How to Ask Survey Questions

Arlene Fink (PhD) is Professor of Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles, and president of the Langley Research Institute. Her main interests include evaluation and survey research and the conduct of research literature reviews as well as the evaluation of their quality. Dr. Fink has conducted scores of evaluation studies in public health, medicine, and education. She is on the faculty of UCLA’s Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program and is a scientific and evaluation advisor to UCLA’s Gambling Studies and IMPACT (Improving Access, Counseling & Treatment for Californians with Prostate Cancer) programs. She consults nationally and internationally for agencies such as L’institut de Promotion del la Prévention Secondaire en Addictologie (IPPSA) in Paris, France, and Peninsula Health in Victoria, Australia. Professor Fink has taught and lectured extensively all over the world and is the author of more than 130 peer-reviewed articles and 15 textbooks.

"I am truly amazed at how complete this booklet is. What a wealth of material to help in developing questions!"

• How to Ask Survey Questions: Learning ObjectivesCh 1. Asking Questions: A Matter of ContextChecklist for Deciding the Survey′s ContextGuidelines for Asking Survey QuestionsGuidelines for Using Conventional Language When Asking Survey QuestionsCh 2. Keep Questions Closed or Open them Up?Open-Ended QuestionsClosed or Closed-Ended QuestionsChecklist for Deciding Between Open- and Closed-Ended QuestionsCh 3. Responses: Choices and MeasurementResponse ChoicesCategorical or Nominal Measures: How to Get ThemCategorical Responses and Who Is EligibleCategorical Responses Are ExclusiveCategorical Responses Are InclusiveCategorical Responses and MeaningQuestions With Ordered Responses: How to Get Ordinal Data Using Common Rating ScalesGuidelines for Asking Closed Questions and Determining Ordered Responses or ScalesNumerical MeasuresCh 4. Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behavior: Additional Tips for Creating Survey QuestionsFeelings and Intensity: Getting at the AttitudeRecall and Time: Getting at BehaviorRegulating Difficulty and Threat: Getting at KnowledgeDemographics: Who Are the Respondents?Age, Income, and EducationGuidelines for Asking Questions on Vital Statistics and DemographicsCh 5. Special Survey Questions: Factorial, Conjoint, and OnlineFacturial Survey Questions: Constant or Changeable Beliefs?Guidelines for Creating Factorial Survey QuestionsConjoint Analysis Questions: Which Do You Prefer?Online Survey QuestionsDropdown ListsSelect OneCheck All That ApplySeveral Questions With the Same Response ChoicesOpen-Ended QuestionsCh 6. Survey Question Techniques for the Survey Team: The Focus GroupFocus Group QuestionsChecklist for Conducting a Focus GroupChecklist for a Good Focus Group Question SequenceExercisesAnswersSuggested ReadingsGlossaryAbout the Author