1. Question and Questionnaire Design
Alex Stannard

2. Covering letter Personalise if possible
Explain purpose of questionnaire
Include named contact
What will happen to responses
Confidentiality
Publication
Decision making
What is in it for respondent
Length
Personalise – can increase response rates by 5% – 11%
Decision making – telling people their views count
Stamped addressed envelope
Be honest about length – do not say 5 minutes when it will take 15 minutes
Consider a pre-letter before sending questionnaire – very brief but says something important will arrive shortly
Send thank you letters
Send replacement questionnaires to non-respondents ‘we’ve not heard from you yet’
Final letter
Incentives – small token incentives get better response rates
Make sure everything will come out of envelop at once

3. Covering letter Dear Mrs Smith
I am writing to ask you to take part in our Annual People Survey.
The survey will only take 5 minutes and will allow us to provide better public services.
Your answers are completely confidential.

4. Covering letter
If you have questions or need help completing the questionnaire then please contact David Smith on (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm).
Please return your completed questionnaire, in the free post envelop, by 31 May 2009.
Thank you very much for your time.
Yours sincerely

5. Questionnaire Clear instructions Sensibly ordered Font size Length
Instructions – will give better results
Order – will give better results, keep respondents engaged
Font size – consider people with poor eyesight
Length - mail questionnaire no more than 12 pages
- face to face 30 to 60 minutes
- web less than 15 minutes
- telephone 15 to 30 minutes

6. Questionnaire Instructions at start Same font throughout
Put age and date of birth together
Spacing
Have consistent write-in boxes for answers

7. Questions Easy to understand Completely unambiguous
Are you able to communicate effectively in the local language of the Hellenic Republic?
Can you speak Greek?
Completely unambiguous
If there is any chance a question can be misinterpreted, then it will be misinterpreted
Consider literacy
2007 Scottish Parliament elections

8. Questions Leading questions
What is the biggest issue affecting your local area? Crime for example.
What is the biggest issue affecting your local area?
How satisfied are you with the service?
Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the service?
Nearly everyone recycles, do you recycle?
Do you recycle?

9. Questions Where were you born? In Bishop Auckland General Hospital
In County Durham
In England
In Great Britain
In the United Kingdom

10. Questions What do we want to know? In which hospital? In which county?
In which country?

11. Questions Surveys Try and keep questions as closed as possible
How do you think the economy of Scotland as a whole will change over the next twelve months?
It will get worse
It will get better
Don’t care
I’ve just got a promotion so for me it will get better
I hope it gets better
Might improve, might get worse, it depends

12. Questions
How do you think the economy of Scotland as a whole will change over the next twelve months?
Get better
Get worse
Stay the same
Don’t know
No opinion
Refused
Remember don’t know, refused to answer and no opinion are different responses
Order of options important – ethnicity question, mixed option

13. Questions Focus groups – open questions better
Do you like your neighbourhood
Yes, no, don’t mind
What do you like about your neighbourhood and why?
What do you dislike about your neighbourhood and why?

14. Testing Always test questionnaire and questions Review and redesign
Test again

15. Good practice Cover letter Clear purpose
Coherent, sensibly ordered and easy to follow
Clear font
Well spaced
Not too long
‘Good’ questions

16. Harmonised Questions
Scottish Government working on a set of harmonised questions
Consultation
Cognitive testing
Pilot testing

17. Harmonised Questions Benefits Time and financial savings
Allows comparisons to other surveys
Minimises risk of offence
Minimises risk of misunderstanding and poor data