Self-report design

• Divisions of closed questions

  • Likert scales
  • Rating scales
  • Fixed choice option
• Likert scales

  • Respondent indicates their agreement with a statement using a scale of usually 5 points
  • Strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, strongly disagree.
• Rating scales

  • Respondents identify a value that represents their strength of feelings about a particular topic.
  • Very entertaining, 1,2,3,4,5, not entertaining.
• Fixed choice option

  • Includes a list of all possible options and respondents are required to indicate those that apply to them.
  • E.g for what reason do you watch zombie movies? Entertainment, amusement, education
• Designing an interview

  • Interview schedule: List of questions interviewer intends to cover.
  • Should be standardised to reduce interviewer bias.
  • Begin interview with neutral questions to allow interviewee to feel relaxed.
• How to write good questions?

  • Reduce use of jargon
  • Reduce use of emotive language and leading questions
  • Reduce use of double barrelled question and double negatives.
• What is jargon?

  Technical terms that are only familiar to this within a specialised field or area.
• How to control emotive language and leading questions?

  • Words which are emotive should be replaced with more neutral alternatives.
  • Leading questions guide respondents to a particular answer so should be removed.
• What is a double-barrelled question?

  A question containing 2 in one
• Why are double-barrelled questions bad?

  • Participants may agree with one half but not the other.
• Example of double negatives

  I am not unhappy in my job.