1 4. Coordinating Modules & Layout

2 A.A good introduction B.Choosing the order of modules C.Streamlining your instrument D.Question layout and formatting

3 4. Coordinating Modules & Layout A.A good introduction Decide whether you need to state the purpose of the study to the respondent –think about the trade-off – ethical issues, influence –medical (drug) trials require full disclosure Confidentiality –important to explain that there is no link between participating in the survey and access to services Other information to include –does your IRB require a signed consent form? Ex. surveys involving invasive health tests (age groups – consent differs) –provide information on how long the interview will take. if you will compensate them for their time – state this at the start –explain they are free to not answer a question or stop at any point –provide contact person information in case they have questions later

4 4. Coordinating Modules & Layout B. Choosing the Order of Modules Ordering the sections –It is important for the surveyors to try and build a relationship in the short time. Start them off with easier questions (household characteristics, roster), move on to more personal ones (income, savings, reproductive behavior etc.) –Could introduce informative games (risk-seeking behavior; time discounting) in between –Would responses differ? Especially for knowledge and behavior What if you ask about willingness to pay for health insurance after asking questions on health events and expenditures? What if you ask a question about political preferences after asking about socio-economic status? Reference period for sections/questions –Common: 7 days/30 days/6 months/1 year –Normal year (high variance – agricultural output?)

4. Coordinating Modules & Layout B. Choosing the Order of Modules Metadata (date, time, location, whether interview completed) should come at the very front) Next: statement getting informed consent of the household (more on this later). In some studies, signature may be required. 5

4. Coordinating Modules & Layout B. Choosing the Order of Modules Any modules on sensitive topics should be placed at end 1.Interviewer can develop rapport, increasing likelihood of honest response 2.If respondent breaks off interview, only data from that last modules lost 3.Any interested onlookers have wandered off… 4.Start with roster to identify respondents for later sections 5.Education, health, are less sensitive. 6.Savings, credit, transfers, fertility are among the most sensitive. 6

4. Coordinating Modules & Layout C. Streamlining your Instrument A survey should be as streamlined as possible to meet the research objectives A shorter survey will decrease refusal, decrease respondent and interviewer fatigue, and save money Once modules are arranged  begin editing out questions that do not meet research objectives Introduce explicit skip codes between modules, and between questions, that ensure inapplicable questions are not asked 7

4. Coordinating Modules & Layout C. Streamlining your Instrument A survey should be as streamlined as possible to meet the research objectives (but no shorter). A shorter survey will decrease refusal, decrease respondent and interviewer fatigue, and save money General rule: urban households will have higher refusal rates, be more difficult to interview, and sit for less time than rural households. 8

4. Coordinating Modules & Layout D. Questionnaire Layout and Formatting Structured, organized questionnaire formatting can improve the speed of your instrument and quality of data collection Ex: Grid Design to collect data on your units of observation See “5. Formatting Your Survey” for more details CMF also has many examples to guide you in layout design (See Survey Samples online) 9