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A survey sets out to: describe, compare, explain, or predict a condition, behavior, or\u00a0outcome. It provides trainers and managers information they need to make decisions about\u00a0programs, projects, people, and initiatives. How much you should invest in a survey\u00a0to accomplish these purposes depends on the value of the information derived from\u00a0that survey.<\/p>

Regardless of the type of survey instrument you plan to employ, there are certain\u00a0characteristics surveys must meet. They are:<\/p>

• measurable survey objectives<\/li>
• sound research design<\/li>
• effective survey question design<\/li>
• sound sampling strategy, when needed<\/li>
• effective survey response strategy<\/li>
• meaningful data summary<\/li>
• effective data display and reporting.<\/li><\/ul>

  Survey Objectives<\/strong>
  Survey objectives are the basis for all things about the survey. Survey objectives represent\u00a0the need for the questions as well as the measures to be taken through the\u00a0survey instrument. By reading the survey objectives, a surveyor should be able to\u00a0identify the measures (or variables) as well as how best to collect the data. Good\u00a0survey objectives also provide insight into the research design.<\/p>

  Survey objectives come in three forms: 1) a statement, 2) a question, or 3) a\u00a0hypothesis. Because many surveys are used for descriptive purposes, the statement is\u00a0the most common survey objective. However, there are times when a research question\u00a0is an appropriate survey objective, particularly when the survey is intended to\u00a0identify key issues that will ultimately form the basis for a larger survey. Hypotheses\u00a0are special-purpose objectives and are, technically, only used when the theory the
  survey is testing is based on enough evidence to justify hypothesis testing; although,\u00a0specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) program objectives\u00a0set for learning and development initiatives are written much like hypotheses.<\/p>

  Research Design<\/strong>
  Research design refers to how the survey will be administered in terms of targeted\u00a0groups, comparisons of data to multiple groups, and frequency of survey administration.\u00a0Many survey projects represent cross-sectional studies. In a cross-sectional design,\u00a0a survey is administered to a group at a defined time. For example, you may decide\u00a0to measure your employees’ overall satisfaction with their jobs. This measurement of\u00a0satisfaction for the group at this particular time is a cross-sectional survey.<\/p>

  On the other hand, you may want to compare the change in behavior as measured\u00a0by a 360-degree feedback survey between one group involved in a program and\u00a0another group not involved in a program. This comparison of two groups falls into\u00a0the experimental (randomly selected participants) or quasi-experimental (nonrandomly
  selected participants) designs. Occasionally you will not know the specific\u00a0questions to ask on a self-administered questionnaire. If that is the case, you can use\u00a0a focus group (qualitative survey) to gather preliminary information that will inform\u00a0the questionnaire. Or, you may administer a broad-based survey to capture data on\u00a0key issues, but you use those data to guide questions asked during a focus group.\u00a0These mixed method research designs are increasing in popularity and provide a\u00a0robust foundation for collecting relevant data.<\/p>

  Survey Question Design<\/strong>
  A quote by Ernst Cassirer, a Jewish German historian and philosopher,\u00a0reads: “Are we to be disgusted with science because it has not fulfilled our hopes or redeemed\u00a0<\/em>its promises? And are we, for this reason, to announce the “bankruptcy” of science, as\u00a0<\/em>is so often and so flippantly done? But this is rash and foolish; for we can hardly blame\u00a0<\/em>science just because we have not asked the right questions.”<\/em><\/p>

  Right there\u2014in a few brief words Cassirer captures the essence of survey question\u00a0design. All too often we make decisions based on results derived from the wrong\u00a0questions. Even if they are the right questions, if they are poorly written the outcome\u00a0is the same: decisions based on bad questions.<\/p>

  Survey question design is the heart of survey research. Asking the right questions\u00a0the right way to the right people in the context of an appropriate research framework\u00a0generates relevant, useable information. But how do we know what are the rightquestions? We refer to the survey objectives. How do we know we are asking them\u00a0the right way?\u00a0Design questions for the audience, not for you.<\/p>

  Sampling<\/strong>
  Sampling is a process developed to avoid costs of sending out one more survey, while\u00a0allowing assumptions to be made to nonrespondents of a population. While it is a\u00a0common practice in large general population studies, marketing research, and opinion\u00a0polling, its use is limited within the organisation setting. This is particularly true\u00a0when evaluating learning and development programs, human resources initiatives,\u00a0and large meetings or events. But, when needed, a sound sampling strategy is an\u00a0imperative in order to reduce error when making inferences.<\/p>

  Survey Response<\/strong>
  An effective survey administration strategy will help ensure you receive an acceptable\u00a0quantity and quality of responses. Research describes a variety of incentives and processes\u00a0available to us to increase our chances of getting a good response rate.\u00a0<\/p>

  Data Summary<\/strong>
  Data “summary” is a less intimidating way of referring to data “analysis.” However,\u00a0if you collect survey data, whether with a statistical survey or an interview, you will\u00a0analyze the data. But fear not, it does not have to be difficult. Many of the surveys\u00a0used in learning and development, human resources, and meetings and events lend\u00a0themselves to simple descriptive statistics. While many organizations are advancing\u00a0their capability in more complex analytics, most survey data captured for the purposes\u00a0of conducting needs assessments and program evaluations can be summarized\u00a0using basic statistical procedures. Credible qualitative analysis can be done by simply\u00a0categorizing words into themes.<\/p>

  Data Display and Reporting<\/strong>
  A final characteristic of a good survey is one for which the final results are reported\u00a0in such a way that stakeholders immediately “get it.” Reporting results requires\u00a0written words, oral presentations, and effective graphical displays.<\/p>

  Reference: Survey Basics, Patricia Phillip, Jack Phillip, and Bruce Aaron, ASTD Press 2013\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  A survey sets out to: describe, compare, explain, or predict a condition, behavior, or\u00a0outcome. It provides trainers and managers information they need to make decisions about\u00a0programs, projects, people, and initiatives. How much you should invest in a survey\u00a0to accomplish these…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":8424,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8423","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-return-on-investment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8423","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8423"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8423\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8424"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8423"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8423"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insources.com.au\/qms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8423"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}