Q&A for How to Develop a Questionnaire for Research

Questions need to be direct and simple. Keep the number of questions low since children get easily distracted and have limited attention spans.

Think of questions that give you the conclusions you need, and make sure people can only answer "yes" or "no."

If you want to generate comparable data, use true/false questions, multiple choice, or numerical scales. To gather more detail, use open-ended questions. When wording the questions, consider the age range, cultural background, and educational level of your intended participants.

First, figure out who you will be providing questionnaires to - who is your audience for obtaining the sample responses? Use multiple choice, typically 4-5 suggested answers for each question. Think about the purpose of the study - are you trying to determine whether the role that traffic police play in traffic management is one with a positive effect? Also, you want your questionnaire to have as little bias as possible. That might mean that it should be written in multiple languages so that no one answering the questionnaire is forced to use a language that isn't their first language.

Since most seniors have been cautioned about revealing their personal info (identity theft and HIPAA compliance regulations), most seniors will opt out of participation when it comes to their health care. Try preparing a very carefully-worded questionnaire to be posted on Survey Monkey and/or distributed through through faith-based or senior resource centers. Get the local health department to collaborate with you to achieve your goal. As long as you are not using this info for commercial purposes, you should be OK.