The Reports, Survey

Questionnaire and
Methods of
Administering It
The Various Kinds of Reports
Reports are more likely needed for business, scientific
and technical subjects, and in the workplace. They are
of different types and they differ in their aims and
structures.
Among the types of reports, survey is the most
popularly and widely used as it is the easiest way to
gather information about any topic or issue from a
big number of people or groups.
Survey Questionnaire
It is a data gathering tool composed of a set of
questions used in a survey and is utilized in various
fields such as politics, research, marketing, media
and so on. It is intended to gather data, views,
opinions and others from individuals or a particular
group of people.
Methods of Administering a Survey
Administering a survey is a systematic way of
achieving certain goals. The following methods are
introduced by Sarah Mae Sincero (2012).

1. Personal Approach
This process of conducting the survey involves the
researcher. It is used to probe the answers of the
respondents and at the same time, to observe the
behavior of the respondents, either individually or
as a group.
a. Face-to-face Structured Interview
The interview is set personally, and the people
involved face each other in order to gather the
necessary information. Questions on the survey are
asked directly to the respondent by the researcher.

b. Telephone Survey
The survey is done using telephone or cellular
phones. The calls are made to ask individuals about
certain questions. This method can be used for
asking consequential questions.
2. Self-administered Approach
In this type of approach, the survey is administered
without the actual presence of the researcher and
the respondents are expected to accomplish the
survey independently.

a. Paper-and-pencil Survey
This is a traditional method of administering a
survey which entails that respondent be or are
accompanied by someone who is computer literate.
b. Online Survey
This is a useful technique especially for studies
which include many respondents from different
locations. This is used to gather information from
respondents who live in different areas. This
enables all participants to answer through different
online platforms.
c. Mail Survey
This popular tool requires an easy- administering of
the survey where survey questionnaires are mailed
to individuals who are given enough time to read
and ponder on the information asked.
Conducting a
Survey
THREE STEPS IN CONDUCTING A
SURVEY
1. Decide on a four or five option survey questions.
Then make a tally chart with an appropriate
heading and title.
The question should follow the guidelines of
making an effective survey question. Formulate
questions that address the aim and need of the
research. The question should be clear, concise and
efficient. The heading and the title should reflect the
focus of the survey.
2. Conduct a survey then tally all the answers. In
conducting a survey, make sure all answers are
noted. Plan for a more systematic way of tallying.
3. Count the answers marking the items with the
least to the greatest tallies. Then make a graphic
representation of the results.
Be careful in tallying so you should observe
accuracy and honesty. Results can be presented
using any graphics. Most commonly used are charts
and organizers. Choose the most appropriate
graphics that best represent the result of the survey.
NOTE: When conducting a survey, you must
observe ethics. You should write a letter of consent.
In the letter you should also emphasize that the
information given by the respondents/ participants
will be held with utmost confidentiality. You should
be polite and show respect to the respondents. You
should maintain a friendly atmosphere so that
respondents may not feel so intimidated.
Gathering Information
from Surveys
In this lesson, you are expected to:
1.Identify different types of survey questions;
2. Avoid the use of biased or leading question;
3. Formulate different types of survey questions;
 The task of gathering or collecting information
or data from surveys requires a high level of
knowledge and skill. You need to be familiar with the
different types of survey questions and learn the art
of formulating them before you can conduct the
survey and actually gather primary data. Primary
data, as the name implies, is data you as a
researcher collect from first -hand sources using
methods like surveys, interviews, or experiments.
(https://www.statisticshowto.datasciencecentr
al.com/primary-datasecondary/)
 Types of Survey Questions
(Torneo et. al., 2017, 119-121)
1. Open-ended questions
These types of questions do not have
predetermined options or answers. The respondents
are allowed to answer the questions freely.
Responses must be recorded verbatim-especially
because coding and analysis will rely on the subject’s
exact responses. Open-ended questions of ten need
probing or follow-up questions to clarify certain items
in the subject’s response. These question typically
ask the “how” and “why” of something.
Example: Why did you choose to vote for candidate
X? Kindly explain.

2. Dichotomous Questions
Dichotomous questions have two possible
answers, often either yes/no, true/false, or agree/
disagree. These questions are used when the
researcher wants to clearly distinguish the
respondent’s opinion, preference, experience or
behavior.
Example: HIV/AIDS is transmitted through saliva:
3. Multiple–response questions
There are certain questions that necessitate
the respondents to provide more than one answer.
For example, a typical advertising survey would ask
the question, “How did you find about the particular
service or item”? A respondent may have
encountered more than one of the probable ways.
Example: How were you able to know about the
graduate program of Development Policy offered in
De La Salle University? Check all that applies.
4. Matrix questions
There are instances where a number of
questions you intend to ask have the same set of
possible answers. Thus, it is possible to construct a
matrix of items and answers for the sake of
streamlining the survey.
Example: Qualities of a Good Leader
Beside each of the qualities of a good leader, kindly
indicate how well the person in inquiry manifests
the said quality with 1 being the lowest and 5 as the
highest.
Shown above is a numerical scale (matrix). The
respondents are required to choose from a number
of categories that determine their preferences.
 Another common scale is the Likert Scale which
tries to assess the subject’s
agreement/disagreement or approval/disapproval on
a five point scale-with one end being the most
positive answer, and the other end being the most
negative answer. The categories correspond to the
numerical values 5,4,3,2,1, and are encoded as their
numerical equivalent (Singh 2007,75). The total
score per item is determined. From here, you
formulate your inference.
Example: Performance-Based Incentive System
5. Contingency Questions
Contingency questions are intended for certain
respondents only, depending on the provided
answers. A familiar example would be a follow-up
question provided after a respondent agrees to a
certain item. Respondents are asked whether they
used any illegal drugs or substances. Only those
who answered yes are required to answer the
succeeding items.