age?

Respondents that are 31 years old have two options, as do respondents that are 40 and 55. As a result, it is impossible to predict which category they will choose.

This can distort results and frustrate respondents. It can be easily avoided by making responses mutually exclusive.

The following question is much better:

This question is clear and will give us better results.

Ask specific questions

Nonspecific questions can confuse respondents and influence results.

Do you like orange juice?

• Like very much
• Neither like nor dislike
• Dislike very much

This question is very unclear. Is it asking about taste, texture, price, or the nutritional content? Different respondents will read this question differently.

A specific question will get more specific answers that are actionable.

How much do you like the current price of orange juice?

This question is more specific and will get better results.

If you need to collect responses about more than one aspect of a subject, you can include multiple questions on it. (Do you like the taste of orange juice? Do you like the nutritional content of orange juice? etc.)

Use a variety of question types

If all of your questionnaire, survey or poll questions are structured the same way (e.g. yes/no or multiple choice) the respondents are likely to become bored and tune out. That could mean they pay less attention to how they’re answering or even give up altogether.

Instead, mix up the question types to keep the experience interesting and varied. It’s a good idea to include questions that yield both qualitative and quantitative data.

For example, an open-ended questionnaire item such as “describe your attitude to life” will provide qualitative data – a form of information that’s rich, unstructured and unpredictable. The respondent will tell you in their own words what they think and feel.

A quantitative / close-ended questionnaire item, such as “Which word describes your attitude to life? a) practical b) philosophical” gives you a much more structured answer, but the answers will be less rich and detailed.

Open-ended questions take more thought and effort to answer, so use them sparingly. They also require a different kind of treatment once your survey is in the analysis stage.

3. Pre-test your questionnaire

Always pre-test a questionnaire before sending it out to respondents. This will help catch any errors you might have missed. You could ask a colleague, friend, or an expert to take the survey and give feedback. If possible, ask a few cognitive questions like, “how did you get to that response?” and “what were you thinking about when you answered that question?” Figure out what was easy for the responder and where there is potential for confusion. You can then re-word where necessary to make the experience as frictionless as possible.

If your resources allow, you could also consider using a focus group to test out your survey. Having multiple respondents road-test the questionnaire will give you a better understanding of its strengths and weaknesses. Match the focus group to your target respondents as closely as possible, for example in terms of age, background, gender, and level of education.

Note: Don't forget to make your survey as accessible as possible for increased response rates.

Questionnaire examples and templates

There are free questionnaire templates and example questions available for all kinds of surveys and market research, many of them online. But they’re not all created equal and you should use critical judgement when selecting one. After all, the questionnaire examples may be free but the time and energy you’ll spend carrying out a survey are not.

If you’re using online questionnaire templates as the basis for your own, make sure it has been developed by professionals and is specific to the type of research you’re doing to ensure higher completion rates. As we’ve explored here, using the wrong kinds of questions can result in skewed or messy data, and could even prompt respondents to abandon the questionnaire without finishing or give thoughtless answers.

You’ll find a full library of downloadable survey templates in the Qualtrics Marketplace , covering many different types of research from employee engagement to post-event feedback . All are fully customizable and have been developed by Qualtrics experts.

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Over 12,000 enterprises worldwide, including more than 75 percent of the Fortune 100 and 99 of the top 100 U.S. business schools, rely on Qualtrics to consistently build products that people love, create more loyal customers, develop a phenomenal employee culture, and build iconic brands.

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Questionnaire: The ultimate guide, advantages & examples

What is a Questionnaire?

A questionnaire is a research instrument that consists of a set of questions or other types of prompts that aims to collect information from a respondent. A research questionnaire is typically a mix of close-ended questions  and  open-ended questions .

Open-ended, long-form questions offer the respondent the ability to elaborate on their thoughts. Research questionnaires were developed in 1838 by the Statistical Society of London.

LEARN ABOUT: Candidate Experience Survey

The data collected from a data collection questionnaire can be both  qualitative  as well as  quantitative  in nature. A questionnaire may or may not be delivered in the form of a  survey , but a survey always consists of a questionnaire.

LEARN ABOUT: Testimonial Questions

Advantages of a good questionnaire design

• With a survey questionnaire, you can gather a lot of data in less time.
• There is less chance of any bias(like selection bias ) creeping if you have a standard set of questions to be used for your target audience. You can apply logic to questions based on the respondents’ answers, but the questionnaire will remain standard for a group of respondents that fall in the same segment.
• Surveying online survey software is quick and cost-effective. It offers you a rich set of features to design, distribute, and analyze the response data.
• It can be customized to reflect your brand voice. Thus, it can be used to reinforce your brand image.
• The responses can be compared with the historical data and understand the shift in respondents’ choices and experiences.
• Respondents can answer the questionnaire without revealing their identity. Also, many survey software complies with significant data security and privacy regulations.

LEARN ABOUT: Structured Questionnaire

Characteristics of a good questionnaire

Your survey design depends on the type of information you need to collect from respondents. Qualitative questionnaires are used when there is a need to collect exploratory information to help prove or disprove a hypothesis. Quantitative questionnaires are used to validate or test a previously generated hypothesis. However, most questionnaires follow some essential characteristics:

• Uniformity:  Questionnaires are very useful to collect demographic information, personal opinions, facts, or attitudes from respondents. One of the most significant attributes of a research form is uniform design and standardization. Every respondent sees the same questions. This helps in  data collection  and  statistical analysis  of this data. For example, the  retail store evaluation questionnaire template  contains questions for evaluating retail store experiences. Questions relate to purchase value, range of options for product selections, and quality of merchandise. These questions are uniform for all customers.

LEARN ABOUT: Research Process Steps

• Exploratory:  It should be exploratory to collect qualitative data. There is no restriction on questions that can be in your questionnaire. For example, you use a data collection questionnaire and send it to the female of the household to understand her spending and saving habits relative to the household income. Open-ended questions give you more insight and allow the respondents to explain their practices. A very structured question list could limit the data collection.

LEARN ABOUT: Best Data Collection Tools

• Question Sequence:  It typically follows a structured flow of questions to increase the number of responses. This sequence of questions is screening questions , warm-up questions, transition questions, skip questions, challenging questions, and classification questions. For example, our  motivation and buying experience questionnaire template  covers initial demographic questions and then asks for time spent in sections of the store and the rationale behind purchases.

Types & Definitions

As we explored before, questionnaires can be either structured or free-flowing. Let’s take a closer look at what that entails for your surveys.

• Structured Questionnaires:  Structured questionnaires collect  quantitative data . The questionnaire is planned and designed to gather precise information. It also initiates a formal inquiry, supplements data, checks previously accumulated data, and helps validate any prior hypothesis.
• Unstructured Questionnaires:  Unstructured questionnaires collect  qualitative data . They use a basic structure and some branching questions but nothing that limits the responses of a respondent. The questions are more open-ended to collect specific data from participants.

Types of questions in a questionnaire

You can use multiple question types in a questionnaire. Using various question types can help increase responses to your research questionnaire as they tend to keep participants more engaged. The best customer satisfaction survey templates are the most commonly used for better insights and decision-making.

Some of the widely used  types of questions  are:

• Open-Ended Questions:   Open-ended questions  help collect qualitative data in a questionnaire where the respondent can answer in a free form with little to no restrictions.
• Dichotomous Questions:  The  dichotomous question  is generally a “yes/no”  close-ended question . This question is usually used in case of the need for necessary validation. It is the most natural form of a questionnaire.
• Multiple-Choice Questions:   Multiple-choice questions  are a close-ended question type in which a respondent has to select one (single-select multiple-choice question) or many (multi-select multiple choice question) responses from a given list of options. The multiple-choice question consists of an incomplete stem (question), right answer or answers, incorrect answers, close alternatives, and distractors. Of course, not all multiple-choice questions have all of the answer types. For example, you probably won’t have the wrong or right answers if you’re looking for customer opinion.
• Scaling Questions:  These questions are based on the principles of the four measurement scales –  nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio . A few of the question types that utilize these scales’ fundamental properties are  rank order questions ,  Likert scale questions ,  semantic differential scale questions , and  Stapel scale questions .

LEARN ABOUT: System Usability Scale

• Pictorial Questions:  This question type is easy to use and encourages respondents to answer. It works similarly to a multiple-choice question. Respondents are asked a question, and the answer choices are images. This helps respondents choose an answer quickly without over-thinking their answers, giving you more accurate data.

Types of Questionnaires

Questionnaires can be administered or distributed in the following forms:

• Online Questionnaire : In this type, respondents are sent the questionnaire via email or other online mediums. This method is generally cost-effective and time-efficient. Respondents can also answer at leisure. Without the pressure to respond immediately, responses may be more accurate. The disadvantage, however, is that respondents can easily ignore these questionnaires. Read more about online surveys .
• Telephone Questionnaire:  A researcher makes a phone call to a respondent to collect responses directly. Responses are quick once you have a respondent on the phone. However, a lot of times, the respondents hesitate to give out much information over the phone. It is also an expensive way of conducting research. You’re usually not able to collect as many responses as other types of questionnaires, so your sample may not represent the broader population.
• In-House Questionnaire:  This type is used by a researcher who visits the respondent’s home or workplace. The advantage of this method is that the respondent is in a comfortable and natural environment, and in-depth data can be collected. The disadvantage, though, is that it is expensive and slow to conduct.

LEARN ABOUT: Survey Sample Sizes

• Mail Questionnaire:  These are starting to be obsolete but are still being used in some  market research studies. This method involves a researcher sending a physical data collection questionnaire request to a respondent that can be filled in and sent back. The advantage of this method is that respondents can complete this on their own time to answer truthfully and entirely. The disadvantage is that this method is expensive and time-consuming. There is also a high risk of not collecting enough responses to make actionable insights from the data.

How to design a Questionnaire

Questionnaire design is a multistep process that requires attention to detail at every step.

Researchers are always hoping that the responses received for a survey questionnaire yield useable data. If the questionnaire is too complicated, there is a fair chance that the respondent might get confused and will drop out or answer inaccurately.

LEARN ABOUT: Easy Test Maker

As a  survey creator , you may want to pre-test the survey by administering it to a focus group during development. You can try out a few different questionnaire designs to determine which resonates best with your target audience. Pre-testing is a good practice as the survey creator can comprehend the initial stages if there are any changes required in the survey .

Steps Involved in Questionnaire Design

1. identify the scope of your research:.

Think about what your questionnaire is going to include before you start designing the look of it. The clarity of the topic is of utmost importance as this is the primary step in creating the questionnaire. Once you are clear on the purpose of the questionnaire, you can begin the design process.

LEARN ABOUT:  Social Communication Questionnaire

2. Keep it simple:

The words or phrases you use while writing the questionnaire must be easy to understand. If the questions are unclear, the respondents may simply choose any answer and skew the data you collect.

3. Ask only one question at a time:

At times, a researcher may be tempted to add two similar questions. This might seem like an excellent way to consolidate answers to related issues, but it can confuse your respondents or lead to inaccurate data. If any of your questions contain the word “and,” take another look. This question likely has two parts, which can affect the quality of your data.

4. Be flexible with your options:

While designing, the survey creator needs to be flexible in terms of “option choice” for the respondents. Sometimes the respondents may not necessarily want to choose from the answer options provided by the survey creator. An “other” option often helps keep respondents engaged in the survey.

5. The open-ended or closed-ended question is a tough choice:

The survey creator might end up in a situation where they need to make distinct choices between open or close-ended questions. The question type should be carefully chosen as it defines the tone and importance of asking the question in the first place.

If the questionnaire requires the respondents to elaborate on their thoughts, an  open-ended q u estion  is the best choice. If the surveyor wants a specific response, then close-ended questions should be their primary choice. The key to asking closed-ended questions is to generate data that is easy to analyze and spot trends.

6. It is essential to know your audience:

A researcher should know their target audience. For example, if the target audience speaks mostly Spanish, sending the questionnaire in any other language would lower the response rate and accuracy of data. Something that may seem clear to you may be confusing to your respondents. Use simple language and terminology that your respondents will understand, and avoid technical jargon and industry-specific language that might confuse your respondents.

For efficient market research, researchers need a representative sample collected using one of the many  sampling techniques , such as a sample questionnaire. It is imperative to plan and define these target respondents based on the demographics  required.

7. Choosing the right tool is essential: 

QuestionPro is a simple yet advanced survey software platform that the surveyors can use to create a questionnaire or choose from the already existing 300+ questionnaire templates.

Always save personal questions for last. Sensitive questions may cause respondents to drop off before completing. If these questions are at the end, the respondent has had time to become more comfortable with the interview and are more likely to answer personal or demographic questions.

Differences between a Questionnaire and a Survey

Read more: Difference between a survey and a questionnaire

Questionnaire Examples

The best way to understand how questionnaires work is to see the types of questionnaires available. Some examples of a questionnaire are:

USE THIS FREE TEMPLATE

The above survey questions are typically easy to use, understand, and execute. Additionally, the standardized answers of a survey questionnaire instead of a person-to-person conversation make it easier to compile useable data.

The most significant limitation of a data collection questionnaire is that respondents need to read all of the questions and respond to them. For example, you send an invitation through email asking respondents to complete the questions on social media. If a target respondent doesn’t have the right social media profiles, they can’t answer your questions.

Learn More: 350+ Free Survey Examples and Templates

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Surveys & Questionnaires

Surveys involve asking a series of questions to participants. They can be administered online, in person, or remotely (e.g. by post/mail). The data collected can be analysed quantitatively or qualitatively (or both). Researchers might carry out statistical surveys to make statistical inferences about the population being studied. Such inferences depend strongly on the survey questions used (Solomon, 2001) meaning that getting the wording right is crucial. For this reason, many test out surveys in pilot studies with smaller populations and use the results to refine their survey instrument.

Sampling for surveys can range between self-selection (e.g. where a link is shared with members of a target population in the hope they and others contribute data and share the survey) through to the use of specialised statistical techniques (“probability sampling”) that analyse results from a carefully selected sample to draw statistical conclusions about the wider population. Survey methodologies therefore cover a range of considerations including sampling, research instrument design, improving response rates, ensuring quality in data, and methods of analysis (Groves et al., 2011).

One common question format is to collect quantitative data alongside qualitative questions. This allows a more detailed description or justification for the answer given to be provided. Collecting ordinal data (e.g. ranking of preferences through a Likert scale) can be a way to make qualitative data more amenable to quantitative analysis. But there is no one superior approach: the crucial thing is that the survey questions and their phrasing aligns with the research question(s) correctly.

Surveys are widely used in education science and in the social sciences more generally. Surveys are highly efficient (both in terms of time and money) compared with other methods, and can be administered remotely. They can provide a series of data points on a subject which can be compared across the sample group(s). This provides a considerable degree of flexibility when it comes to analysing data as several variables may be tested at once. Surveys also work well when used alongside other methods, perhaps to provide a baseline of data (such as demographics) for the first step in a research study. They are also commonly used in evaluations of teaching & learning (i.e. after an intervention to assess the impact). However, there are some noteworthy disadvantages to using surveys. Respondents may not feel encouraged to provide accurate answers, or may not feel comfortable providing answers that present themselves in a unfavourable manner (particularly if the survey is not anonymous). “Closed” questions may have a lower validity rate than other question types as they might be interpreted differently. Data errors due to question non-responses may exist creating bias. Survey answer options should be selected carefully because they may be interpreted differently by respondents (Vehovar & Katja Lozar, 2008).

Surveys & Questionnaires: GO-GN Insights

Marjon Baas collected quantitative data through a questionnaire among teachers within an OER Community of Practice to explore the effect of the activities undertaken to encourage the use of the community on teachers’ behaviour in relation to OER.

“I used several theoretical models (Clements and Pawlowski, 2012; Cox and Trotter, 2017; Armellini and Nie, 2013) to conceptualise different aspects (that relate to) OER adoption. This enabled me as a researcher to design my specific research instruments.”

Judith Pete had a deliberate selection of twelve Sub-Saharan African universities across Kenya, Ghana and South Africa with randomly sampled students and lecturers to develop a representative view of OER. Separate questionnaires were used for students (n=2249) and lecturers (n=106).

“We used surveys to collect data across three continents. Online survey tools were very helpful in online data collection and, where that was not possible, local coordinators used physical copies of the survey and later entered the information into the database. This approach was cost-effective, versatile and quick and easy to implement. We were able to reach a wide range of respondents in a short time. Sometimes we wondered, though, whether all those who responded had enough time to fully process and understand the questions that they were being asked. We had to allocate a significant amount of time to curating the data afterwards.”

Samia Almousa adopted Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) survey questionnaire, along with additional constructs (relating to information quality and culture) as a lens through which her research data is analysed.

“In my research, I have employed a Sequential Explanatory Mixed Methods Design (online questionnaires and semi-structured interviews) to examine the academics’ perceptions of OERs integration into their teaching practices, as well as to explore the motivations that encourage them to use and reuse OERs, and share their teaching materials in the public domain. The online questionnaire was an efficient and fast way to reach a large number of academics. I used the online survey platform, which does not require entering data or coding as data is input by the participants and answers are saved automatically (Sills & Song, 2002). Using questionnaires as a data collection tool has some drawbacks. In my study, the questionnaire I developed was long, which made some participants choose their answers randomly. In addition, I have received many responses from academics in other universities although the questionnaire was sent to the sample university. Since I expected this to happen, I required the participants to write the name of their university in the personal information section of the questionnaire, then excluded the responses from outside the research sample. My advice for any researcher attempting to use questionnaires as a data collection tool is to ensure that their questionnaire is as short and clear as possible to help the researcher in analysing the findings and the participants in answering all questions accurately. Additionally, personal questions should be as few as possible to protect the identity and privacy of the participants, and to obtain the ethical approval quickly.”

Olawale Kazeeem Iyikolakan adopted a descriptive survey of the correlational type. The author research design examines the relationship among the key research variables (technological self-efficacy, perception, and use of open educational resources) and to identify the most significant factors that influence academic performance of LIS undergraduates without a causal connection.

“The descriptive research design is used as a gathering of information about prevailing conditions or situations for the purpose of description and interpretation (Aggarwal, 2008). My research design examines the relationship among the key research variables (technological self-efficacy, perception, and use of open educational resources) to identify the most significant factors that influence academic performance of Library & Information Science undergraduates without a causal connection. Ponto (2015) describes that descriptive survey research is a useful and legitimate  approach to research that has clear benefits in helping to describe and explore variables and constructs of interest by using quantitative research strategies (e.g., using a survey with numerically rated items. “The reason for the choice of descriptive survey research instead of ex-post-facto quasi-experimental design is that this type of research design is used to capture people’s perceptions, views, use, about a current issue, current state of play or movements such as perception and use of OER. This research design comes with several merits as it enables the researcher to obtain the needed primary data directly from the respondents. Other advantages include: (1) Using this method, the researcher has no control over the variable; (2) the researcher can only report what has happened or what is happening. One of the demerits of this type of research design is that research results may reflect a certain level of bias due to the absence of statistical tests.”

Useful references for Surveys & Questionnaires: Aggarwal (2008); Fowler (2014); Groves et al., 2011); Lefever, Dal & Matthíasdóttir (2007); Ponto (2015); Sills & Song (2002); Solomon (2001); Vehovar & Manfreda (2008); Vehovar, Manfreda, & Berzelak (2018)

Research Methods Handbook Copyright © 2020 by Rob Farrow; Francisco Iniesto; Martin Weller; and Rebecca Pitt is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Research Methods: Questionnaires

Last updated 15 Jun 2020

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A questionnaire, or social survey, is a popular research method that consists of a list of questions.

If administered directly by the researcher to the subject in person then this is the same as a structured interview ; however, questionnaires can also be completed independently (self-completion questionnaires) and therefore administered in bulk, through the post or electronically for example. The method can use closed or open questions or indeed a mixture of the two, depending on what sort of data is desired and how the researcher intends to analyse it.

Reliability and Validity of Questionnaires

In the context of research, the reliability of a method refers to the extent to which, were the same study to be repeated, it would produce the same results. For this to be the case, samples need to be representative, questions or processes need to be uniform and data would generally need to be quantitative. Researchers need to be confident that if they repeat the same research and the result is different that what they are studying has genuinely changed and not just that their original method was not sufficiently reliable. If you take the example of opinion polls on people's voting preferences: if the support for parties changes by several points, the researchers (and their "customers") need to be confident that this is because people are really changing their minds about how they intend to vote; that it is not simply that the research method is unreliable and therefore changes between polls are likely and unpredictable. If that were the case it would render their data useless.

Questionnaires are generally considered to be high in reliability . This is because it is possible to ask a uniform set of questions. Any problems in the design of the survey can be ironed out after a pilot study . The more closed questions used, the more reliable the research.

Valid research reveals a true picture. Data that is high in validity tends to be qualitative and is often described as "rich". It seeks to provide the researcher with verstehen - a deep, true understanding of their research object. The validity of data produced by questionnaires can be undermined by the use of closed questions which limit respondents' answers.

In a questionnaire (or structured interview ) it is possible to ask open questions or closed questions. Closed questions are those with a limited number of possible responses, often "yes" or "no". Closed questions help to make data easier to analyse and more reliable. This is because closed questions produce quantitative data. However, restricting responses can impact validity. To try to overcome this, sociologists often broaden possible responses to closed questions, by, for example, ranking possible responses or indicating the degree of agreement with a statement. The latter is known as the Likert Scale, and is a way of quantifying qualitative data for ease of analysis. It is also possible to mix closed questions with an open "other (please specify)" option.

Open questions do not limit the possible answers that the responder can give, producing qualitative data which is generally considered to be higher in validity. This is because it can be detailed and the respondent can give their own views, rather than be limited by the assumptions of the researcher. However, such data can be very difficult to analyse. There is also the danger that options are simply limited during analysis rather than design (ie. the researcher puts the wide range of responses into a smaller number of categories in order to analyse them). This depends on the researcher's interpretation of the respondent's response which could be affected by subjectivity or the researcher's values.

Because questionnaires are usually used to produce quantitative data, they are generally thought to be more reliable than valid. However, they do have the advantage of being able to produce a mixture of reliable and valid data, known as triangulation .

• Questionnaire
• Closed Questions
• Open Question
• Primary Data
• Response Rate

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18 Different Types of Survey Methods + Pros & Cons

There are many reasons why surveys are important. Surveys help researchers find solutions, create discussions, and make decisions. They can also get to the bottom of the really important stuff, like, coffee or tea? Dogs or cats? Elvis or The Beatles? When it comes to finding the answers to these questions, there are 18 different types of survey methods to use.

Create your first survey, form, or poll now!

18 Different Types of Survey Methods

Different surveys serve different purposes, which is why there are a number of them to choose from. “What are the types of surveys I should use,” you ask? Here’s a look at the 18 types of survey methods researchers use today.

1. Interviews

Also known as in-person surveys or household surveys, this used to be one of the most popular types of survey to conduct. Researchers like them because they involve getting face-to-face with individuals. Of course, this method of surveying may seem antiquated when today we have online surveying at our fingertips. However, interviews still serve a purpose. 

Researchers conduct interviews when they want to discuss something personal with people. For example, they may have questions that may require extensive probing to uncover the truth. Sure, some interviewees may be more comfortable answering questions confidentially behind a keyboard. However, a skilled interviewer is able to put them at ease and get genuine responses. They can often go deeper than you may be able to using other surveying methods. 

Often, in-person interviews are recorded on camera. This way, an expert can review them afterward. They do this to determine if the answers given may be false based on an interviewee’s change in tone. A change in facial expressions and body movements may also be a signal they pick up on. 

2. Intercept Surveys

While interviews tend to choose respondents and have controls in place, intercept surveys (or “man on the spot”) surveys are conducted at certain locations or events. This involves having an interviewer, or multiple interviewers, scoping out an area and asking people, generally at random, for their thoughts or viewpoints on a particular topic. 

3. Focus Groups

These types of surveys are conducted in person as well. However, focus groups involve a number of people rather than just one individual. The group is generally small but demographically diverse and led by a moderator. The focus group may be sampling new products, or to have a discussion around a particular topic, often a hot-button one. 

The purpose of a focus group survey is often to gauge people’s reaction to a product in a group setting or to get people talking, interacting—and yes, arguing—with the moderator taking notes on the group’s behavior and attitudes. This is often the most expensive survey method as a trained moderator must be paid. In addition, locations must be secured, often in various cities, and participants must be heavily incentivized to show up. Gift cards in the $75-100 range for each survey participant are the norm.   

4. Panel Sampling

Recruiting survey-takers from a panel maintained by a research company is a surefire way to get respondents. Why? Because people have specifically signed up to take them. The benefit of these types of surveys for research, of course, is there you can be assured responses. In addition, you can filter respondents by a variety of criteria to be sure you’re speaking with your target audience.

The downside is data quality. These individuals get survey offers frequently. So, they may rush through them to get their inventive and move on to the next one. In addition, if you’re constantly tapping into the same people from the same panel, are you truly getting a representative sample?

5. Telephone Surveys

Most telephone survey research types are conducted through random digit dialing (RDD). RDD can reach both listed  and  unlisted numbers, improving sampling accuracy. Surveys are conducted by interviewers through computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) software. CATI displays the questionnaire to the interviewer with a rotation of questions.  

Telephone surveys started in the 1940s. In fact, in a  recent blog , we recount how the predictions for the 1948 presidential election were completely wrong because of sampling bias in telephone surveys. Rising in popularity in the late 50s and early 60s when the telephone became common in most American households, telephone surveys are no longer a very popular method of conducting a survey. Why? Because many people refuse to take telephone surveys or simply are not answering calls from a number they don’t recognize.

6. Post-Call Surveys

If a telephone survey is going to be conducted, today it is usually a post-call survey. This is often accomplished through IVR, or interactive voice response. IVR means there is no interviewer involved. Instead, customers record answers to pre-recorded questions using numbers on their touch-tone keypads. If a question is open-ended, the interviewee can respond by speaking and the system records the answer. IVR surveys are often deployed to measure how a customer feels about a service they just received. For example, after calling your bank, you may be asked to stay on the line to answer a series of questions about your experience.

Most post-call surveys are either  NPS surveys  or customer satisfaction (CSAT) surveys. The former asks the customer “How likely are you to recommend our organization to a f riend or family based on your most recent interaction?” while the CSAT survey asks customers “How satisfied are you with the results of your most recent interaction?”.   NPS survey results reflect how the customer feels about the brand, while CSAT surveys a re all about individual agent and contact center performance.   

7. SMS Text Surveys

Many people rarely using their phone to talk anymore, and ignore calls from unknown numbers. This has given rise to the SMS (Short Messaging Service) text survey. SMS surveys are delivered via text to people who have opted in to receive notifications from the sender. This means that there is usually some level of engagement, improving response rates. The one downside is that questions typically need to be short, and answers are generally 1-2 words or simply numbers (this is why many NPS surveys, gauging customer satisfaction, are often conducted via SMS text). Be careful not to send too many text surveys, as a person can opt-out just as easily, usually by texting STOP.

8. Mail-in Surveys / Postal Surveys

These are delivered right to respondents’ doorsteps! Mail surveys were frequently used before the advent of the internet when respondents were spread out geographically and budgets were modest. After all, mail-in surveys didn’t require much cost other than the postage. 

So are mail-in surveys going the way of the dinosaur? Not necessarily. They are still occasionally more valuable compared to different methods of surveying. Because they are going to a specific name and home address, they often feel more personalized. This personalization can prompt the recipient to complete the survey. 

They’re also good for surveys of significant length. Most people have short attention spans, and won’t spend more than a few minutes on the phone or filling out an online survey. At least, not without an incentive! However, with a mail-in survey, the person can complete it at their leisure. They can fill out some of it, set it aside, and then come back to it later. This gives mail-in surveys a relatively high response rate.

9. Kiosk Surveys

These surveys happen on a computer screen at a physical location. You’ve probably seen them popping up in stores, hotel lobbies, hospitals, and office spaces. These days, they’re just about anywhere a researcher or marketer wants to collect data from customers or passers-by.  Kiosk surveys  provide immediate feedback following a purchase or an interaction. They collect responses while the experience is still fresh in the respondent’s mind. This makes their judgment more trustworthy. Below is an example of a SurveyLegend kiosk survey at McDonald’s. The kiosk survey collects information, thanks the respondent for their feedback, and then resets for the next customer. Read how to  create your own kiosk survey here .

10. Email Surveys

Email surveys are one of the most effective surveying methods as they are delivered directly to your audience via their online account. They can be used by anyone for just about anything, and are easily customized for a particular audience. Another good thing about email surveys is you can easily see who did or did not open the survey and make improvements to it for a future send to increase response rates. You can also A/B test subject lines, imagery, and so on to see which is more effective. SurveyLegend offers dozens of different types of online survey questions, which we explore in our blog  12 Different Types of Survey Questions and When to Use Them (with Examples) .

11. Pop-up Surveys

A pop-up survey is a feedback form that pops up on a website or app. Although the main window a person is reading on their screen remains visible, it is temporarily disabled until a user interacts with the pop-up, either agreeing to leave feedback or closing out of it. The survey itself is typically about the company whose site or app the user is currently visiting (as opposed to an intercept survey, which is an invitation to take a survey hosted on a different site).

A pop-up survey attempts to grab website visitors’ attention in a variety of ways, popping up in the middle of the screen, moving in from the side, or covering the entire screen. While they can be intrusive, they also have many benefits. Read about the  benefits of pop-up surveys here .

12. Embedded Surveys

The opposite of pop-up surveys, these surveys live directly on your website or another website of your choice. Because the survey cannot be X’ed out of like a pop-up, it takes up valuable real estate on your site, or could be expensive to implement on someone else’s site. In addition, although the  embedded survey  is there at all times, it may not get the amount of attention a pop-up does since it’s not “in the respondent’s face.”

13. Social Media Surveys

There are more than  3.5 billion people  are using social media worldwide, a number projected to increase to almost 4.5 billion in 2025. This makes social media extremely important to marketers and researchers. Using platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and the new Threads, many companies and organizations send out social media surveys regularly. Because people check their social media accounts quite regularly, it’s a good way to collect responses and monitor changes in satisfaction levels or popular opinion. Check out our blog on  social media surveys  for more benefits and valuable tips.

14. Mobile Surveys

Mobile traffic has now overtaken desktop computers as the most used device for accessing the internet, with more than 54% of the share. But don’t fret – you don’t have to create an entirely new survey to reach people on their phones or tablets. Online poll makers like SurveyLegend are responsive, so when you create a desktop version of a survey, it automatically becomes mobile-friendly. The survey renders, or displays, on any device or screen regardless of size, with elements on the page automatically rearranging themselves, shrinking, or expanding as necessary. Learn more about our  responsive surveys .

15. Mobile App Surveys

Today, most companies have a mobile app. These can be an ideal way to conduct surveys as people have to willingly download your app; this means, they already have a level of engagement with your company or brand making them more likely to respond to your surveys.

16. QR Code Surveys

QR Code or QRC is an abbreviation of “Quick Response Code.” These two-dimensional encoded images, when scanned, deliver hidden information that’s stored on it. They’re different from barcodes because they can house a lot more information, including website URLs, phone numbers, or up to 4,000 characters of text. The recent QR code comeback provides a good opportunity for researchers to collect data. Place the QR code anywhere – on flyers, posters, billboards, commercials – and all someone had to do is scan it with the mobile device to have immediate access to a survey. Read more about the  benefits of QR code surveys .

17. Delphi Surveys

A Delphi survey is a structured research method used to gather the collective opinions and insights of a panel of experts on a particular topic. The process involves several rounds of questionnaires or surveys. Each round is designed to narrow things down until a consensus or hypothyses can be formed. One of the key features of the Delphi survey research is that participants are unknown to each other, thereby eliminating influence.

18. AI Surveys

Artificial intelligence is the latest types of survey method. Using AI, researchers allow the technology to ask survey questions. These “Chatbots” can even ask follow-up questions on the spot based on a respondent’s answer. There can be drawbacks, however. If a person suspects survey questions are coming from AI, they may be less likely to respond (or may respond incorrectly to mess with the AI). Additionally, AI is not good with emotions, so asking sensitive questions in an emotionless manner could be off putting to people.  Read more about AI Surveys .

Online Surveys: Ideal for Collecting Data and Feedback

That’s not all. People can take online surveys just about anywhere thanks to mobile devices. The use of these devices across age groups is balancing out as well. Check out smartphone use by age group below.

With more and more people accessing the internet through their mobile devices, now you can reach teens while they’re between classes and adults during their subway commute to work. Can’t say that for those other types of surveys !

Online surveys are also extremely cost-efficient. You don’t have to spend money on paper, printing, postage, or an interviewer. This significantly reduces set-up and administration costs. This also allows researchers and companies to send out a survey very expeditiously. Additionally, many online survey tools provide in-depth analysis of survey data. This saves you from having to spend money on further research once the survey is complete. 

Researchers have their pick of options when it’s time to survey people. Which method you choose may depend upon cost, reach, and the types of questions.

Now, you may be wondering, “ Where can I make free surveys ?” You can get started with free online surveys using SurveyLegend! He re are a few things that make SurveyLegend the ideal choice for different types of surveys for research ( or for fun) .

• When it comes to surveys, brief is best to keep respondents attention. So, SurveyLegend automatically collects some data, such as the participant’s location, reducing the number of questions you have to ask.
• People like eye candy and many surveys are just plain dull. SurveyLegend offers beautifully rendered pre-designed surveys that will get your participant’s attention – and keep it through to completion!
• Today, most people take surveys on mobile devices. Often surveys desktop surveys don’t translate well, resulting in a high drop-off rate. SurveyLegend’s designs are responsive, automatically adjusting to any screen size.

What’s your favorite method of surveying people? (Hey… that’s a good topic for a survey!) Sound off in the comments!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The 10 most common survey methods are online surveys, in-person interviews, focus groups, panel sampling, telephone surveys, post-call surveys, mail-in surveys, pop-up surveys, mobile surveys, and kiosk surveys.

Benefits of online surveys include their ability to reach a broad audience and that they are relatively inexpensive.

Kiosk surveys are surveys on a computer screen at the point of sale.

A focus group is an in-person interview or survey involving a group of people rather than just one individual. The group is generally small but demographically diverse, and led by a moderator. 

Jasko Mahmutovic

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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.

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.

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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Understanding and Evaluating Survey Research

A variety of methodologic approaches exist for individuals interested in conducting research. Selection of a research approach depends on a number of factors, including the purpose of the research, the type of research questions to be answered, and the availability of resources. The purpose of this article is to describe survey research as one approach to the conduct of research so that the reader can critically evaluate the appropriateness of the conclusions from studies employing survey research.

SURVEY RESEARCH

Survey research is defined as "the collection of information from a sample of individuals through their responses to questions" ( Check & Schutt, 2012, p. 160 ). This type of research allows for a variety of methods to recruit participants, collect data, and utilize various methods of instrumentation. Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behavior, surveys are therefore frequently used in social and psychological research ( Singleton & Straits, 2009 ).

Information has been obtained from individuals and groups through the use of survey research for decades. It can range from asking a few targeted questions of individuals on a street corner to obtain information related to behaviors and preferences, to a more rigorous study using multiple valid and reliable instruments. Common examples of less rigorous surveys include marketing or political surveys of consumer patterns and public opinion polls.

Survey research has historically included large population-based data collection. The primary purpose of this type of survey research was to obtain information describing characteristics of a large sample of individuals of interest relatively quickly. Large census surveys obtaining information reflecting demographic and personal characteristics and consumer feedback surveys are prime examples. These surveys were often provided through the mail and were intended to describe demographic characteristics of individuals or obtain opinions on which to base programs or products for a population or group.

More recently, survey research has developed into a rigorous approach to research, with scientifically tested strategies detailing who to include (representative sample), what and how to distribute (survey method), and when to initiate the survey and follow up with nonresponders (reducing nonresponse error), in order to ensure a high-quality research process and outcome. Currently, the term "survey" can reflect a range of research aims, sampling and recruitment strategies, data collection instruments, and methods of survey administration.

Given this range of options in the conduct of survey research, it is imperative for the consumer/reader of survey research to understand the potential for bias in survey research as well as the tested techniques for reducing bias, in order to draw appropriate conclusions about the information reported in this manner. Common types of error in research, along with the sources of error and strategies for reducing error as described throughout this article, are summarized in the Table .

Sources of Error in Survey Research and Strategies to Reduce Error

The goal of sampling strategies in survey research is to obtain a sufficient sample that is representative of the population of interest. It is often not feasible to collect data from an entire population of interest (e.g., all individuals with lung cancer); therefore, a subset of the population or sample is used to estimate the population responses (e.g., individuals with lung cancer currently receiving treatment). A large random sample increases the likelihood that the responses from the sample will accurately reflect the entire population. In order to accurately draw conclusions about the population, the sample must include individuals with characteristics similar to the population.

It is therefore necessary to correctly identify the population of interest (e.g., individuals with lung cancer currently receiving treatment vs. all individuals with lung cancer). The sample will ideally include individuals who reflect the intended population in terms of all characteristics of the population (e.g., sex, socioeconomic characteristics, symptom experience) and contain a similar distribution of individuals with those characteristics. As discussed by Mady Stovall beginning on page 162, Fujimori et al. ( 2014 ), for example, were interested in the population of oncologists. The authors obtained a sample of oncologists from two hospitals in Japan. These participants may or may not have similar characteristics to all oncologists in Japan.

Participant recruitment strategies can affect the adequacy and representativeness of the sample obtained. Using diverse recruitment strategies can help improve the size of the sample and help ensure adequate coverage of the intended population. For example, if a survey researcher intends to obtain a sample of individuals with breast cancer representative of all individuals with breast cancer in the United States, the researcher would want to use recruitment strategies that would recruit both women and men, individuals from rural and urban settings, individuals receiving and not receiving active treatment, and so on. Because of the difficulty in obtaining samples representative of a large population, researchers may focus the population of interest to a subset of individuals (e.g., women with stage III or IV breast cancer). Large census surveys require extremely large samples to adequately represent the characteristics of the population because they are intended to represent the entire population.

DATA COLLECTION METHODS

Survey research may use a variety of data collection methods with the most common being questionnaires and interviews. Questionnaires may be self-administered or administered by a professional, may be administered individually or in a group, and typically include a series of items reflecting the research aims. Questionnaires may include demographic questions in addition to valid and reliable research instruments ( Costanzo, Stawski, Ryff, Coe, & Almeida, 2012 ; DuBenske et al., 2014 ; Ponto, Ellington, Mellon, & Beck, 2010 ). It is helpful to the reader when authors describe the contents of the survey questionnaire so that the reader can interpret and evaluate the potential for errors of validity (e.g., items or instruments that do not measure what they are intended to measure) and reliability (e.g., items or instruments that do not measure a construct consistently). Helpful examples of articles that describe the survey instruments exist in the literature ( Buerhaus et al., 2012 ).

Questionnaires may be in paper form and mailed to participants, delivered in an electronic format via email or an Internet-based program such as SurveyMonkey, or a combination of both, giving the participant the option to choose which method is preferred ( Ponto et al., 2010 ). Using a combination of methods of survey administration can help to ensure better sample coverage (i.e., all individuals in the population having a chance of inclusion in the sample) therefore reducing coverage error ( Dillman, Smyth, & Christian, 2014 ; Singleton & Straits, 2009 ). For example, if a researcher were to only use an Internet-delivered questionnaire, individuals without access to a computer would be excluded from participation. Self-administered mailed, group, or Internet-based questionnaires are relatively low cost and practical for a large sample ( Check & Schutt, 2012 ).

Dillman et al. ( 2014 ) have described and tested a tailored design method for survey research. Improving the visual appeal and graphics of surveys by using a font size appropriate for the respondents, ordering items logically without creating unintended response bias, and arranging items clearly on each page can increase the response rate to electronic questionnaires. Attending to these and other issues in electronic questionnaires can help reduce measurement error (i.e., lack of validity or reliability) and help ensure a better response rate.

Conducting interviews is another approach to data collection used in survey research. Interviews may be conducted by phone, computer, or in person and have the benefit of visually identifying the nonverbal response(s) of the interviewee and subsequently being able to clarify the intended question. An interviewer can use probing comments to obtain more information about a question or topic and can request clarification of an unclear response ( Singleton & Straits, 2009 ). Interviews can be costly and time intensive, and therefore are relatively impractical for large samples.

Some authors advocate for using mixed methods for survey research when no one method is adequate to address the planned research aims, to reduce the potential for measurement and non-response error, and to better tailor the study methods to the intended sample ( Dillman et al., 2014 ; Singleton & Straits, 2009 ). For example, a mixed methods survey research approach may begin with distributing a questionnaire and following up with telephone interviews to clarify unclear survey responses ( Singleton & Straits, 2009 ). Mixed methods might also be used when visual or auditory deficits preclude an individual from completing a questionnaire or participating in an interview.

FUJIMORI ET AL.: SURVEY RESEARCH

Fujimori et al. ( 2014 ) described the use of survey research in a study of the effect of communication skills training for oncologists on oncologist and patient outcomes (e.g., oncologist’s performance and confidence and patient’s distress, satisfaction, and trust). A sample of 30 oncologists from two hospitals was obtained and though the authors provided a power analysis concluding an adequate number of oncologist participants to detect differences between baseline and follow-up scores, the conclusions of the study may not be generalizable to a broader population of oncologists. Oncologists were randomized to either an intervention group (i.e., communication skills training) or a control group (i.e., no training).

Fujimori et al. ( 2014 ) chose a quantitative approach to collect data from oncologist and patient participants regarding the study outcome variables. Self-report numeric ratings were used to measure oncologist confidence and patient distress, satisfaction, and trust. Oncologist confidence was measured using two instruments each using 10-point Likert rating scales. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used to measure patient distress and has demonstrated validity and reliability in a number of populations including individuals with cancer ( Bjelland, Dahl, Haug, & Neckelmann, 2002 ). Patient satisfaction and trust were measured using 0 to 10 numeric rating scales. Numeric observer ratings were used to measure oncologist performance of communication skills based on a videotaped interaction with a standardized patient. Participants completed the same questionnaires at baseline and follow-up.

The authors clearly describe what data were collected from all participants. Providing additional information about the manner in which questionnaires were distributed (i.e., electronic, mail), the setting in which data were collected (e.g., home, clinic), and the design of the survey instruments (e.g., visual appeal, format, content, arrangement of items) would assist the reader in drawing conclusions about the potential for measurement and nonresponse error. The authors describe conducting a follow-up phone call or mail inquiry for nonresponders, using the Dillman et al. ( 2014 ) tailored design for survey research follow-up may have reduced nonresponse error.

CONCLUSIONS

Survey research is a useful and legitimate approach to research that has clear benefits in helping to describe and explore variables and constructs of interest. Survey research, like all research, has the potential for a variety of sources of error, but several strategies exist to reduce the potential for error. Advanced practitioners aware of the potential sources of error and strategies to improve survey research can better determine how and whether the conclusions from a survey research study apply to practice.

The author has no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

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Using a Second Mortgage for Home Improvement

A new survey found nearly a quarter of Americans don’t know how much home equity they have. Most ‘equity rich’ homeowners don’t understand equity loans.

NEW YORK – Almost one-half of all mortgaged residential property owners were considered equity rich at the end of 2023, according to the U.S. Home Equity & Underwater Report from the property and real estate data company ATTOM. That means they had built up at least 50% equity in their homes, putting them in a good position to utilize it for home improvements.

But in an environment of high interest rates, people with lower interest rate mortgages may be unwilling to change the terms on their current mortgage to access that equity. There are other options available, but how aware of these options is today's homeowner?

To find out, Rocket Loans surveyed 1,000 homeowners on different methods of financing home improvements, including using a home equity loan.

79% of homeowners failed to define a home equity loan

A home equity loan allows a homeowner to convert existing equity in their home into cash without refinancing their primary mortgage. It's a second mortgage, which means an additional payment on top of the primary mortgage, and potentially meaning the rate is slightly higher than if they refinanced their existing mortgage.

When asked to choose the correct definition of this type of loan, 79% of homeowners got it wrong.

A little over one-fifth (20.8%) thought it increased their primary mortgage, while also keeping the same interest rate. And, though 58.2% did know that it's a second mortgage that allows a homeowner to borrow equity, they thought it could only be done through a line of credit.

What they're thinking of is a home equity line of credit (HELOC). These loans provide access to funds much like a credit card. The borrower can draw from a revolving line of credit – with a credit limit – and even put funds back in through repayment during the draw period. A home equity loan delivers the funds through a lump sum payment with no draw period – just a repayment period that starts after closing.

This lack of home equity loan knowledge may be one reason the majority of homeowners (71.7%) have never gotten this type of loan. It's believed these loans should be more popular than other financing options because, in a higher interest rate environment, loans secured by a home will receive some of the lowest interest rates borrowers can get for any loan option. So what are they using instead?

Almost 21% of homeowners don't know how much equity they have

The amount of equity someone can borrow is tied to how much equity they have in their home. Unfortunately, about one-fifth of owners don't even know how much they have. Of all the respondents:

• 4.7% had less than $10,000
• 16.7% had $10,000 – $50,000
• 17.7% had $50,000 – $90,000
• 15.9% had $90,000 – $150,000
• 8.8% had $150,000 – $200,000
• 15.5% had over $200,000
• 20.7% don't know

Those who don't know how much equity they have, an online estimator can provide a starting point for home value. Once they have that number, they can subtract what they owe and that will give them a ballpark amount of equity in the home. Lenders will only allow borrowers to take out a percentage of their equity and may require a minimum loan amount.

For projects worth less than that amount, a personal loan can be a good option. Because they're unsecured, these loans would generally have higher rates than home equity loans, but lower rates than credit cards.

Home equity loans and personal loans can be good options for costlier home improvements, but how many homeowners are actually using them? And if they're not using these methods of financing, how are projects being paid for?

According to the Rocket Loans survey, this is how they financed at least one of these projects:

• 61.4% paid for some or all of their project costs out-of-pocket.
• 50.4% paid for some or all of their project's costs with a credit card.
• Only 13% paid for some or all of their project costs with a HELOC.
• Only 8% paid for some or all of their project costs with a home equity loan.

While other methods of payment included contractor financing, investments, insurance and refinancing, no one claimed to have used a personal loan.

This is somewhat surprising because, outside of financing through home equity, personal loans can be attractive based on having much lower rates than credit cards. The payment is also fixed, where a credit card rate can change every month. Finally, some like that it's not tied into the home. So while it may be harder to qualify, the home isn't at risk.

Given the amount of equity available to homeowners at this time, they're likely missing opportunities to use the money invested in their home to improve its value through various projects. A home equity loan provides the opportunity to capitalize on this without having to refinance their primary mortgage. However, homeowners do need to have enough equity to borrow and lenders have minimum loan amounts.

For smaller projects, personal loans may be utilized. These interest rates are higher than those for loans secured by a home, but they're significantly lower than typical credit card interest rates, occupying an important middle ground in terms of financing.

Methodology

To understand more about homeowners' knowledge of home equity loans, their past home improvement projects and how they financed them, Rocket Loans surveyed 1,000 American homeowners 25 years and older with a mortgage. Homeowners were asked about their knowledge on home equity loans as well as how much home equity they have tied up in their property. They were also asked about home improvement projects they have completed already in the past year, what plans they have for the next 2 years and how they feel about these different projects. This survey was conducted March 13, 2023. The 2024 home improvement costs listed in this article are sourced from HomeAdvisor by Angi and were reviewed on April 24, 2024.

Copyright © 2024 North Country This Week, All rights reserved.

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• Open access
• Published: 23 May 2024

Translation, validity and reliability of the persian version of the rapid assessment of physical activity questionnaire

• Majid Barati 1 , 2 ,
• Eva Ekvall Hansson 3 ,
• Zahra Taheri-Kharameh 4 , 5 &
• Tari D Topolski 6  

BMC Geriatrics volume  24 , Article number:  452 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

Metrics details

The purpose of this study was to produce a valid and reliable Persian version of the Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity (RAPA) questionnaire, which previously has been shown to be valid and reliable for assessing physical activity among older adults.

Permission was obtained from the scale developer, who provided a copy of the the Linguistic Validation of the RAPA Qestionnaire, which utilizes a forward-backward translation methodology. Content validity, face validity, and construct validity of the questionnaire were then determined. Comparison of known groups (older adults with more or less than 50% balance confidence) was used to assess construct validity and the Leiden-Padua (LEIPAD) quality of life questionnaire were used to assess convergent validity. Three hundred older adults, who were members of the Qom retirement centers, participated in the study. Thirty participants completed the RAPA twice with a one-week interval to determine test–retest reliability.

Results of comparisons of known groups showed that the mean RAPA score of the older people with greater balance confidence was significantly higher. Significant correlations between most of the scores obtained from both RAPA and the LEIPAD questionnaires confirmed the convergent validity of the questionnaire. Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) was as high as 0.94 showing that the test–retest reliability was good.

This study showed the Persian RAPA is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring physical activity among older individuals in both research and clinical contexts.

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Introduction

Effects of age, the progressive declines in physiological function, are associated with mobility impairments and increased dependence. Regular physical activity (PA) can bring significant health benefits to people of all ages, especially those who are aging. Research has increasingly showed that PA can increase active and independent years of life, reduce risk of chronic condition and disability, and improve quality of life [ 1 , 2 ]. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines physical activity as any physical activity produced by the musculoskeletal system that requires energy consumption, and estimates physical inactivity is an independent risk factor for chronic diseases and the cause of 1.9 million deaths worldwide. The recommendations from WHO include both aerobic exercise and strength exercise as well as balance exercises to reduce the risk of falls [ 3 ].

Understanding the amount and type of physical activity of individuals is essential for health promotion planning [ 4 ]. Questionnaires are one of the data collection methods commonly used to evaluate PA in research as well as in clinical practice [ 5 ]. Compared to alternative methods of evaluating PA, questionnaires are short, easy and with minimal financial resources as a screening tool. Standard physical activity assessment tools for the Iranian older people`s use are limited and relatively long [ 6 ].

The Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity (RAPA) is a self-administered questionnaire designed by Topolski et al., in 2006 to examine levels of physical activity. This questionnaire is short and easy to understand and has been widely used in many studies. Another advantage of RAPA is the examination of the strength and flexibility activities that are important to reduce the risk of falls in the older people [ 7 ].

Over the past decade, the RAPA has been utilized in numerous studies as a valid measure of PA [ 12 ]. The translation and validation of this tool also have been extensively studied by researchers in various countries, such as Portugal [ 8 ], Turkey [ 9 ], Spain [ 10 ] and Austria [ 11 ]. These studies have shown that the RAPA can be considered a reliable and valid tool for assessing physical activity. Despite its translation and validation in multiple languages, it is worth noting that a validated version of the RAPA in Persian has not yet been developed in Iran, to the best of our knowledge. The aim of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Persian version of RAPA in the older people.

Design and participants

This is a methodological study to determine the psychometric characteristics of the RAPA, as a quickly assessing the level of physical activity in older people in Qom, a provincial city in the central region of Iran. In psychometric studies, it is recommended to have a sample size of at least 300 individuals [ 13 ]. So, a total of 300 older individuals were selected to participate in this study based on specific criteria. The inclusion criteria included people aged 60 years or older, members of Qom’s retirement centers, independently living at home, lack of psychological and cognitive impairment, consent to participate in the study, ability to communicate and respond. The exclusion criterion was as follows: refusal for participation in study. The purpose of the study was explained to the participants.

Translation procedures

After obtaining permission from the scale developer through correspondence, we proceeded to utilize the recommended Forward-Backward method for the translation process. The translation was conducted based on the guidelines provided by the WHO, as part of the International Quality of Life Assessment Project (IQoLAP) [ 14 ]. This approach to translation and validation has been developed for use with the SF-36, but it can also be applied to other translation efforts. The translation process involved two translators: one without medical knowledge and another who was a medical university expert. By comparing the results of both translations, we synthesized a final version, which was then translated back into English by an independent translator. This translated copy was then sent to the original RAPA developer for review. After incorporating necessary modifications based on the developer’s feedback, the final Persian version was approved.

Content validity

In order to assess the content validity of the questionnaire, 10 experts specializing in geriatrics, physical activity, and psychometrics were invited to participate. They were asked to complete the questionnaire and provide feedback based on the content validity index (CVI) and the content validity ratio (CVR). To evaluate the CVR, three items were considered for each question that were: (a) it is necessary; (b) useful but not essential; and (c) not necessary. Panel members selected one of the three options for each item of the scale. Then, the CVR of the RAPA was calculated as follows CVR= (Ne - N/2)/(N/2), in which the Ne is the number of experts evaluating “essential” and N is the total number of experts. The determination of the accepted value was made by referring to Lawshe’s table and considering the number of experts involved. As per Lawshe’s table, an item with a CVR exceeding 0.62 is considered acceptable when there are 10 experts involved [ 15 ].

Then, to assessment the CVI, 3 criteria, simplicity, specificity, and clarity were individually examined in a 4-part Likert scale for each item by 10 experts (e.g. for simplicity = 1, incomprehensible = 4, Quite simple and understandable). For this purpose, in this study, the CVI score will be calculated by summing the percentages of agreement scores for each item that scored 3 and 4 (highest score) on the total number of experts. To determine the suitability of items, we relied on the CVI. Items with a CVI above 0.79 were found to be highly suitable, indicating a strong alignment with the desired criteria. For items falling within the range of 0.70 to 0.79, modifications were deemed necessary to enhance their suitability. Lastly, items with a CVI below 0.70 were deemed unacceptable, as they did not meet the desired criteria [ 16 ].

Face validity

In order to determine face validity, 10 older people with inclusion criteria into research were asked to express for content, clarity, readability, and simplicity and easy to understand tool expressions. Finally, according to patients` feedback and research team, necessary changes were considered; the target population of this study was the older people members of retirement centers in Qom. Sampling method was stratified and inclusion criteria were age equal to and over 60 years, home living, lack of mental and cognitive impairment (score of 6 or above in Farsi version of abbreviated mental test), consent to participate, capable of communicating and responding.

After obtaining permission from the Qom University of Medical Sciences (IR.MUQ.REC.1400.135) and coordinating with retirement centers, Questionnaires were completed within 6 months after the confidentiality of the information was obtained and the participants` consent was obtained.

Instruments

Demographic and medical information, RAPA, Leiden-Padua (LEIPAD) questionnaire and Activities-Specific Balance Confidence scale (ABC) were used to collect data.

RAPA is a self-report physical activity measurement tool originally designed in English in the USA. It contains two sections and 9 items with response yes/no options. The first part of the tool contains 7 items measuring different levels of physical activity. The second part questions the strength and flexibility training. To score the RAPA, the question with the highest score with a “yes” response is chosen from the first items. In addition, an affirmative answer for participating in muscle strengthening activities such as lifting weights or calisthenics gets one point. The older people, who participated in flexibility activities such as stretching or yoga, were awarded two bonus points, leading to a total possible score of 3 points. The reliability and validity of the original version are confirmed [ 7 ].

Quality of life was assessed by using LEIPAD, an Internationally Applicable Instrument to Assess Quality of Life in the older people. This questionnaire was designed by the WHO sponsored by Di Leo et al., and measures the quality of life of the older people in 7 dimensions of physical function (5 questions), self-care (6 questions), depression and anxiety (4 questions), cognitive functioning (5 questions), social function (3 questions), sexual function (2 questions) and life satisfaction (6 questions). It is designed as a Likert and each question has four options ranging from zero (worst case) to three (best case) and has a total of 31 questions with a minimum of 0 and a maximum of 93 [ 17 ]. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire have been confirmed by Maliki et al. [ 18 ].

Balance confidence was measured using the short form of the ABC [ 19 ]. This scale requires participants to rate their confidence in their balance on a scale from 0% (no confidence) to 100% (completely confident) for six different activities of daily living. The overall balance confidence score was calculated as a percentage based on the average of all six items on the ABC-6. Higher scores on the scale indicate greater confidence in one’s balance. A score below 50% on the ABC-6 suggests lower levels of functioning and confidence in maintaining balance. The short version of the scale, known as ABC-6, is a more simplified and concise version compared to the original ABCscale [ 20 ], as suggested by previous studies [ 21 , 22 ]. The Persian version of the ABC-6 scale has been validated and shown to be reliable in measuring balance confidence [ 23 ].

Demographic and disease information questionnaire include age, gender, marital status, residence status, education level, and economic status.

Construct validity

Known group comparison.

Known Group Comparison was used to determine construct validity in this study. This type of validity determines the ability of a tool to differentiate respondents according to a criterion and assumption. In this study, the parameter used was balance confidence in the older people. For this purpose, comparison of RAPA score between two groups of older people with balance confidence was more or less than 50%. We expected people with higher levels of confidence in balance to score better on the RAPA than older people with no confidence in balance [ 24 ]. The Cohen’s d statistic was utilized to compare two groups and assess the magnitude of the effect size.

Convergent validity

In order to investigate convergent validity, the correlation between the RAPA scores and LEIPAD scores were measured. We hypothesized that there would be a positive significant correlation between the RAPA and the LEIPAD. In assessing the strength of the correlation, we utilized a Pearson’s correlation.

• Reliability

One weeks after the initial survey, the RAPA was once again distributed to 30 participants who had previously responded to the first set of questionnaires. These participants had willingly agreed to complete the RAPA twice, with a one-week gap between administrations. The random method was employed to select the participants for this procedure. The purpose of this procedure was to assess the reliability of the questionnaire using the test-retest method [ 25 ].

Data analysis

Data analysis was performed using SPSS16 software at the significant level of 0.05. Sample characteristics and the RAPA score were analysed by using descriptive statistics. As known group comparison, the RAPA score of participants with balance confidence more or less than 50% were evaluated with the independent t-test. To assess the concurrent validity of the RAPA, Pearson’s correlation coefficient between the scores of the RAPA and LEIPAD was computed. A coefficient ranging from 0 to 0.29 indicates a weak correlation. A coefficient between 0.30 and 0.69 suggests a moderate correlation. Finally, a coefficient between 0.70 and 1 indicates a strong correlation [ 26 ]. Test-retest reliability was assessed by computing the intraclass correlation coefficient of each domain. If the index is above 0.80, the stability level is favorable [ 25 ].

Sample characteristics

Mean and standard deviation of the participants’ age was 64.6 ± 5.24 years. Most participants were males (77.7%), married (88.7%), and had low literacy (58.6%). Just 26% of the participants were regularly active according to the RAPA. Most of the participants (71.7%) reported that they did not do strength and/or flexibility training. The demographic characteristics of participants are presented in Table  1 .

Content and face validity

Content validity was assessed for CVI and CVR, and all items achieved satisfactory scores. The overall tool demonstrated a CVI value of 0.96 and a CVR value of 0.94. Furthermore, individual item CVR scores surpassed 0.60, while item CVI scores were above 0.8. The participants approved all 10 items in terms of face validity.

With regard to the known group comparison, shown in Table  2 , the older people with higher confidence exhibited significantly higher RAPA scores than those who had poor confidence.

The correlation between RAPA and LEIPAD is shows in Table  3 , which was used to assess convergent validity. The correlation coefficient of the two questionnaires was positive and significantly in all dimensions except for social function and sexual function.

To assess test-retest reliability, the ICC for the RAPA was calculated 0.94 and interpreted as having very good test-retest reliability. The ICC also exceed 0.95 and 0.91 for aerobic part and strength and flexibility part, respectively (Table  4 ).

The aim of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of the RAPA in Iranian older people. Many studies have been conducted to assess and increase PA in older people. However, an absolute prerequisite of these studies is the availability of a short, valid and reliable instrument. In the current study, the questionnaire was translated by experienced and skilled experts who followed the principles of translation and ensured accuracy in cultural adaptation. The study strictly adhered to the recommended steps for instrument translation and cultural adaptation of the translated version. Content validity was assessed using CVI and CVR, and all items received satisfactory scores. Face validity was qualitatively confirmed through feedback from 10 older adults.

In this study, to evaluate the construct validity of the questionnaire, we used the method of known groups comparison for balance confidence parameter. The results showed that RAPA score was significantly lower in older people with confidence less than 50% as expected. This assumption in the study was confirmed. Another study that showed balance confidence is a main determinant of physical activity levels in the older people with diabetes [ 27 ]. These results are consistent with those of the Spanish version of RAPA, which also showed that physical activity was significantly and inversely correlated with BMI and waist circumference [ 28 ].

The correlation between the scores obtained from the RAPA and LEIPAD questionnaires varied from low to moderate, suggesting a positive correlation of the same magnitude. This finding supports the concurrent validity of the questionnaire, aligning with the results of previous studies conducted in this field. CHAMPS was used to assess the validity of the original version of RAPA and the results showed there is a significant correlation between RAPA and CHAMPS ( r  = 0.54). Results of the Portuguese version of RAPA showed that lower levels of physical activity were associated with worse self-report disability and slower speed [ 8 ]. Validity of the Mexican-American-Spanish version of RAPA was determined by assessing the correlation between RAPA data and the accelerometer as a direct measure of physical activity level. There was a significant relationship between RAPA and moderate and vigorous minutes of physical activity, indicating RAPA validity [ 10 ]. The Turkish version of the RAPA showed acceptable concurrent validity, because there were positive correlations between the RAPA, International Physical Activity Questionnaire- Short Form and Physical Activity Scale for the older people [ 9 ]. Although we did not use the direct physical activity tools mentioned in other studies, the present results also showed that RAPA was significantly associated with health outcomes.

In this study, the test-retest reliability of the RAPA was assessed. ICC for the RAPA was calculated to be 0.94, indicating very good test-retest reliability. In the original study of the RAPA, the test–retest was not evaluated. But in Turkish version, the weighted kappa coefficients exceeded 0.81 for both parts of RAPA, the aerobic score and strength and flexibility score, showing that the test–retest reliability was very good [ 9 ]. In contrast, the Chilian version, was not an authorized translation, and did not follow the prescribed translation and validation process required by the developer, exhibited an ICC that was lower than the favorable stability. As did the Portuguese version, which showed a moderate test–retest reliability with a weighted κ = 0.67 [ 8 ].

Based on the findings of this study, RAPA is a reliable and valid instrument that features a short completion time, capability of use in different settings, simple scoring, and suitable reliability and validity, and is a useful tool.

This study had limitations. First, all of the tools used to assess the validity were self-report.

Although these questionnaires were recognized as valid and standard tools, objective tools such as accelerometers or pedometers may provide more accurate information on the validity of the Persian version of RAPA. Second, sampling carried out only in the retirement centers in this study reduces the generalizability of the findings. In future studies, it is also recommended that researchers focus on the sensitivity and specificity of the questionnaire.

Conclusions

The findings of this study suggest that the RAPA questionnaire has good psychometric properties for use with older Iranian adults. The RAPA was originally developed for use by genentologist to prompt talking with their patients about the need to engage in physical activity, however, it has been shown to be is appropriate for use to measure amount and type of physical activity as well as health outcomes in both research and clinical settings.

Data availability

The datasets utilized and/or analyzed during the present study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Abbreviations

Iterative reliability coefficient

Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity

Activities-Specific Balance Confidence scale

Leiden-Padua

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Acknowledgements

This study was part of a project at Qom University of Medical Sciences (IR.MUQ.REC.1400.135). The researchers hereby express their gratitude to all those who assisted in the research, as well as the older people participating in the study and the research deputy of Qom University of Medical Sciences.

This research was supported by the Qom University of Medical Science.

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Autism Spectrum Disorders Research Center, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, 6517838695, Iran

Majid Barati

Department of Public Health, Asadabad School of Medical Sciences, Asadabad, Iran

Department of Health Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

Eva Ekvall Hansson

Spiritual Health Research Center, School of religion and health, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran

Zahra Taheri-Kharameh

Department of Public Health, School of Health, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran

Department of Health Services, University of Washington, Seattle, WC, 89101, Iran

Tari D Topolski

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Contributions

Conceptualization: ZTK. Methodology: ZTK, MB. Investigation: ZTK. Data Analysis: ZTK, MB. Manuscript Writing: MB, TDT, ZTK, EEH. Manuscript Revision and Editing: EEH, TDT, ZTK, MB. All authors have thoroughly reviewed and endorsed the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Zahra Taheri-Kharameh .

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The research adhered to the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki, and we obtained approval from the Medical Ethics Committee at Qom University of Medical Sciences (registration number: IR.MUQ.REC.1400.135) to conduct the study. We provided a comprehensive explanation of the study to potential participants who met the eligibility criteria. Prior to their inclusion in the study, we obtained written informed consent from all participants. It is important to note that participants had the freedom to withdraw from the study at any time.

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Barati, M., Hansson, E.E., Taheri-Kharameh, Z. et al. Translation, validity and reliability of the persian version of the rapid assessment of physical activity questionnaire. BMC Geriatr 24 , 452 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-024-05065-3

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Here are the questions used for the report , along with responses, and the survey methodology .

CORRECTION (Sept. 8, 2023): A previous version of this report included an incorrect chart. The map graphic “Lack of confidence in Putin is widespread” has been updated to accurately reflect confidence in Putin in 24 countries.

As a new Pew Research Center survey highlights, Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, continue to be viewed negatively by people around the world. A median of 82% of adults across 24 countries have an unfavorable view of Russia, while a similar share have no confidence in Putin to do the right thing regarding world affairs, including nine-in-ten or more in Poland, Sweden, Spain, Japan, South Korea, Australia, the Netherlands, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Ratings for the country and its leader plummeted in many nations following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and they are at all-time lows in several countries in this year’s survey.

Data was collected prior to the late June uprising by Russian paramilitary organization the Wagner Group .

In contrast to Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is seen more positively. While a median of just 11% express confidence in the Russian leader, 51% say this of Zelenskyy. But opinions of Zelenskyy vary by country and fewer than half have confidence in his leadership in 10 nations, including NATO members Hungary, Greece and Italy.

NATO, which has contributed weapons and training to Ukraine since the February 2022 invasion, is seen favorably by 11 member states included in the survey. NATO has been consistently viewed more favorably than not in recent years , and views have grown slightly more positive in Greece and Poland since 2022. However, negative opinion of NATO has crept upward in Hungary and the U.S. While about six-in-ten Americans continue to express a favorable view of NATO, there is a large partisan difference on this question: 76% of Democrats see the alliance positively, compared with 49% of Republicans.

In 11 European countries surveyed, as well as India – where Russian oil access is a relevant issue – people were asked if being tough with Russia on Ukraine or maintaining access to Russia’s oil and gas reserves is more important to bilateral relations. Across these countries, a median of 66% say it is more important to be tough with Russia, while 29% say it is more important to maintain access to Russia’s energy reserves. People in Hungary, India and Greece are the most likely to want to maintain access to Russia’s oil and gas reserves, while Swedes and Poles are the most likely to want to be tough on Russia.

In several ways, publics in Greece, Hungary and India are outliers when it comes to views about Russia and Putin. Greeks and Hungarians stand out relative to European counterparts as being more favorable on Russia, confident in Putin and negative toward Zelenskyy. Hungary, in particular, has faced criticism for delays in sanctioning Russia, while public sentiments in Greece have tended to favor remaining neutral in the conflict. India (which has abstained from condemning the Russian invasion) is the only country where a majority expresses a favorable view of Russia and confidence in Putin.

These findings come from a new Pew Research Center survey conducted from Feb. 20 to May 22, 2023, among 30,861 people in 24 countries. Below are some of the other findings regarding views of Russia and NATO, attitudes toward Russian energy and confidence in Putin, Zelenskyy and key NATO leaders.

Ratings of Russia and Putin in middle-income nations

The survey includes eight middle-income nations that Pew Research Center has not surveyed since 2019 due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent difficulties in conducting face-to-face interviews across the world. Opinions toward Russia and Putin are on balance negative in these countries, although India and Indonesia are exceptions. Negative sentiment toward Russia and Putin has increased by double digits in nearly every middle-income country since 2019. For instance, 74% now express a negative view of Putin in Argentina, up from 51% four years ago.

Confidence in Zelenskyy

A median of 51% across the 24 countries surveyed express confidence in Zelenskyy’s leadership, while 39% hold the opposite view. Confidence in Zelenskyy ranges from 86% in Sweden to just 11% in Hungary. Besides Hungary, half or more do not have confidence in the Ukrainian leader in Greece, Mexico, Italy, Israel, Brazil and Argentina. Age is linked to these views: Younger adults (those ages 18 to 39) are more likely to express a lack of confidence in Zelenskyy than adults 40 and older in several countries.

Views of NATO

Positive opinion of NATO in the 11 member states polled ranges from 93% in Poland to 40% in Greece. And in Sweden, which is currently in negotiations to join NATO, 78% have a positive view of the alliance. Among these countries, NATO favorability has been largely stable, historically, and particularly high in the aftermath of the Russian invasion. Greeks, who tend to have more negative views of NATO compared with other countries surveyed in recent years, have grown more favorable since 2022, as have Poles. However, positive sentiment has declined in both the U.S. and Hungary.

Those who place themselves on the ideological right in several European countries are more likely to express a positive view of the alliance than those on the left. However, in the U.S. and Canada, this pattern is reversed: Those on the left are more likely to say they have a favorable opinion of NATO.

Confidence in Biden, Macron and Scholz

On balance, confidence in Zelenskyy largely aligns with views of U.S. President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. A median of 54% have confidence in Biden on the world stage, 50% have confidence in Macron and 49% say the same of Scholz.

While Biden is largely viewed with confidence across the world, support is weaker among some NATO allies, such as Hungary and Italy. For more on international views of Biden, see “ International Views of Biden and U.S. Largely Positive .” While medians of 50% and 49% have confidence in Macron and Scholz, respectively, support of both leaders has declined in many countries since 2022, particularly among NATO allies.

Road map to the report

The chapters that follow discuss these findings and others in more detail:

• Chapter 1 looks at confidence in Russian President Vladimir Putin to do the right thing regarding world affairs.
• Chapter 2 examines overall opinion of Russia across 24 countries surveyed.
• Chapter 3 considers attitudes toward Russian oil and gas access .
• Chapter 4 explores confidence in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to do the right thing regarding world affairs.
• Chapter 5 looks at overall opinion of NATO among member nations and Sweden.
• Chapter 6 examines confidence in Putin and Zelenskyy , paired with views of U.S. President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

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