Research Guru by Alice Irvan, PRC, APR

Open-end questions add value to a survey

March 28, 2011 at 4:18 am | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment
Tags: comment section, online surveys, open-end question; closed-end question; qualitative analyis, survey question

Open-ended survey questions should be used as sparingly and strategically as spices added to a favorite meal. Information from verbatim comments can be used to understand responses to a key question, to help formulate new questions, or to obtain quotes to use in reports to help the numbers “come to life.”

By following a few guidelines, you can use this qualitative analysis tool effectively.

1. If you don’t plan to analyze the responses, don’t ask the question. That’s simple. Don’t waste your time and the respondents’ time.
2. Use open-ends sparingly. In a five-minute survey, there should be no more than one general open-end question if all other questions are closed-end, and no more than two in an eight-to-ten minute survey. Respondents get fatigued at “explaining” too many answers.
3. Be mindful of the respondents’ time.  Answering an open-end question can take 20 to 45 seconds, adding length to the survey. In the same time, you could collect data for two to three closed-end questions.
4. Tie the open-end question to a closed-end question to explore underlying reasons, opinions or beliefs. For example, you might ask “Please explain the reasons you chose to rate your overall dining experience as fair.”
5. General “comment” sections on surveys generally don’t produce data that applies to the overall population. However, some survey designers include them for “political” purposes or to allow an individual respondent to “vent” about a specific problem. Again, if you don’t plan to respond to individual comments or try to solve problems, don’t set the expectation by including an open comment section.

 

In our next post, we’ll explore ways to analyze the comments.