In our connected world, we’re inundated by data collection tools. Today’s technology surpasses the quality of anything we’ve had before, and sending out a mass survey is easier than ever. However, many researchers ask the same-old questions in the same-old style they’ve seen in prior surveys. In so doing, they repeat the same mistakes prior generations made. This book’s two expert/authors address ways to think about and formulate survey questions that give you the data you need to answer your research questions.
Nothing is worse than spending tons of time – and often money – sending out a survey only to realize later that you gathered poor-quality data. A bad process leads to bad questions, which lead to bad analysis. To enhance out process, the authors remind us that survey design is an iterative process accomplished in conversation with a large group of people – fellow surveyors, subject-matter experts, and potential participants. It’s achieved through forethought and heartfelt empathy.
This book is not merely a collection of tips and tricks of the trade; rather, it seeks to enhance the creativity of survey designers to address their own research questions with their own audiences. Instead of dwelling on supposed universals, it dives into picking apart the nuances of research participants. It aims first to understand the participants by minimizing their mental overhead of taking a survey. That principle, not some abstract ideal, drives the rest of this book’s content. It offers a framework instead of a fixed process.
The intended audience is the research community, particularly those involved with human-subjects research and the social sciences. It helped me as a data guy to think through concerns and problems with a current work project – how to refine a first draft of a survey into something more focused on our research questions. Sending out surveys is easier than ever. Researchers should read this book so that they don’t let ease become an excuse for poor survey design.
Designing Quality Survey Questions
By Sheila B. Robinson & Kimberly Firth Leonard
2nd Edition
Copyright (c) 2025
Sage
ISBN13 9781071918180
Page Count: 248
Genre: Research Design
www.amazon.com