Lecture Notes: Designing Online Surveys with Qualtrics

Introduction

• Previous Topic: Last week covered questionnaire design and creating standard questionnaires.
• Current Topic: Focus on designing surveys on the web.
• Problem Addressed: Traditional data collection can be impractical when respondents are geographically dispersed.

Online Surveying

• Solution: Use online surveys to reach respondents in different locations efficiently.
• Platform: Qualtrics is a popular web-based platform for designing online surveys.

Getting Started with Qualtrics

• Login:
  • Access through a specific link.
  • Enter your student ID (without "mq") and password.
  • Sign in to start a new project.
• Project Setup:
  • Create a new project and choose a survey name.
  • Begin designing the survey on the main Qualtrics page.

Designing the Survey

Cover Letter

• Purpose: Introduce the survey, its purpose, and the researcher.
• Type: Use "Descriptive Text" for cover letters.
• Instructions: Include time to complete and specific instructions.

Question Types

1. Text Entry: For open-ended questions.
2. Multiple Choice: For questions like age, gender.
3. Matrix Table: For questions with multiple items and scales.

Example Questions

• Age Question:
  • Format: Multiple Choice.
  • Choices: Less than 18, 18-30, 31-45, 46-60, More than 61.
• Gender Question: Similar to age, using multiple choice.
• Years in Industry:
  • Format: Text Entry.

Additional Features

• Skip Logic:
  • Used to direct respondents based on their answers.
  • Example: Skip respondents under 18 to the end of the survey.
• Add Blocks:
  • Separate sections for different parts of the survey.

Main Survey Items

• Designing Questions:
  • For the main questions, use Matrix Tables.
  • Adjust scale points as necessary.
  • Ensure scale direction matches the questionnaire.

Mobile Friendly and Force Response

• Mobile Friendly:
  • Ensure the survey is compatible with mobile devices.
• Force Response:
  • Ensures respondents answer key questions before proceeding.
  • Important for achieving high response rates, especially with smaller sample sizes.

Conclusion

• Importance of Online Surveys: Increase efficiency and reach.
• Qualtrics Features: Provide flexibility and functionality to design professional surveys.

Next Steps

• Practice: Design your survey in Qualtrics as part of this week's exercise.
• Explore: Additional features and functions based on specific needs.