Design of research

instruments
Module 10B

Research
instruments?

Questionnaire
Interview guides
Check-lists
etc.

Challenges in
designing
Research
instruments?

Considerations before designing

questionnaire?
What do we want to know?
What is the right data collection
technique?
Who will we ask questions?
Do we understand the topic sufficient to
design a questionnaire?
Are our informants mainly literate or
illiterate?
How large is the study sample

Open-ended vs
closed questions?

Examples for open-ended

What is your opinion about the TB
services provided by the hospital?
What do you think are reasons for
not taking TB medication regularly?

Closed Questions
A number of types:
1. Straightforward response
What is your sex (gender)?

Do you have cough > 2 weeks? Y

N

Closed Questions
2. Checklist
Which of the following symptoms did
you have?

Cough > 2 wks

Weight loss
Persistent Fever
Bloody cough

Chest pain

Closed Questions
3. Ranking scales
Please rank these activities in order of the
amount of pain they cause you. (1 would
be most pain and 4 would be least)
Sitting
Running
Lying in bed
Walking

Closed Questions
4. Likert scale
HIV testing in TB services would be useful
No, I strongly disagree
No, I disagree quite a lot
No, I disagree just a little
Im not sure about this
Yes, I agree just a little
Yes, I agree quite a lot
Yes, I strongly agree

Closed Questions
5. Visual analogue scale
At rest, how bad is your chest pain?
(please mark where on the line below)
No pain

Worst pain
imaginable

Open-ended vs
closed questions?

Open-ended questions
Permits free responses which should be
recorded in the respondents own words.
Useful for obtaining information about
Facts with which the researcher is not
very familiar
Opinions, attitudes, and suggestions of
informants
Sensitive issues

Issues to consider
Allows you to probe more deeply
into issues of interest being
raised
Analysis is time consuming and
requires experience
Thorough training of
interviewers is necessary

Closed questions
Advantages
It saves time
Analysis is easy
Risks
Provide less information compared to
open-ended questions
By reading the list of possible answers in
a given sequence the interviewer may
influence the choice of the respondent

Partially categorized questions

Open ended question but some answers
are precategorized
Example:
Who told you to seek health care?
1. Self
2. Mother
3. Father
4. Relative
5. Neighbor
6. Other
7. Other .

Partially categorized questions

Advantages
Answers can be recorded quickly
Analysis is easier
Risks
Interesting information may get lost if
categorization is too early
Interviewers may force information in
category
Interviewers may stop after obtaining 1
answer
Interviewer may be tempted to present
answer options

How to design a
questionnaire?

Designing a questionnaire
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Concentrate on content
Formulate questions
Decide on sequencing of questions
Evaluate the format of the
questionnaire
Test the questionnaire on colleague
Adjust questionnaire
Test questionnaire on study population
Adjust questionnaire

Content
Use your objectives and variables as
starting point
Decide what questions will be needed to
measure your variables and reach you
objectives
All questions necessary to fulfill the aims of
the study should be included
Questions not directly relevant to aims must
not be included

Formulating questions (1)

Simple Questions should be short and ask
only one piece of information per question
Intelligible Use words that are known by
the study participants
Unambiguous Questions should not have
more than one meaning (e.g. are you on
drugs?)
Unbiased - No leading questions (Do you
think that smoking is bad for you?)

Formulating questions (2)

1. Ask the question to a friend
2. Check
3. Do you get the type of response
you want?

Sequence of questions
The sequence order should be logical & Informant
friendly
Subject must feel easy, like natural conversation
Start with easy questions (age, place of residence)
Then interesting (preferably open) non controversial
question
Ask more sensitive questions later (sexual behavior,
drug use)

Formatting the questionnaire

Introductory page explaining
the purpose of the study,
requesting informed consent
assuring confidentiality

Space for number, date, location of interview

and name interviewer
Put together questions that belong together,
subheadings may be used
Sufficient space to write answer to open
questions
Boxes for ticking pre-categorized answers

Self administered questionnaire

Requires clear guidelines on how the
answers should be filled in
Often low response rate
Useful for
studies on sensitive topics
large scale surveys

Checklist
Used to systematically observe behavior
or the condition of equipment etc.
Contains all items that must be
considered during the observation
Observations of Pit Latrines
yes

little

Evidence of use

Toilet smells

Flies in and around toilet

Defecation in the area around

no

Training of interviewers
Reading
Listening/observing
Role play
Actual practice in the field