Chapter 18

Question 1

What is a questionnaire?

Answer 1

A tool for systematically gathering information from study participants.

Question 2

A good questionnaire is:

Answer 2

Carefully crafted for a specific purpose.

Question 3

Questionnaire design usually works best when:

Answer 3

1) Starts with the identification of the general and specific content to be covered by the survey instrument.
2) Progresses to choosing the types of questions and answers for each topic to be assessed.

Question 4

The questions within each section and the section themselves should be _____. The formatting of the document should be _____. The survey instrument should be _____.

Answer 4

In logical order; visually appealing and easy to read; pre-tested and revise as necessary.

Question 5

What are the nine steps of a questionnaire design plan?

Answer 5

1) Identify general question categories
2) Select specific question topics
3) Choose question and answer types
4) Check wording
5) Choose order
6) Format layout
7) Pre-test
8) Revise
9) Use


Question 6

The first step in designing a questionnaire is:

Answer 6

To list the topics that the survey instruments must cover (exposure, disease, and population areas that are the focus of the study question).

Question 7

What are potential confounders?

Answer 7

Factors that might influence the relationships between key exposures and outcomes (the questionnaire must include them).

Question 8

What are some question areas?

Answer 8

1) Demographics
2) Key exposures
3) Key diseases/outcomes
4) Related exposures and outcomes

Question 9

The questionnaire must include questions confirming what?

Answer 9

That participants meet the eligibility criteria

Question 10

The questionnaire must be able to accurately place participants into:

Answer 10

Key categories. (Cohort study may ask about exposure and disease status; Case control studies may ask to confirm case and control definitions)

Question 11

A survey that is too short will _____. A survey that is too long may _____.

Answer 11

Miss potentially crucial information; yield a low response rate.

Question 12

Decisions about the types of questions to ask must include considerations for what?

Answer 12

Statistical tests the researcher wants to be able to run on the collected data

Question 13

What are closed-ended questions?

Answer 13

Questions that allow a limited number of possible answers.

Question 14

Give one pro and one con for closed-ended questions.

Answer 14

Pro: They are easier to statistically analyze

Con: They may force respondents to select answers that do not truly express their status or opinions.

Question 15

Give one pro and one con for open-ended questions (Free response).

Answer 15

Pro: Allow participants to explain their selections and qualify their responses, give multiple answers, and provide responses not anticipated by the researchers

Con: Take longer to ask and answer, and they may result in irrelevant answers; recoding answers into objective and meaningful categories for statistical analysis is time consuming and imprecise.

Question 16

When are open-ended questions most useful?

Answer 16

When they are used to capture initial impressions or to clarify responses to closed-ended questions.

Question 17

What are the three formats that closed-ended questions come in?

Answer 17

1) Date and time variables
2) Numeric variables
3) Categorical variables

Question 18

What are the four formats of categorical questions?

Answer 18

1) Dichotomous (yes/no)
2) Dozens of possible answers
3) Ordinal (ranked)
4) Nominal (unordered)

Question 19

What does anonymity do?

Answer 19

Protects participants and allows them to provide honest answers to sensitive questions.

Question 20

Questions must be framed in a way that

Answer 20

Protects the respondents identity.

Question 21

For numeric responses the question should state:

Answer 21

How specific the answers should be

Question 22

For categorical questions responses:

Answer 22

The response categories should be listed and should include an “other“ category.

Question 23

For ranked question responses, decisions must be made about:

Answer 23

How many entries to include on the scale (and whether there will be a neutral option. (Neutral options list 5 to 7 categories; no neutral options list four or six categories). {Likert scales/items}

Question 24

For a self-report survey, a decision must be made about whether to add a category for:

Answer 24

“Not applicable” or “ I don’t know“ or “No answer“.

Question 25

Anyone who skips an eligibility question when completing the survey form will be deemed:

Answer 25

Ineligible for inclusion in the analysis.

Question 26

If you neglect to add an “I don’t know” answer to a question that needs it, what kind of bias may occur?

Answer 26

Information bias; by forcing participants to provide an answer they assume the researcher wants to hear

Question 27

What is habituation?

Answer 27

Occurs when respondents have given the same answer to so many questions in a row, but they continue to reply with the same response, even one that does not reflect the true perspectives, because that response has become routine.

Question 28

How should the questions be ordered?

Answer 28

First: An open ended question to garner a first impression from participants
Second: A series of yes/no questions to clarify beliefs, perceptions, and practices
Third: A concluding, open ended question to allow participants to express final impressions

Question 29

What problems should question wording avoid?

Answer 29

1) Big words/jargon
2) Undefined abbreviations
3) Ambiguous meanings
4)  Vagueness
5) Double negatives
6) Faulty assumptions
7) 2-in-1
8) Impossible to recall accurately
9) Too much detail
10) Sensitive questions
11) Hypothetical questions
12) Leading questions
13) Leading answers
14) Answers with a poor scale
15) Lack of specificity
16) Missing answer options
17) Overlapping answer options

Question 30

The layout of the survey instrument will vary depending on:

Answer 30

The mechanism of data collection used

Question 31

What should the layout and formatting be for a written survey?

Answer 31

1) The answer sheet should clearly indicate where and how responses should be marked
2) Readable and large font
3) White space (blank areas) for separating sections and making the page visually appealing
4) Very clear instructions for skips should direct interviewers or respondents to jump over sets of non-applicable questions
5) A cover letter or list of instructions that tell respondents how to record their answers

Question 32

A reliable and valid questionnaire:

Answer 32

Measures what it was intended to measure in the population being assessed

Question 33

What is reliability (or precision)?

Answer 33

Demonstrated when consistent answers are given to similar questions and when an assessment yields the same outcome when repeated several times

Question 34

What is validity (accuracy)?

Answer 34

When the responses or measurements are shown to be correct.

Question 35

One aspect of reliability is ____.

Answer 35

Internal consistency

Question 36

What is internal consistency?

Answer 36

The stability of participants responses (same question is asked in different ways to ensure responses are the same).

Question 37

How can we confirm internal consistency in a data set?

Answer 37

By using tests of intercorrelation that assess whether two or more related items in a survey instrument measure various aspects of the same concept.

Question 38

Cronbach’s alpha and the Kuder-Richardson formula 20 (KR-20) are both measures of what?

Answer 38

Internal consistency among questionnaire items. (Expressed as a number between zero to one, with scores near one indicating minimal random error and high reliability)

Question 39

What is another facet of reliability?

Answer 39

Test-retest reliability.

Question 40

What is test-retest reliability?

Answer 40

Demonstrated when people who take a baseline assessment and then retake the test later have about the same scores each time they are tested.

Question 41

Some researchers use the word concept to describe what?

Answer 41

Theories informed by observations. (General abstraction)

Question 42

Some researchers use the word construct to describe what?

Answer 42

Theories informed from more complex abstractions. (Multidimensional)

Question 43

What is content validity (logical validity)?

Answer 43

When a set of survey items captures the most relevant information about the study domain.

Question 44

What does content validity require consideration of?

Answer 44

1) The technical quality of the survey items

2) Their representativeness of all the dimensions of the theoretical constructs being measured by the survey instrument

Question 45

What does the principal component analysis method provide?

Answer 45

Information about which items in an assessment tool might be redundant or unnecessary and can be removed.

Question 46

What is face validity?

Answer 46

Present when content experts and users agree that a survey instrument will be easy for study participants to understand and correctly complete

Question 47

What is construct validity?

Answer 47

When a test measures a theoretical construct a test is intended to assess.

Question 48

What is convergent validity?

Answer 48

Present went two indicators that should be related are shown to be correlated.

Question 49

What is discriminant validity?

Answer 49

When two indicators should not be related and are shown to not be associated

Question 50

What is criterion validate (concrete validity)?

Answer 50

Uses an established test as standard (or criterion) for validating a new test that examines a similar theoretical constructs.

Question 51

What are the two main approaches to examining criterion validity?

Answer 51

1) Concurrent validity: evaluated when participants in a pilot study complete both the existing and new tests and the correlation between the test results is calculated
2) Predictive validity: appraised when the new test is correlated with subsequent measures of performance in related domains.

Question 52

What is one way we can improve validity?

Answer 52

Including survey questions or modules that are identical to the ones used in previous research projects.

Question 53

Several widely used and validated tests are available to researchers, such as:

Answer 53

1) The Beck Depression Inventory and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ): Assesses psychological status.
2) The Mini-Mental State Examination: Evaluates cognitive function
3) The SF-36 and SF-12: Measure health-related quality of life (HRQOL)

Question 54

What is back translation (or double translation)?

Answer 54

When one person translates the questionnaire from the original language to the new language, then another person translates back to the original language.

Question 55

A pilot test (or pretest) of the questionnaire is helpful for checking:

Answer 55

1) The wording and clarity of the questions
2) The order of the questions
3) The ability and willingness of participants to answer the questions
4) The responses given and whether the responses match the intended types of responses
5) The amount of time it takes to complete the survey

Question 56

The researcher should ask several volunteers to help with the pilot test. These volunteers should:

Answer 56

1) Be from the target population NOT the sample population.
2) Meet the eligibility criteria
3) Provide feedback

Question 57

Participation rate will be higher if

Answer 57

1) Recruits understand importance and value of the research project
2) You provide multiple invitations and opportunities to participate
3) You make participation as easy as possible
4) Incentives are included (must be approved by ethics committee)