Training course on developing and using questionnaires for agricultural surveys Question phrasing Question phrasing Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 1

They have a limited vocabulary, Question phrasing To limit the bias due to these difficulties the questionnaire designer should work with these minimal assumptions on respondents They have a limited vocabulary, They can understand only short sentences and can be confused by long explanations They can understand positive instruction more easily than negative ones They know nothing about National Statistical Institutes procedures or structure They might not understand why the information aked for is needed They might not understand the definitions or the explanations used and supplied by NSI Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 2

Common problems with wording Leading questions Question phrasing Common problems with wording Leading questions Vague questions Threating questions Double-barreled questions Negative questions Complex questions Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 3

Question phrasing Leading questions: a questions that forces or force a certain type of answer. This problem can be caused by the choice of the categories for the answers Vague questions. A question is vague if it can be interpreted in diferent ways by differents respondents Threating questions. Questions that deal with personal or private matters Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 4

How satisfied are you with your pay and job conditions? Question phrasing Double-barreled questions. Questions that concern more than one concept and ask for a simple answer e.g. How satisfied are you with your pay and job conditions? Is this tool interesting and useful? Complex questions. Questions that ask to elaborate data or are based on some implicit assumptions On a scale 1 to 10, please rate for each of the 12 categories listed below, your level of knowledge and experience Negative questions or double negative questions. Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 5

Question phrasing Principles of an appropriate languages to avoid some of previous problems are based on: Words Sentences leght Tone Order of clauses Active vs passive voice Punctuation Instructions Use of qualifiers Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 6

Question phrasing Words The questions should be stated using simple and unambiguous terms. That is terms that can be interpreted in the same way by all respondents (e.g. avoid terms like usually, typically, ecc.) Technical terms or foreign terms should be avoided. It should be desiderable that the same term had the same meaning across different surveys to help the comparison of data Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 7

Question phrasing Sentences length Short sentences are easier to understand. Clauses should be avoided each question should concern only a single item of information Tone Question designer should be aware that minor changes in the tone can have a significant effect. Negative word (e.g. not, failed, etc. ) should be avoided because they ask more time to respondent or they can have an emotional contents Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 8

Question phrasing Order of clauses They should be in logical order Passive vs active forms The active form is generally easier to understand by people Punctuation It should help in understanding the question if used correctly. It should be remind that mainly commas, full stops and question marks are easily understood. If there are many commas or full stops we can have too clasues. Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 9

Question phrasing Instructions Assume that people is inclined to skip the instruction and to forget them. Instruction on how to answer to a given question should: Be as close as possible where they are used Be as clear and synthetic as possible Furthermore some instructions could be repeated during the questionnaire if they concern questions in different parts of the questionnaire Instruction on how to use the questionnaire should : Be grouped and placed at the beginning of the questionnaire For the discussion: examples of Instruction on how to use the questionnaire for a survey on farms Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 10

Question phrasing Use of qualifiers A qualifier is a word that determines or alter the scope of the question or of a statement. For example, the following 2 statements are nearly identical: It often rains in Seattle. It always rains in Seattle The first one could be true, the second one is false Some qualifiers are the following · All, most, some, none (no) · Always , usually, sometimes, never · Great, much, little, no · More, equal, less · Good, bad It is better to include them on the possible answers Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 11

Question phrasing Discussion Do the minimal assumptions fit to the case of surveys on agriculture? More common problems in formulating questions in your experiences Examples of thretaing questions in agriculture Example of complex questions Can the principles of avoiding technical terms be used in the case of agricultural or business surveys? ….. Istanbul, 18-21 July 2011 12