Question types

Explanations > Social Research > Measurement > Question types

Dichotomous | Selection | Ranking |

There are many different types of question you can ask in a survey or interview.

Dichotomous questions

Dichotomous questions ask about black-and-white subjects, seeking only one of two answers.

Did you vote in the last election?
    Yes [  ]     No [  ]

If you answered No, please go to section 2.

These are usually easy questions to answer and so can be good at the start, to get the respondent used to the idea of answering questions.

These are also useful as screening questions, as the wrong answer allows you to immediately reject the person or jump to another position within the questionnaire. When used in this way, dichotomous questions are also known as filter questions or contingency questions.

Selection questions

Selection questions ask you to make a choice from a list of items given. Single-selection questions ask you to choose only one item. Multiple-choice questions let you choose as many responses as you wish.

Which of the following places have you visited? (check all that apply):

[  ]  Paris
[  ]  London
[  ]  Rome
[  ]  Moscow

Ranking questions

Ranking questions ask questions that asks the respondent to sort items into a particular order, given criteria (typically preference):

Please rank the following places in terms of which you would like to visit (1 = most preferred destination, 2 = second most preferred, etc.):

[  ]  Paris
[  ]  London
[  ]  Rome
[  ]  Moscow

Ranking questions gather ordinal data, for example allowing you to understand comparative preferences.

See also

Asking questions