2016 exampack 2016 · total score (summated scale.) ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all...

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2016 EXAMPACK 2016 PYC2606 LSLSS

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Page 1: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

2016

EXAMPACK 2016 PYC2606

LSLSS

1

Table of Contents Learning model 2

Basic measurement and questionnaire design 2

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire 2

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument 3

2 Design a questionnaire 4

Layout of the questionnaire 8

3 Write questionnaire items 11

4 Pilot test the questionnaire 15

5 Evaluate reliability and validity 20

Validity 23

6 Compile a manual 25

7 Evaluate a questionnaire 26

8 Evaluate a manual 30

2

Learning model

deg Learning outcome the purpose of learning achieved by producing specific outcome

products

deg Outcome product the result of the learning activities a learner engages in during the

learning process The learner produces outcome products during learning

deg Production method how an outcome product is produced A series of actions constitute an

activity and a series of activities form a method

deg Learning opportunity work towards achieving the required learning outcomes by

producing particular outcome products A learning opportunity has three elements

(a) an outcome product

(b) the method for producing the outcome product and

(c) a reference to the resource required for producing the outcome product

The outcome product is the most important element each activity of a learning opportunity

is geared towards the production of the outcome product An outcome product has to fulfil

certain standards If a learner produces an outcome product that fulfils certain minimum

criteria the learner can be declared competent

Basic measurement and questionnaire design

Outcome product

A questionnaire and its mini-manual

Production method

1 Identify a suitable content domain

2 Design a questionnaire

3 Write items for the questionnaire

4 Pilot-test the questionnaire

5 Evaluate the questionnairersquos reliability and validity

6 Compile a mini-manual for users of the questionnaire

7 Evaluate the questionnaire

8 Evaluate the mini-manual

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

Outcome product

3

1 Identification of a content domain

2 A discussion on the suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Method

Activity 11 Describe the relevant content domain

Activity 12 Evaluate the suitability of a questionnaire as a measure for this content

domain

Resource reference

1 Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

2 Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The function of the questionnaire is measurement

1 Identifying the focus of a questionnaire

The purpose of the questionnaire refers to what it intends to measure and for whom it will

be used

The first step is to identify the general topic of interest select a problem area within that

topic that you want to investigate reduce the general problem to more specific questions

Do they all relate to each other Can you combine them into one question Should you

rather choose one question and leave the others for separate questionnaires

The content domain therefore consists of the tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera related

to one or more of these questions

2 Limiting the scope of the questionnaire Decide on what is relevant By limiting the scope in this way you can cover your topic

adequately but do not ask irrelevant questions and still have a questionnaire that is relevant

and not too long

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The main purposes of a questionnaire are to

(1) obtain accurate factual information

(2) provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes and

(3) facilitate data processing

The measuring instrument and approach you use depends on the topic you have chosen

and the purpose of your investigation

The questionnaire is ideal for collecting opinions preferences and facts for a specific

purpose from a defined set of respondents typical use is a population census or an opinion

poll Educational and psychological questionnaires measure knowledge interests and other

constructs

4

Exercise Indicate whether a questionnaire would be a suitable measuring instrument

TOPIC

1 support for political parties

2 preference for different types of beer 3 typing skills 4 opinions about the parole system 5 parenting practices

6 effect of personality on intelligence

YES OR NO

Yes

Yes No Yes Yes

Yes and No

REASON

You want to find out facts

looking at a practical ability attitudes to examine effectiveness use

observation questionnaire to measure aspects of personality need a separate test to measure intelligence the relation between personality and intelligence you

would need the right kind of research design

2 Design a questionnaire

Outcome product

A questionnaire specification document

Method

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Activity 23 Design the layout for the questionnaire

Resource reference

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Specification document for a questionnaire

Item format 1 Closed questions

Offers respondents a limited choice of alternate replies whereas an open question is one

that allows the respondents to answer in any way they want to

yesno type

truefalse type

multiple choice type

Rating scales

5

11 Inventories and checklists

Also a form of closed question used to obtain straightforward information

12 Advantages and disadvantages of closed questions

The set of alternative answers is uniform and therefore makes it easier to compare peoplersquos

answers quicker to answer sensitive issues are often better addressed The main

disadvantage is that they force the respondent to answer in terms of the alternatives

offered and nothing else a loss of spontaneity loss of rapport if respondents become

irritated Offer an additional option such as ldquootherrdquo Closed questions can direct the

respondentsrsquo thinking and may also influence their answers

2 Open questions

Phrase the question carefully if you want more than just a yes or no answer Invariably

elicit some irrelevant and repetitious information also requires a considerable degree of

language proficiency and communication skills

3 Rating scales

To measure complex or non-factual topics such as opinions beliefs attitudes and values

These are complex issues that have to do with states of mind and are therefore more

difficult to measure They are usually multifaceted Therefore to measure non-factual

topics the tendency is to use rating scales The extent to which they agree or disagree

Ratings may be influenced by a personrsquos mood on the day or by political events in the

country at the time

Guidelines can be followed when compiling a rating scale

1 Define the dimension being rated Each item or statement to be rated must refer to only

one thing or dimension ldquoRate friendliness and efficiencyrdquo you are confusing two different

dimensions

2 Decide on the number of ratings for the scale

3 Decide whether to use an even or uneven number of ratings Uneven number in order to

have a neutral category in the middle but people may tend to choose the neutral one (error

of central tendency)

4 Define the different rating categories must be mutually exclusive - each rating category

should mean something different

Attitude scales are rating scales that consist of a group of items designed to reflect

different attitudes toward the topic in question Their main function is to classify people

with respect to a certain attitude

31 Likert scales

Also known as a summated scale ldquoA summated attitude scale may be described as a rating

scale in which a subject indicates the extent to which he or she agrees (or disagrees) with

6

statements These statements usually deal with a social or political issue The respondent

marks the point that best reflects his or her attitude The scores are added up to obtain a

total score (summated scale) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items

measure the same dimension or topic It is important to have both favourable and

unfavourable statements so that you do not influence the respondent Usually have the

option of 5 or 7 ratings

32 Semantic differential

Used particularly in the measurement of attitudes A seven point rating scales and the scale

points on each end are defined by opposing adjectives

Powerful _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Powerless

The location of positive and negative poles should be random to counteract any halo effect -

the tendency for respondents not to evaluate each item individually but for their responses

to be influenced by their general feeling of like or dislike Important that your two

descriptors define the same construct The semantic differential is useful when you want to

obtain an idea of peoplersquos endorsement of certain attributes

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Action Identify different types of items and scaling methods It is important to have a

balance of different types of questions in order to maintain the respondentsrsquo interest as well

as to collect all the relevant information

Item Type

1 Do you have a valid driverrsquos licence Yes No 1 Closed question - limited choice of answers

2 Why do people need to have a valid driverrsquos licence

2 Open question - state their own opinions and allows for any kind of answer

3 People should have a driverrsquos licence (choose one answer)

1048709 for identification purposes

1048709 to prove that they can drive 1048709 in case they have an accident

3 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (multiple choice type)

4 Young people are good drivers True False 4 Closed question - limited choice of answers

5 Good drivers are alert - - - - - relaxed cautious - - - - - fast reactors older - - - - - younger

5 Rating scale semantic differential type (extreme scale points are opposing adjectives)

6 Mark the characteristics of good drivers from the list below

1048709 male 1048709 female 1048709 even tempered 1048709 fast reactions 1048709 slow and steady

6 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (checklistinventory)

7 Are you a good driver Rate your abilities as follows a great deal very little 1 2 3 4 5

7 Rating scale Likert type

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 2: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

1

Table of Contents Learning model 2

Basic measurement and questionnaire design 2

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire 2

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument 3

2 Design a questionnaire 4

Layout of the questionnaire 8

3 Write questionnaire items 11

4 Pilot test the questionnaire 15

5 Evaluate reliability and validity 20

Validity 23

6 Compile a manual 25

7 Evaluate a questionnaire 26

8 Evaluate a manual 30

2

Learning model

deg Learning outcome the purpose of learning achieved by producing specific outcome

products

deg Outcome product the result of the learning activities a learner engages in during the

learning process The learner produces outcome products during learning

deg Production method how an outcome product is produced A series of actions constitute an

activity and a series of activities form a method

deg Learning opportunity work towards achieving the required learning outcomes by

producing particular outcome products A learning opportunity has three elements

(a) an outcome product

(b) the method for producing the outcome product and

(c) a reference to the resource required for producing the outcome product

The outcome product is the most important element each activity of a learning opportunity

is geared towards the production of the outcome product An outcome product has to fulfil

certain standards If a learner produces an outcome product that fulfils certain minimum

criteria the learner can be declared competent

Basic measurement and questionnaire design

Outcome product

A questionnaire and its mini-manual

Production method

1 Identify a suitable content domain

2 Design a questionnaire

3 Write items for the questionnaire

4 Pilot-test the questionnaire

5 Evaluate the questionnairersquos reliability and validity

6 Compile a mini-manual for users of the questionnaire

7 Evaluate the questionnaire

8 Evaluate the mini-manual

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

Outcome product

3

1 Identification of a content domain

2 A discussion on the suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Method

Activity 11 Describe the relevant content domain

Activity 12 Evaluate the suitability of a questionnaire as a measure for this content

domain

Resource reference

1 Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

2 Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The function of the questionnaire is measurement

1 Identifying the focus of a questionnaire

The purpose of the questionnaire refers to what it intends to measure and for whom it will

be used

The first step is to identify the general topic of interest select a problem area within that

topic that you want to investigate reduce the general problem to more specific questions

Do they all relate to each other Can you combine them into one question Should you

rather choose one question and leave the others for separate questionnaires

The content domain therefore consists of the tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera related

to one or more of these questions

2 Limiting the scope of the questionnaire Decide on what is relevant By limiting the scope in this way you can cover your topic

adequately but do not ask irrelevant questions and still have a questionnaire that is relevant

and not too long

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The main purposes of a questionnaire are to

(1) obtain accurate factual information

(2) provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes and

(3) facilitate data processing

The measuring instrument and approach you use depends on the topic you have chosen

and the purpose of your investigation

The questionnaire is ideal for collecting opinions preferences and facts for a specific

purpose from a defined set of respondents typical use is a population census or an opinion

poll Educational and psychological questionnaires measure knowledge interests and other

constructs

4

Exercise Indicate whether a questionnaire would be a suitable measuring instrument

TOPIC

1 support for political parties

2 preference for different types of beer 3 typing skills 4 opinions about the parole system 5 parenting practices

6 effect of personality on intelligence

YES OR NO

Yes

Yes No Yes Yes

Yes and No

REASON

You want to find out facts

looking at a practical ability attitudes to examine effectiveness use

observation questionnaire to measure aspects of personality need a separate test to measure intelligence the relation between personality and intelligence you

would need the right kind of research design

2 Design a questionnaire

Outcome product

A questionnaire specification document

Method

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Activity 23 Design the layout for the questionnaire

Resource reference

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Specification document for a questionnaire

Item format 1 Closed questions

Offers respondents a limited choice of alternate replies whereas an open question is one

that allows the respondents to answer in any way they want to

yesno type

truefalse type

multiple choice type

Rating scales

5

11 Inventories and checklists

Also a form of closed question used to obtain straightforward information

12 Advantages and disadvantages of closed questions

The set of alternative answers is uniform and therefore makes it easier to compare peoplersquos

answers quicker to answer sensitive issues are often better addressed The main

disadvantage is that they force the respondent to answer in terms of the alternatives

offered and nothing else a loss of spontaneity loss of rapport if respondents become

irritated Offer an additional option such as ldquootherrdquo Closed questions can direct the

respondentsrsquo thinking and may also influence their answers

2 Open questions

Phrase the question carefully if you want more than just a yes or no answer Invariably

elicit some irrelevant and repetitious information also requires a considerable degree of

language proficiency and communication skills

3 Rating scales

To measure complex or non-factual topics such as opinions beliefs attitudes and values

These are complex issues that have to do with states of mind and are therefore more

difficult to measure They are usually multifaceted Therefore to measure non-factual

topics the tendency is to use rating scales The extent to which they agree or disagree

Ratings may be influenced by a personrsquos mood on the day or by political events in the

country at the time

Guidelines can be followed when compiling a rating scale

1 Define the dimension being rated Each item or statement to be rated must refer to only

one thing or dimension ldquoRate friendliness and efficiencyrdquo you are confusing two different

dimensions

2 Decide on the number of ratings for the scale

3 Decide whether to use an even or uneven number of ratings Uneven number in order to

have a neutral category in the middle but people may tend to choose the neutral one (error

of central tendency)

4 Define the different rating categories must be mutually exclusive - each rating category

should mean something different

Attitude scales are rating scales that consist of a group of items designed to reflect

different attitudes toward the topic in question Their main function is to classify people

with respect to a certain attitude

31 Likert scales

Also known as a summated scale ldquoA summated attitude scale may be described as a rating

scale in which a subject indicates the extent to which he or she agrees (or disagrees) with

6

statements These statements usually deal with a social or political issue The respondent

marks the point that best reflects his or her attitude The scores are added up to obtain a

total score (summated scale) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items

measure the same dimension or topic It is important to have both favourable and

unfavourable statements so that you do not influence the respondent Usually have the

option of 5 or 7 ratings

32 Semantic differential

Used particularly in the measurement of attitudes A seven point rating scales and the scale

points on each end are defined by opposing adjectives

Powerful _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Powerless

The location of positive and negative poles should be random to counteract any halo effect -

the tendency for respondents not to evaluate each item individually but for their responses

to be influenced by their general feeling of like or dislike Important that your two

descriptors define the same construct The semantic differential is useful when you want to

obtain an idea of peoplersquos endorsement of certain attributes

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Action Identify different types of items and scaling methods It is important to have a

balance of different types of questions in order to maintain the respondentsrsquo interest as well

as to collect all the relevant information

Item Type

1 Do you have a valid driverrsquos licence Yes No 1 Closed question - limited choice of answers

2 Why do people need to have a valid driverrsquos licence

2 Open question - state their own opinions and allows for any kind of answer

3 People should have a driverrsquos licence (choose one answer)

1048709 for identification purposes

1048709 to prove that they can drive 1048709 in case they have an accident

3 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (multiple choice type)

4 Young people are good drivers True False 4 Closed question - limited choice of answers

5 Good drivers are alert - - - - - relaxed cautious - - - - - fast reactors older - - - - - younger

5 Rating scale semantic differential type (extreme scale points are opposing adjectives)

6 Mark the characteristics of good drivers from the list below

1048709 male 1048709 female 1048709 even tempered 1048709 fast reactions 1048709 slow and steady

6 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (checklistinventory)

7 Are you a good driver Rate your abilities as follows a great deal very little 1 2 3 4 5

7 Rating scale Likert type

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 3: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

2

Learning model

deg Learning outcome the purpose of learning achieved by producing specific outcome

products

deg Outcome product the result of the learning activities a learner engages in during the

learning process The learner produces outcome products during learning

deg Production method how an outcome product is produced A series of actions constitute an

activity and a series of activities form a method

deg Learning opportunity work towards achieving the required learning outcomes by

producing particular outcome products A learning opportunity has three elements

(a) an outcome product

(b) the method for producing the outcome product and

(c) a reference to the resource required for producing the outcome product

The outcome product is the most important element each activity of a learning opportunity

is geared towards the production of the outcome product An outcome product has to fulfil

certain standards If a learner produces an outcome product that fulfils certain minimum

criteria the learner can be declared competent

Basic measurement and questionnaire design

Outcome product

A questionnaire and its mini-manual

Production method

1 Identify a suitable content domain

2 Design a questionnaire

3 Write items for the questionnaire

4 Pilot-test the questionnaire

5 Evaluate the questionnairersquos reliability and validity

6 Compile a mini-manual for users of the questionnaire

7 Evaluate the questionnaire

8 Evaluate the mini-manual

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

Outcome product

3

1 Identification of a content domain

2 A discussion on the suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Method

Activity 11 Describe the relevant content domain

Activity 12 Evaluate the suitability of a questionnaire as a measure for this content

domain

Resource reference

1 Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

2 Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The function of the questionnaire is measurement

1 Identifying the focus of a questionnaire

The purpose of the questionnaire refers to what it intends to measure and for whom it will

be used

The first step is to identify the general topic of interest select a problem area within that

topic that you want to investigate reduce the general problem to more specific questions

Do they all relate to each other Can you combine them into one question Should you

rather choose one question and leave the others for separate questionnaires

The content domain therefore consists of the tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera related

to one or more of these questions

2 Limiting the scope of the questionnaire Decide on what is relevant By limiting the scope in this way you can cover your topic

adequately but do not ask irrelevant questions and still have a questionnaire that is relevant

and not too long

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The main purposes of a questionnaire are to

(1) obtain accurate factual information

(2) provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes and

(3) facilitate data processing

The measuring instrument and approach you use depends on the topic you have chosen

and the purpose of your investigation

The questionnaire is ideal for collecting opinions preferences and facts for a specific

purpose from a defined set of respondents typical use is a population census or an opinion

poll Educational and psychological questionnaires measure knowledge interests and other

constructs

4

Exercise Indicate whether a questionnaire would be a suitable measuring instrument

TOPIC

1 support for political parties

2 preference for different types of beer 3 typing skills 4 opinions about the parole system 5 parenting practices

6 effect of personality on intelligence

YES OR NO

Yes

Yes No Yes Yes

Yes and No

REASON

You want to find out facts

looking at a practical ability attitudes to examine effectiveness use

observation questionnaire to measure aspects of personality need a separate test to measure intelligence the relation between personality and intelligence you

would need the right kind of research design

2 Design a questionnaire

Outcome product

A questionnaire specification document

Method

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Activity 23 Design the layout for the questionnaire

Resource reference

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Specification document for a questionnaire

Item format 1 Closed questions

Offers respondents a limited choice of alternate replies whereas an open question is one

that allows the respondents to answer in any way they want to

yesno type

truefalse type

multiple choice type

Rating scales

5

11 Inventories and checklists

Also a form of closed question used to obtain straightforward information

12 Advantages and disadvantages of closed questions

The set of alternative answers is uniform and therefore makes it easier to compare peoplersquos

answers quicker to answer sensitive issues are often better addressed The main

disadvantage is that they force the respondent to answer in terms of the alternatives

offered and nothing else a loss of spontaneity loss of rapport if respondents become

irritated Offer an additional option such as ldquootherrdquo Closed questions can direct the

respondentsrsquo thinking and may also influence their answers

2 Open questions

Phrase the question carefully if you want more than just a yes or no answer Invariably

elicit some irrelevant and repetitious information also requires a considerable degree of

language proficiency and communication skills

3 Rating scales

To measure complex or non-factual topics such as opinions beliefs attitudes and values

These are complex issues that have to do with states of mind and are therefore more

difficult to measure They are usually multifaceted Therefore to measure non-factual

topics the tendency is to use rating scales The extent to which they agree or disagree

Ratings may be influenced by a personrsquos mood on the day or by political events in the

country at the time

Guidelines can be followed when compiling a rating scale

1 Define the dimension being rated Each item or statement to be rated must refer to only

one thing or dimension ldquoRate friendliness and efficiencyrdquo you are confusing two different

dimensions

2 Decide on the number of ratings for the scale

3 Decide whether to use an even or uneven number of ratings Uneven number in order to

have a neutral category in the middle but people may tend to choose the neutral one (error

of central tendency)

4 Define the different rating categories must be mutually exclusive - each rating category

should mean something different

Attitude scales are rating scales that consist of a group of items designed to reflect

different attitudes toward the topic in question Their main function is to classify people

with respect to a certain attitude

31 Likert scales

Also known as a summated scale ldquoA summated attitude scale may be described as a rating

scale in which a subject indicates the extent to which he or she agrees (or disagrees) with

6

statements These statements usually deal with a social or political issue The respondent

marks the point that best reflects his or her attitude The scores are added up to obtain a

total score (summated scale) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items

measure the same dimension or topic It is important to have both favourable and

unfavourable statements so that you do not influence the respondent Usually have the

option of 5 or 7 ratings

32 Semantic differential

Used particularly in the measurement of attitudes A seven point rating scales and the scale

points on each end are defined by opposing adjectives

Powerful _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Powerless

The location of positive and negative poles should be random to counteract any halo effect -

the tendency for respondents not to evaluate each item individually but for their responses

to be influenced by their general feeling of like or dislike Important that your two

descriptors define the same construct The semantic differential is useful when you want to

obtain an idea of peoplersquos endorsement of certain attributes

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Action Identify different types of items and scaling methods It is important to have a

balance of different types of questions in order to maintain the respondentsrsquo interest as well

as to collect all the relevant information

Item Type

1 Do you have a valid driverrsquos licence Yes No 1 Closed question - limited choice of answers

2 Why do people need to have a valid driverrsquos licence

2 Open question - state their own opinions and allows for any kind of answer

3 People should have a driverrsquos licence (choose one answer)

1048709 for identification purposes

1048709 to prove that they can drive 1048709 in case they have an accident

3 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (multiple choice type)

4 Young people are good drivers True False 4 Closed question - limited choice of answers

5 Good drivers are alert - - - - - relaxed cautious - - - - - fast reactors older - - - - - younger

5 Rating scale semantic differential type (extreme scale points are opposing adjectives)

6 Mark the characteristics of good drivers from the list below

1048709 male 1048709 female 1048709 even tempered 1048709 fast reactions 1048709 slow and steady

6 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (checklistinventory)

7 Are you a good driver Rate your abilities as follows a great deal very little 1 2 3 4 5

7 Rating scale Likert type

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 4: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

3

1 Identification of a content domain

2 A discussion on the suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Method

Activity 11 Describe the relevant content domain

Activity 12 Evaluate the suitability of a questionnaire as a measure for this content

domain

Resource reference

1 Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

2 Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The function of the questionnaire is measurement

1 Identifying the focus of a questionnaire

The purpose of the questionnaire refers to what it intends to measure and for whom it will

be used

The first step is to identify the general topic of interest select a problem area within that

topic that you want to investigate reduce the general problem to more specific questions

Do they all relate to each other Can you combine them into one question Should you

rather choose one question and leave the others for separate questionnaires

The content domain therefore consists of the tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera related

to one or more of these questions

2 Limiting the scope of the questionnaire Decide on what is relevant By limiting the scope in this way you can cover your topic

adequately but do not ask irrelevant questions and still have a questionnaire that is relevant

and not too long

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

The main purposes of a questionnaire are to

(1) obtain accurate factual information

(2) provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes and

(3) facilitate data processing

The measuring instrument and approach you use depends on the topic you have chosen

and the purpose of your investigation

The questionnaire is ideal for collecting opinions preferences and facts for a specific

purpose from a defined set of respondents typical use is a population census or an opinion

poll Educational and psychological questionnaires measure knowledge interests and other

constructs

4

Exercise Indicate whether a questionnaire would be a suitable measuring instrument

TOPIC

1 support for political parties

2 preference for different types of beer 3 typing skills 4 opinions about the parole system 5 parenting practices

6 effect of personality on intelligence

YES OR NO

Yes

Yes No Yes Yes

Yes and No

REASON

You want to find out facts

looking at a practical ability attitudes to examine effectiveness use

observation questionnaire to measure aspects of personality need a separate test to measure intelligence the relation between personality and intelligence you

would need the right kind of research design

2 Design a questionnaire

Outcome product

A questionnaire specification document

Method

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Activity 23 Design the layout for the questionnaire

Resource reference

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Specification document for a questionnaire

Item format 1 Closed questions

Offers respondents a limited choice of alternate replies whereas an open question is one

that allows the respondents to answer in any way they want to

yesno type

truefalse type

multiple choice type

Rating scales

5

11 Inventories and checklists

Also a form of closed question used to obtain straightforward information

12 Advantages and disadvantages of closed questions

The set of alternative answers is uniform and therefore makes it easier to compare peoplersquos

answers quicker to answer sensitive issues are often better addressed The main

disadvantage is that they force the respondent to answer in terms of the alternatives

offered and nothing else a loss of spontaneity loss of rapport if respondents become

irritated Offer an additional option such as ldquootherrdquo Closed questions can direct the

respondentsrsquo thinking and may also influence their answers

2 Open questions

Phrase the question carefully if you want more than just a yes or no answer Invariably

elicit some irrelevant and repetitious information also requires a considerable degree of

language proficiency and communication skills

3 Rating scales

To measure complex or non-factual topics such as opinions beliefs attitudes and values

These are complex issues that have to do with states of mind and are therefore more

difficult to measure They are usually multifaceted Therefore to measure non-factual

topics the tendency is to use rating scales The extent to which they agree or disagree

Ratings may be influenced by a personrsquos mood on the day or by political events in the

country at the time

Guidelines can be followed when compiling a rating scale

1 Define the dimension being rated Each item or statement to be rated must refer to only

one thing or dimension ldquoRate friendliness and efficiencyrdquo you are confusing two different

dimensions

2 Decide on the number of ratings for the scale

3 Decide whether to use an even or uneven number of ratings Uneven number in order to

have a neutral category in the middle but people may tend to choose the neutral one (error

of central tendency)

4 Define the different rating categories must be mutually exclusive - each rating category

should mean something different

Attitude scales are rating scales that consist of a group of items designed to reflect

different attitudes toward the topic in question Their main function is to classify people

with respect to a certain attitude

31 Likert scales

Also known as a summated scale ldquoA summated attitude scale may be described as a rating

scale in which a subject indicates the extent to which he or she agrees (or disagrees) with

6

statements These statements usually deal with a social or political issue The respondent

marks the point that best reflects his or her attitude The scores are added up to obtain a

total score (summated scale) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items

measure the same dimension or topic It is important to have both favourable and

unfavourable statements so that you do not influence the respondent Usually have the

option of 5 or 7 ratings

32 Semantic differential

Used particularly in the measurement of attitudes A seven point rating scales and the scale

points on each end are defined by opposing adjectives

Powerful _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Powerless

The location of positive and negative poles should be random to counteract any halo effect -

the tendency for respondents not to evaluate each item individually but for their responses

to be influenced by their general feeling of like or dislike Important that your two

descriptors define the same construct The semantic differential is useful when you want to

obtain an idea of peoplersquos endorsement of certain attributes

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Action Identify different types of items and scaling methods It is important to have a

balance of different types of questions in order to maintain the respondentsrsquo interest as well

as to collect all the relevant information

Item Type

1 Do you have a valid driverrsquos licence Yes No 1 Closed question - limited choice of answers

2 Why do people need to have a valid driverrsquos licence

2 Open question - state their own opinions and allows for any kind of answer

3 People should have a driverrsquos licence (choose one answer)

1048709 for identification purposes

1048709 to prove that they can drive 1048709 in case they have an accident

3 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (multiple choice type)

4 Young people are good drivers True False 4 Closed question - limited choice of answers

5 Good drivers are alert - - - - - relaxed cautious - - - - - fast reactors older - - - - - younger

5 Rating scale semantic differential type (extreme scale points are opposing adjectives)

6 Mark the characteristics of good drivers from the list below

1048709 male 1048709 female 1048709 even tempered 1048709 fast reactions 1048709 slow and steady

6 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (checklistinventory)

7 Are you a good driver Rate your abilities as follows a great deal very little 1 2 3 4 5

7 Rating scale Likert type

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 5: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

4

Exercise Indicate whether a questionnaire would be a suitable measuring instrument

TOPIC

1 support for political parties

2 preference for different types of beer 3 typing skills 4 opinions about the parole system 5 parenting practices

6 effect of personality on intelligence

YES OR NO

Yes

Yes No Yes Yes

Yes and No

REASON

You want to find out facts

looking at a practical ability attitudes to examine effectiveness use

observation questionnaire to measure aspects of personality need a separate test to measure intelligence the relation between personality and intelligence you

would need the right kind of research design

2 Design a questionnaire

Outcome product

A questionnaire specification document

Method

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Activity 23 Design the layout for the questionnaire

Resource reference

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Specification document for a questionnaire

Item format 1 Closed questions

Offers respondents a limited choice of alternate replies whereas an open question is one

that allows the respondents to answer in any way they want to

yesno type

truefalse type

multiple choice type

Rating scales

5

11 Inventories and checklists

Also a form of closed question used to obtain straightforward information

12 Advantages and disadvantages of closed questions

The set of alternative answers is uniform and therefore makes it easier to compare peoplersquos

answers quicker to answer sensitive issues are often better addressed The main

disadvantage is that they force the respondent to answer in terms of the alternatives

offered and nothing else a loss of spontaneity loss of rapport if respondents become

irritated Offer an additional option such as ldquootherrdquo Closed questions can direct the

respondentsrsquo thinking and may also influence their answers

2 Open questions

Phrase the question carefully if you want more than just a yes or no answer Invariably

elicit some irrelevant and repetitious information also requires a considerable degree of

language proficiency and communication skills

3 Rating scales

To measure complex or non-factual topics such as opinions beliefs attitudes and values

These are complex issues that have to do with states of mind and are therefore more

difficult to measure They are usually multifaceted Therefore to measure non-factual

topics the tendency is to use rating scales The extent to which they agree or disagree

Ratings may be influenced by a personrsquos mood on the day or by political events in the

country at the time

Guidelines can be followed when compiling a rating scale

1 Define the dimension being rated Each item or statement to be rated must refer to only

one thing or dimension ldquoRate friendliness and efficiencyrdquo you are confusing two different

dimensions

2 Decide on the number of ratings for the scale

3 Decide whether to use an even or uneven number of ratings Uneven number in order to

have a neutral category in the middle but people may tend to choose the neutral one (error

of central tendency)

4 Define the different rating categories must be mutually exclusive - each rating category

should mean something different

Attitude scales are rating scales that consist of a group of items designed to reflect

different attitudes toward the topic in question Their main function is to classify people

with respect to a certain attitude

31 Likert scales

Also known as a summated scale ldquoA summated attitude scale may be described as a rating

scale in which a subject indicates the extent to which he or she agrees (or disagrees) with

6

statements These statements usually deal with a social or political issue The respondent

marks the point that best reflects his or her attitude The scores are added up to obtain a

total score (summated scale) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items

measure the same dimension or topic It is important to have both favourable and

unfavourable statements so that you do not influence the respondent Usually have the

option of 5 or 7 ratings

32 Semantic differential

Used particularly in the measurement of attitudes A seven point rating scales and the scale

points on each end are defined by opposing adjectives

Powerful _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Powerless

The location of positive and negative poles should be random to counteract any halo effect -

the tendency for respondents not to evaluate each item individually but for their responses

to be influenced by their general feeling of like or dislike Important that your two

descriptors define the same construct The semantic differential is useful when you want to

obtain an idea of peoplersquos endorsement of certain attributes

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Action Identify different types of items and scaling methods It is important to have a

balance of different types of questions in order to maintain the respondentsrsquo interest as well

as to collect all the relevant information

Item Type

1 Do you have a valid driverrsquos licence Yes No 1 Closed question - limited choice of answers

2 Why do people need to have a valid driverrsquos licence

2 Open question - state their own opinions and allows for any kind of answer

3 People should have a driverrsquos licence (choose one answer)

1048709 for identification purposes

1048709 to prove that they can drive 1048709 in case they have an accident

3 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (multiple choice type)

4 Young people are good drivers True False 4 Closed question - limited choice of answers

5 Good drivers are alert - - - - - relaxed cautious - - - - - fast reactors older - - - - - younger

5 Rating scale semantic differential type (extreme scale points are opposing adjectives)

6 Mark the characteristics of good drivers from the list below

1048709 male 1048709 female 1048709 even tempered 1048709 fast reactions 1048709 slow and steady

6 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (checklistinventory)

7 Are you a good driver Rate your abilities as follows a great deal very little 1 2 3 4 5

7 Rating scale Likert type

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 6: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

5

11 Inventories and checklists

Also a form of closed question used to obtain straightforward information

12 Advantages and disadvantages of closed questions

The set of alternative answers is uniform and therefore makes it easier to compare peoplersquos

answers quicker to answer sensitive issues are often better addressed The main

disadvantage is that they force the respondent to answer in terms of the alternatives

offered and nothing else a loss of spontaneity loss of rapport if respondents become

irritated Offer an additional option such as ldquootherrdquo Closed questions can direct the

respondentsrsquo thinking and may also influence their answers

2 Open questions

Phrase the question carefully if you want more than just a yes or no answer Invariably

elicit some irrelevant and repetitious information also requires a considerable degree of

language proficiency and communication skills

3 Rating scales

To measure complex or non-factual topics such as opinions beliefs attitudes and values

These are complex issues that have to do with states of mind and are therefore more

difficult to measure They are usually multifaceted Therefore to measure non-factual

topics the tendency is to use rating scales The extent to which they agree or disagree

Ratings may be influenced by a personrsquos mood on the day or by political events in the

country at the time

Guidelines can be followed when compiling a rating scale

1 Define the dimension being rated Each item or statement to be rated must refer to only

one thing or dimension ldquoRate friendliness and efficiencyrdquo you are confusing two different

dimensions

2 Decide on the number of ratings for the scale

3 Decide whether to use an even or uneven number of ratings Uneven number in order to

have a neutral category in the middle but people may tend to choose the neutral one (error

of central tendency)

4 Define the different rating categories must be mutually exclusive - each rating category

should mean something different

Attitude scales are rating scales that consist of a group of items designed to reflect

different attitudes toward the topic in question Their main function is to classify people

with respect to a certain attitude

31 Likert scales

Also known as a summated scale ldquoA summated attitude scale may be described as a rating

scale in which a subject indicates the extent to which he or she agrees (or disagrees) with

6

statements These statements usually deal with a social or political issue The respondent

marks the point that best reflects his or her attitude The scores are added up to obtain a

total score (summated scale) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items

measure the same dimension or topic It is important to have both favourable and

unfavourable statements so that you do not influence the respondent Usually have the

option of 5 or 7 ratings

32 Semantic differential

Used particularly in the measurement of attitudes A seven point rating scales and the scale

points on each end are defined by opposing adjectives

Powerful _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Powerless

The location of positive and negative poles should be random to counteract any halo effect -

the tendency for respondents not to evaluate each item individually but for their responses

to be influenced by their general feeling of like or dislike Important that your two

descriptors define the same construct The semantic differential is useful when you want to

obtain an idea of peoplersquos endorsement of certain attributes

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Action Identify different types of items and scaling methods It is important to have a

balance of different types of questions in order to maintain the respondentsrsquo interest as well

as to collect all the relevant information

Item Type

1 Do you have a valid driverrsquos licence Yes No 1 Closed question - limited choice of answers

2 Why do people need to have a valid driverrsquos licence

2 Open question - state their own opinions and allows for any kind of answer

3 People should have a driverrsquos licence (choose one answer)

1048709 for identification purposes

1048709 to prove that they can drive 1048709 in case they have an accident

3 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (multiple choice type)

4 Young people are good drivers True False 4 Closed question - limited choice of answers

5 Good drivers are alert - - - - - relaxed cautious - - - - - fast reactors older - - - - - younger

5 Rating scale semantic differential type (extreme scale points are opposing adjectives)

6 Mark the characteristics of good drivers from the list below

1048709 male 1048709 female 1048709 even tempered 1048709 fast reactions 1048709 slow and steady

6 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (checklistinventory)

7 Are you a good driver Rate your abilities as follows a great deal very little 1 2 3 4 5

7 Rating scale Likert type

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 7: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

6

statements These statements usually deal with a social or political issue The respondent

marks the point that best reflects his or her attitude The scores are added up to obtain a

total score (summated scale) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items

measure the same dimension or topic It is important to have both favourable and

unfavourable statements so that you do not influence the respondent Usually have the

option of 5 or 7 ratings

32 Semantic differential

Used particularly in the measurement of attitudes A seven point rating scales and the scale

points on each end are defined by opposing adjectives

Powerful _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Powerless

The location of positive and negative poles should be random to counteract any halo effect -

the tendency for respondents not to evaluate each item individually but for their responses

to be influenced by their general feeling of like or dislike Important that your two

descriptors define the same construct The semantic differential is useful when you want to

obtain an idea of peoplersquos endorsement of certain attributes

Activity 21 Decide on item format and scaling method

Action Identify different types of items and scaling methods It is important to have a

balance of different types of questions in order to maintain the respondentsrsquo interest as well

as to collect all the relevant information

Item Type

1 Do you have a valid driverrsquos licence Yes No 1 Closed question - limited choice of answers

2 Why do people need to have a valid driverrsquos licence

2 Open question - state their own opinions and allows for any kind of answer

3 People should have a driverrsquos licence (choose one answer)

1048709 for identification purposes

1048709 to prove that they can drive 1048709 in case they have an accident

3 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (multiple choice type)

4 Young people are good drivers True False 4 Closed question - limited choice of answers

5 Good drivers are alert - - - - - relaxed cautious - - - - - fast reactors older - - - - - younger

5 Rating scale semantic differential type (extreme scale points are opposing adjectives)

6 Mark the characteristics of good drivers from the list below

1048709 male 1048709 female 1048709 even tempered 1048709 fast reactions 1048709 slow and steady

6 Closed question because there is a limited choice of answers (checklistinventory)

7 Are you a good driver Rate your abilities as follows a great deal very little 1 2 3 4 5

7 Rating scale Likert type

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 8: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

7

self confidence experience knowledge of road rules

8 Good drivers are

8 Open question because it allows respondents to give any kind of answer

9 Should the age for driverrsquos licences be increased to 21

9 This looks like an open question but is a closed question - a yes or no answer It would be an open question if you asked ldquoWhat is your opinion about increasing the driving age to 21

yearsrdquo

Action Link item format and scaling method to the purpose and content of your

questionnaire - decide what kind of items to use in order to get the information you want

Information required

age - under 18 years 18 - 22 years 23 - 35 years 36 - 50 years

gender - closed (check male or female)

socio-economic status

personal experience of crime- closed question with a yesno how much or how

often they personally experienced crime- use a multiple choice item or a rating

scale general description- use an open ended question

levels of stress associated with different crimes - rating scale

personal reactions to different crimes - simple open ended question or you might try

a rating scale like a semantic differential

Specification document for a questionnaire

What a questionnaire should contain A specification document is really just a list of the

required characteristics for your questionnaire in terms of type of items number of items

layout and so on in order for the questionnaire to do what it is supposed to do

Before compiling a questionnaire have a rough idea of the line of enquiry you wish to

follow the kind of questions you will ask the level of language you use how complex the

questions are and so on In this way the purpose of the investigation the kind of

information you want and the characteristics of the respondents influence the questionnaire

specifications The detailed specification of measurement aims should be clearly related to

the purpose of the research

Activity 22 Decide on the total number of items

Ensure that you get the information you want but do not lose respondents because it is too

long or boring Identify the extent to which each content area (the information you need)

needs to be covered then consider the characteristics of your respondents and the time

available for testing

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 9: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

8

Action You need to identify the coverage required for each content area You need at least

one item on each of these content areas In some cases one item is not enough For

example if you want information on stress levels associated with different crimes you

might want to use a rating scale Rating scales do not have a fixed number of items but for

the purposes of this assignment your rating scale should consist of at least

twelve items It is also useful to have more than one item dealing with the same aspect to

serve as a control so that you can see whether the respondent is answering questions

consistently or not For example in addition to your rating scale you might also have an

open ended question that deals with the same content area

Action You should evaluate the impact of characteristics of respondents and the time

available for completing the questionnaire

You could cover the content domain comprehensively with 21 items (some of which may be

grouped into a rating scale containing approximately twelve items) We could break down

the coverage of the content areas as follows the first three items would be closed

questions to collect biographical information then a filter question (closed yesno type)

followed by an open question on personal experience of crime a rating scale (consisting of

twelve items) on levels of stress associated with different crimes a closed (multiple choice)

question on personal reactions to crimes and an open question to serve as a control an

open question on perceptions of the effect of crime and lastly an open question for any

other comments the respondent may wish to add Therefore have five closed items four

open items and a twelve item rating scale (total of 21 items) The questionnaire should not

be too long or complicated

Layout of the questionnaire

1 Introduction and covering letter

A well designed questionnaire with a professional appearance is more likely to be

completed The introduction informs respondents about the purpose convinces them that

their participation is valued motivates them to complete the questionnaire reduces their

fears regarding time and inconvenience and assures them of confidentiality and safety

Guidelines for an introduction to a questionnaire

1 the name of the person or organisation conducting the study to establish credibility

2 a general statement of the objectives of the questionnaire

3 assurance that their participation is valued and confidential

4 some estimate of the time required to complete the questionnaire

2 Confidentiality and anonymity

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 10: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

9

Anonymity elicits more accurate information greater freedom to express themselves

without fear that their responses would be used in a way that is not in their interests

Important in surveys that involve lsquosensitiversquo topics

3 Length of the questionnaire

Depends on the topic and the degree of interest it holds for the respondent Ideally 30

minutes to complete Also depends on the characteristics of the respondents Specialists

more willing to complete a longer questionnaire For people with low levels of literacy or

education it is better to keep questionnaires short Make sure that each question is directly

relevant need to have thorough coverage of your topic to ensure ltreliabilitygt and

ltvaliditygt The aim is to strike a balance between a concise questionnaire and one that is

inclusive enough to ensure validity

4 Presentation and sequence of questions

1 Try to avoid putting ideas into the respondents minds or suggesting preferable

attitudes Start with open questions and then introduce more structured questions

2 Start with a broad question that orients the respondent to the topic followed by the

twelve item rating scale (moving from the general to the more specific) - the funnel

approach

3 Better to put personal data questions near the end preceded by a short explanation

such as ldquoTo help us classify your answers Items on biographical information - only

a few items at the beginning but if there are a lot of items better at the end

4 You probably have groups of questions relating to particular aspects of your main topic

Decide on the order in which to present these groups of questions Two main

considerations the logic of the survey and the likely reactions of the respondents Start

off with lsquoawarenessrsquo questions relating to the topic in general followed by lsquofactualrsquo

questions dealing with the respondentsrsquo own actions or behaviour Then you might

include questions on likes and dislikes preferences and attitudes

5 Sensitive or very personal issues should come toward the end of the questionnaire to

avoid embarrassing or offending the respondents A closed question and an open

question serve as a sort of validity check for this content area

6 Place one or more open ended questions at the end to allow the respondents to express

opinions or feelings related but have not been covered by the questions Respondents

are more likely to feel satisfied that answering the questions was worth the effort

5 Balance of question types

The ideal is to vary the type of questions so that the respondents do not get bored or

irritated (which may affect the validity of their responses)

6 Filter questions

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 11: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

10

Start with a filter or screening question that excludes some respondents from answering

irrelevant questions If the answer is no skip the next few questions

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 12: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

11

3 Write questionnaire items

Outcome product

A set of items for measuring specific content areas

Method

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Activity 32 Write items for a questionnaire

Resource reference

Writing questionnaire items

Introduction

All research is aimed at finding answers Questions may arise from anomalies or gaps that a

researcher has found in existing theories from a need to solve a practical problem or just

personal curiosity and intuition Good items are critical to the success of a research project

They produce reliable data and accurate information upon which valid conclusions can be

based

Writing questionnaire items

1 General principles guiding the construction of good items

1 The items should be based on a meaningful definition or description of what you want to

measure

2 Constructing items is a science - requires an in-depth knowledge of onersquos topic and

familiarity with the principles governing good item design And art - requires creativity in

selecting or constructing items appropriate to the particular context

3 The items should be aimed at obtaining meaningful information with a minimum of

distortion

4 Careful thought must be given to the relevance language level cultural interpretations

and clarity of the items Important that it is reader-friendly Avoid items that are

humiliating confusing or make respondents feel inadequate

2 General guidelines for using and modifying existing items

Recommended that researchers use well-known questionnaires of which the reliability and

validity have already been established You must critically scrutinise each item

3 Guidelines for constructing new items

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 13: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

12

There may be no existing questionnaire that taps the particular construct you intend to

investigate or you may have to eliminate a number of unsuitable items

31 Relevance of items

Keep in mind what you are aiming to find out

Dorsquos and Donrsquots

Do read each item and ask yourself if the item relates to your topic

Donrsquot be tempted to ask questions that are interesting but not vital to your research

32 Language level

The respondents may not be as knowledgeable or have as large a vocabulary as you

Donrsquot use academic or technical terminology jargon words that are seldom used in

everyday speech very long sentences or complicated syntax (see example below)

Do phrase your items in such a way that the language level matches that of your

respondents

If you are not sure whether items would be easily understood do present them to a small

group of respondents

33 Cultural context

The same item may mean different things to groups with different socio-economic and

cultural backgrounds Be sure that the questionnaire does not contain phrases that have

different connotations in different cultures

Do try to see the items from the respondentsrsquo perspective

Do be aware of possible cross-cultural differences

If your target population is different from your own cultural group then do pre-test your

items on a few members of that group

Do try to have your items correctly translated

34 Clarity

If anything in your questionnaire is not understood andor misinterpreted your

results will be useless

Do avoid ambiguity interpreted in a number of ways Visiting lecturers can help one

feel less isolated

(Does this mean that the lecturers do the visiting - or do the students)

Donrsquot ask questions with two inherent issues

I am fully occupied and I donrsquot feel lonely

Rather break such questions or statements into two separate items

Do scrutinise any items that contain the conjunctions lsquoandrsquo or lsquoorrsquo to see if they contain

more than one possible issue

Wherever possible donrsquot use negatives

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 14: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

13

Do use active rather than passive statements Passive statements are more difficult

to understand and therefore more difficult to respond to

It is believed by students that they will be given extension by lecturers

The following is simpler

Students believe lecturers will give them extension

Do ask specific questions rather than general or vague questions General items may

not be interpreted in the same way by everyone and thus produce unreliable answers

Do write items that are specific simple clear and to the point

35 Fitting items to the choice of responses

When you construct lsquoclosedrsquo items be sure that the given responses are appropriate for each

item

36 Factual questions

It can be difficult to remember events in the distant past

Do limit the time frame to the immediate past (at the most the last six months)

When asking questions relating to factual information do make sure your respondents

have the information

37 Leading questions

Those that influence respondents to give a particular answer

Donrsquot write items that encourage respondents to give a particular answer

Discrimination in South Africa is horrific isnrsquot it

Donrsquot give examples unless it is really necessary

Do you use any word processing packages such as ZZ

4 Problems relating to response bias or response style

Tendencies to choose a particular type of answer

41 Social desirability response bias

Tendency to choose what one believes to be the most socially acceptable response

Deliberate faking when they are fully aware of what is being measured and for what

purpose when their identity is disclosed and when they are aware that their responses will

affect them in some way Respondents may also lie to protect their real feelings or justify

their behaviour or because they do not want to admit their ignorance

42 Response styles

Tendency to make a particular type of response tend to choose extreme responses such or

repeatedly choose central responses Design balanced questionnaires Positively stated and

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 15: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

14

negatively scored eg ldquoPeople often let me downrdquo Positively stated and positively scored

eg ldquoI trust peoplerdquo

Activity 31 Apply criteria for writing questionnaire items

Action Evaluate existing items according to these criteria Shortcomings of the following

questions

1 What is your income

vague

2 Donrsquot you disagree with yesterdayrsquos Parliamentary decision regarding smoking and

drinking (YesNo)

leading question which contains two inherent issues and a double negative

3 We should be less passive about what is happening in the environment

(agreeuncertaindisagree)

vague ldquoWho is lsquowersquordquo ldquoLess passive than whatrdquo and ldquoWhat environmentrdquo

4 I feel depressed and sad (neversometimesoftenall the time)

two inherent items lsquoDepressionrsquo and lsquooftenrsquo may mean different things to different

people

5 How often do you take drugs (neversometimesoftenall the time)

imprecise and may be interpreted in various ways

6 Abortion should not be legalised (agreedisagree)

too global

7 Most men are more emotionally stable than most women are (agreedisagree)

is a leading question

8 Suppose you are measuring Unisa studentsrsquo level of motivation and one of your items is

ldquoHow many hours do you spend studying each weekrdquo

does not necessarily relate to motivation

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 16: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

15

4 Pilot test the questionnaire

Outcome product

A set of items to be included in the final version of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Item analysis

Introduction

Improve your questionnaire further by actually trying it out and seeing how people respond

to each item In particular you will use simple item analysis techniques to improve the 12-

item rating scale that forms part of your questionnaire

Activity 41 Administer and revise the questionnaire

Action Identify a suitable sample get hold of people to try it out on The sample should

represent the population to which you hope to generalise your findings

One needs at least one more person than there are items in onersquos scale Finding a sample is

a matter of balancing practical issues with theoretical requirements

Action Administer the questionnaire to the sample Be sure to be ethical about what your

are doing The answer to each of the questions should be YES

Ethical checklist

Respondents understand why they are being asked

to complete the questionnaire

It is to help you with your studies

It is to help you improve the questionnaire

They will not get their scores back

Respondents understand that they donrsquot have to

complete the questionnaire

You wonrsquot hold it against them if they decide not to

do it

You wonrsquot tell anybody else if they refused

Respondents understand that their responses will

be confidential

Their names wonrsquot be on the questionnaire

You wonrsquot show their responses to anybody else

YesNo Notes

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 17: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

16

Keep notes of what kinds of questions people ask and what difficulties arise - to make

improvements When you get the questionnaire back quickly scan it to see that they have

completed all of it

Action There are two ways of using a pilot study to improve your questionnaire Use what

happened during the study Look again at the notes you made while you were administering

the questionnaire Now write a short summary of the changes

Item analysis

Procedures to select the best items for inclusion commonly used criteria are item

difficulty (item facility or item variance) and item discrimination

1 Item difficultyvariance

Ideal questionnaire is where about half the people gets each of the items right Item

analysis involves discarding items that are too easy or too difficult The difficulty index for

an item is usually calculated by dividing the number of people who gave a correct response

by the total number of people in the sample The difficulty index should be between 025

and 075 and the average difficulty should be about 05

2 Item discrimination

The ability of an item to discriminate between respondents according to whatever the

measuring instrument as a whole is measuring Items should only be selected if they

measure the same characteristics - else they lose focus The higher the correlation

coefficient the more discriminating the item A minimum correlation of 02 is generally

required Items with negative or zero correlations are almost always excluded A negative

correlation could be indicative that an item should have been reverse scored

3 How many items to exclude

It is usual to discard 20 to 30 of the items

4 Other forms of item analysis

A range of item bias statistics help test constructors to identify items that perform

differently (are biased) for different groups

Activity 42 Do an item analysis

The second way of using a pilot study is to analyse the responses people gave to each item

in the questionnaire Remove items with too little variance and remove items that donrsquot

discriminate You only need to perform an item analysis on the rating scale part of your

questionnaire

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 18: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

17

Action Compile a data sheet The possible responses to each item in the scale will have a

number from 1 to 5

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost

never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of

the time

5

Always

I like loud music

radic

I prefer quiet places

radic

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

The ticked options are known as item responses Item 2 in our example should be lsquoreverse-

scoredrsquo because if somebody says she never likes quiet places she is in effect saying

that she always likes noisy places and she should therefore get a high score

Statement 1

Never

2

Almost never

3

Sometimes

4

Most of the time

5

Always

I like loud

music

radic

5

I prefer quiet places REVERSE SCORE

radic

5

I enjoy noisy environments

radic

4

The data sheet is divided into rows and columns - one row for each person in your sample

and one column for each item in your rating scale and total score Take a questionnaire

and transfer the score for each item to the first row on the data sheet

Calculate each respondentrsquos total score lowest anybody can have on the rating scale is 12

highest is 60

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 5 5 4

2 3 3

3 3 2

4 3 4

Action Start with the actual item analysis of your rating scale Find items with too little

variance where almost everybody in the sample gets the same item score You want your

scale to show differences between people

Compare items and decide which are better items in terms of the amount of variance they

show

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 19: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

18

Run your eye down each of the columns on your data sheet and look for items that may not

have sufficient variance If a column contains mainly only one number the item doesnrsquot

show much variance If a column contains a good spread of numbers the item shows lots of

variance

It is not always possible to explain why most people end up answering an item in the same

way - the item may have been too extremely worded they are too vague or that there is a

strong lsquosocially desirablersquo way of responding

Correlation coefficient

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour eg anxiety intelligence stress independence etcetera Correlation

coefficient - the relation between the constructs

1 The correlation coefficient

The statistical relationship between two constructs is called a correlation A value close to 0

indicates a weak relationship while 0 represents no correlation The numerical size of a

correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship while the sign positive

negative) indicates the direction of the relationship

2 The scatter plot

The graphic display of the correlation coefficient If there is a perfect positive relation

between two constructs (a correlation coefficient of +1) the dots form a perfectly straight

line with an upward slope For a a correlation coefficient of -1 the scores form a perfectly

straight line with a downward slope No relation (a correlation coefficient of 0) between two

constructs results in an undefined shape

3 Using correlations in item analysis

If the item correlates strongly with the total score we know that it measures more or less

the same thing as the other items

Action To measure differences between people our items need to show some variance but

even if the items show lots of variance the scale may not measure anything in particular

Ensure that each item in the scale measures more or less the same thing and that the

items are not too divergent You want an item to discriminate between high and low scorers

because it shows that the item measures more or less the same thing as the other items in

the scale

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 20: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

19

Cases Items Total Score

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1 4 53

2 1 12

3 5 49

4 4 40

5 2 16

Item 3 does seem to be pretty good at discriminating between high and low scorers

Looking whether item scores correspond with a total score is called item-total correlation

Professional questionnaire constructors usually calculate a ltcorrelation coefficientgt (an

index of how strongly two variables are related) to establish how strong each item-total

correlation is

Item

Relation between the scores on item 3 and the scale total

Each dot on the scatterplot represents a person Dots are arranged roughly in a diagonal

line from bottom left to top right This means that there is a strong correlation between the

item score and the total score - the item discriminates well If the dots donrsquot seem to form a

pattern at all then there is no correlation if the line seems to go from top left to bottom

right then there is a negative correlation (the item does discriminate but the wrong way

round so it is no good) You will have to draw 12 scatter plots (one for each of the 12

items)

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 21: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

20

Identify what appears to be the worst items in your scale in terms of failure to discriminate

The reason why items donrsquot discriminate is usually because they measure something

different from the other items in the scale Sometimes the wording of the item but

sometimes it seems inexplicable and one just has to accept that it is so

Action Compile a final version of your questionnaire Your scale should have

8 items so discard 4 items Study the list for items that donrsquot show much variance and the

other list for items that donrsquot discriminate well

Your 8 item scale is more coherent and has a greater degree of reliability

5 Evaluate reliability and validity

An evaluation of the reliability of the questionnaire

An evaluation of the validity of the questionnaire

Method

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Resource reference

Correlation coefficient

Reliability

Validity

Introduction

The results should be reliable that is the questionnaire should measure consistently You

will evaluate the reliability of the final version of the rating scale included in your

questionnaire The interpretations based on the results should also be valid that is it should

measure what it claims to measure

Reliability

How consistently the questionnaire measures that which it is supposed to measure

1 Measurement error and reliability

Various conditions might affect the results of the questionnaire eg the occasion on which

the questionnaire is administered or the sample of items in the questionnaire Their effect

on the results is unpredictable and inconsistent These irrelevant conditions are called

unsystematic sources of variation The reliability refers to the consistency of results

over different administrations involving different occasions test forms etc

A statistical index of reliability is the reliability coefficient range between 0 and 1

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 22: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

21

Unreliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient close to 0

Reliable questionnaire - reliability coefficient of 1

The closer the value of the reliability coefficient to 1 the more reliable the test

2 Different types of reliability

21 Test-retest reliability

How consistent the results of a questionnaire are over different occasions administer the

same questionnaire to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

and the correlation coefficient represents the degree of test-retest reliability The closer the

correlation coefficient is to 1 the more consistent Test-retest reliability thus indicates

stability or consistency of scores over time

A perfect correlation does not indicate that the second scores were identical a persons

relative position to that of the others in the group stays the same The time interval should

be at least several days to reduce the possibility of effects such as familiarity with the type

of items or respondents remembering their answers

22 Alternate-forms reliability

Two forms of the same questionnaire are often developed To know how consistent the

results are over different forms obtain an estimate of the alternate-forms reliability Both

forms administered to the same group on two consecutive occasions Scores are correlated

The closer the correlation coefficient (or reliability coefficient) is to 1 the greater the extent

to which the forms are indeed equivalent and thus measure the same attribute Alternate-

forms reliability is thus a measure of equivalence

Alternate-forms reliability can also be used to determine the consistency of results over

different occasions or stability over time This offers some solution to possible memory

effects experienced with test-retest reliability A disadvantage of alternate-forms reliability

is that it expensive and time-consuming and that it is difficult to produce truly parallel

forms

23 Split-half reliability

A single questionnaire is administered only once This questionnaire is then divided into two

parts regarded as two parallel halves Each person has a total score on the one half and a

total score on the second half - two sets of scores that are then correlated The correlation

is an estimate of the reliability of either of the two halves and is thus a measure of

equivalence

A common method used to divide a questionnaire is to compare scores on the odd items

with scores on the even items A shorter questionnaire is generally less reliable the

reliability of the whole questionnaire is called the split-half reliability and it measures the

degree of equivalence between the two halves that is the extent to which they measure the

same attribute It reflects the consistency and indicates the degree of relatedness of the

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 23: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

22

items This type of reliability is therefore also regarded as a measure of the internal

consistency and the closer the split-half reliability is to 1 the higher the internal

consistency of the questionnaire

3 Evaluating reliability

The nature and purpose of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is

appropriate A psychological test such as an intelligence test the reliability coefficient

should be above 090 A reliability coefficient of 070 can be useful if the results are used in

combination with other information about the individual or group

Activity 51 Evaluate the reliability of the rating scale

Action You should be able to distinguish between different types of reliability The purpose

of the questionnaire determines which type of reliability is appropriate

The internal consistency of a rating scale - the extent to which the items measure the same

thing Obtain an estimate of the split-half reliability of this rating scale the degree of

equivalence between two halves of the rating scale A limitation of this method is that the

reliability coefficient that one obtains to some extent depends on the items included in

each of the two halves

Action Look at these eight items and divide the rating scale into two halves by grouping

the odd items and even items together Now re-number your items from 1 to 8 For each

person calculate the total score for the odd items and for the even items

1 3 5 7 Total Score

2 4 6 8 Total Score

1

2

3

4

Data sheet for two halves of the rating scale

The relation between these two sets of scores will give you an estimate of the reliability of

either of the two halves of the rating scale

For each person take the total score on the odd items and the total score on the even

items and where the two meet you make a dot on the graph Draw a straight line

resembling the shape of the scatterplot

If your scatter plot has a very undefined shape the correlation coefficient is close to 0

indicating a weak relation between the two halves If the line has an upward slope the

correlation coefficient falls between 0 and +1 If most dots are close to the line the

correlation coefficient is close to +1 and there is a fairly strong relation

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 24: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

23

Action In this context the correlation coefficient is a reliability coefficient Values closer to

1 indicate a more reliable rating scale

Validity

The extent to which it measures what it claims to measure The extent to which the scores

can be used for the intended purpose There are three categories of gathering validity

evidence content validity criterion-related validity and construct validity

1 Content validity

The content validity is determined by the degree to which the items in the questionnaire

are representative of the universe of tasks behaviours or attitudes (the content domain)

that it was designed to measure Content validity can be ensured by proper design

Content validity cannot be expressed in terms of a quantitative index

Face validity refers to the degree to which items appear to be relevant Content validity is

based on the subjective evaluation by people who are not necessarily experts either in the

particular area or in psychometrics If the respondents do not regard the items as relevant

(the questionnaire does not have sufficient face validity) they might be less motivated and

even unwilling to cooperate

2 Criterion-related validity

The criterion-related validity of a questionnaire is the extent to which the scores on the

questionnaire are effective in estimating an individuals position or performance on the

relevant criterion Approaches to gathering evidence of criterion-related validity are

concurrent validity and predictive validity

With concurrent validity measures are obtained on the criterion at approximately the

same time as the scores on the questionnaire The extent to which scores accurately

estimates an individuals present position on the relevant criterion is then determined

Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to identify some current behaviour or

status of individuals

For example you want to classify psychiatric patients according to their disturbances Take

a representative group of psychiatric patients and administer it to them At the same time

you would ask psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to classify these patients according to

type of disturbance

To evaluate predictive validity the measures on the criterion are obtained in the future It

is then determined to which extent the scores accurately predict an individuals scores on

the relevant criterion Determined if you want to use your questionnaire to predict some

future performance of individuals For example to select candidates for entrance into this

course take a representative group of students applying for the course and administer your

questionnaire to them

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 25: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

24

At the end of the course you could obtain the students examination marks You will then

determine how effective scores on your questionnaire are in predicting the studentsrsquo

examination marks

To determine criterion-related validity calculate the correlation between the results and the

measures on the criterion the resulting correlation coefficient is known as the validity

coefficient

3 Construct validity

A construct is an unobservable quality which forms part of a theory designed to explain

observable behaviour For example anxiety is not observable but it forms part of a theory

that explains observable behaviours

You have to define your construct in terms of observable behaviours You can thus define

the construct validity as the extent to which it indeed measures the theoretical construct

it aims to measure Construct validity cannot be expressed in terms of a single validity

coefficient You would expect groups who are supposed to differ in terms of a construct to

also obtain significantly different scores on a questionnaire measuring this construct

Another way to determine construct validity is to look at the correlation coefficients

between different questionnaires

Convergent validity - if two questionnaires measure the same construct you would expect

the scores to be significantly correlated

Discriminant validity - if two constructs are theoretically unrelated you would not expect a

high correlation

Activity 52 Evaluate the validity of the questionnaire

Action You should be able to distinguish between categories of validity

The content validity of your questionnaire is influenced by how well you designed the

questionnaire The content domain is the universe of tasks behaviours attitudes etcetera

implied by the purpose of your questionnaire The degree to which the items in your

questionnaire are representative of the content domain determines the content validity of

your questionnaire Criterion - related validity of the questionnaire - how well a

questionnaire estimates an individualrsquos position or performance on some outcome measure

Construct validity - to make conclusions about a theoretical construct that underlies

the behaviours measured by the questionnaire

Action Consider the content domain of your questionnaire and the questionnaire

specification document and evaluate the content validity of your questionnaire

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 26: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

25

6 Compile a manual

Outcome product

A manual for the questionnaire consisting of a description of the aim and design an

evaluation of the properties and procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Method

Activity 61 Discuss the process of developing the questionnaire

Activity 62 Compile a manual

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

1 Purpose of a manual

Someone else might be interested in using your test or questionnaire Report the process of

analysing and selecting the items as well as the reliability and validity of the questionnaire

Give instructions for the administration of the questionnaire for the scoring of the

questionnaire and some guidelines on how to interpret the results

2 Structure of a manual

Aim and design

Aim

Target population

Design of the questionnaire

Properties of the questionnaire

Item analysis and item selection

Reliability

Validity

Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Instructions for administration

Instructions for scoring

Guidelines for interpretation

21 Aim and design

Should be clear what the questionnaire measures and how this information can be used

The aim of the questionnaire determines for whom it will be used Describe characteristics

of the target population that are relevant to the aim of the questionnaire Important to

state for which country this questionnaire has been developed and age as the subject

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 27: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

26

matter of this questionnaire A brief description of the design of the questionnaire should

be provided The type of items should also be indicated - multiple-choice items or rating

22 Properties of the questionnaire

To determine how effective the questionnaire is you need to administer it to a group of

people who are representative of the target population This group should be described and

indicated to what extent they are representative in terms of those characteristics that

define the target population It should also be mentioned when and under which

circumstances the questionnaire was administered to them Describe each technique used

for item analysis and you should indicate which criteria were used to justify the inclusion

or exclusion of items in the item selection process Important for the user to know how

reliable or consistent the questionnaire is Give a brief description of the method used to

determine reliability and justify why this was used The estimated reliability coefficient is

then evaluated in terms of an acceptable level of reliability Identify the category of validity

(be it content validity criterion-related validity or construct validity) that is relevant for

your questionnaire

23 Procedures for administration scoring and interpretation

Provide general instructions for administration of a questionaire Who is allowed to

administer it the situation in which it should be administered (groups or individuals)

complete on their own or if supervision is needed the material needed and how to deal

with a person asking an explanation Provide instructions for scoring A correct answer

could score a 1 or a 0 Rating scales - on a five-point rating scale a 1 = do not at all agree

and 5 = strong agreement with this statement The total score indicates the persons

attitude towards the topic under investigation Reverse scoring might be necessary

The guidelines for interpretation of the results should be based on the aim of the

questionnaire

7 Evaluate a questionnaire

Outcome product

An evaluated questionnaire

Method

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Activity 72 Use the questionnaire rating scale to evaluate a questionnaire

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Content domain Identify the content domain for a questionnaire

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 28: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

27

Item format

Layout of the questionnaire

Suitability of a questionnaire as measuring instrument

Writing questionnaire items

Activity 71 Explore a questionnaire rating scale

Action The four main facets one should consider when evaluating a questionnaire are

1 the instructions of the questionnaire

2 the characteristics of the items of the questionnaire

3 the characteristics of the questionnaire as a whole

4 the functionality of the questionnaire

1 Questionnaire instructions

These instructions should address

the purpose of the questionnaire confidentiality of the information provided in the

questionnaire and how to complete the questionnaire explain how the questionnaire

questions should be tackled Provided in a cover letter

11 The purpose of the questionnaire

Rate 0 purpose not explained

Rate 1 explained in terms of one of the following

(1) what it is intended to measure

(2) whom it is supposed to be used for

Rate 2 explained in terms of both statements

12 The confidentiality of information provided

Rate 0 not mentioned

Rate 1 absolutely confidential or identity will not be disclosed

Rate 2 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed required to provide name

Rate 3 absolutely confidential and identity will not be disclosed not required to provide

name

13 Instructions for how to handle questions

Rate 0 not explained how the questionnaire should be completed

Rate 1 is explained but does not hold for all items

Rate 2 is explained and holds for all items

2 Item characteristics

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 29: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

28

All items have to be relevant to the topic presented in understandable language

meaningful for people from different cultural or language backgrounds clear and

unambiguous answerable and non-leading

21 Item relevance

Rate 0 all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 most items are irrelevant

Rate 2 some items are irrelevant

Rate 3 none items are irrelevant

22 Item language level

Rate 0 all items presented in language that is too difficult

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

23 Item in cultural context

Rate 0 all items presented contain phrases that may be unclear to or be interpreted

differently

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

24 Item clarity

Rate 0 all items are phrased in such a way that they may confuse respondents

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

25 Item answerability

Rate 0 all items are unanswerable (ie the choice of provided responses does not fit

the item or the respondent does not have the required information)

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

26 Item as a leading question

Rate 0 all items are leading questions

Rate 1 most items

Rate 2 some items

Rate 3 none items

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 30: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

29

3 Questionnaire characteristics

Questionnaires should have sufficient items to cover the topic but they should not be too

lengthy Items should be presented in a particular order to

(a) counter response style and item bias

(b) increase the efficiency of the questionnaire By grouping questions and by using filter

questions and a good balance of different question types

(c) be sensitive towards respondents Put respondents at ease by incorporating neutral and

interesting questions at the beginning and forbidding sensitive and personal questions

towards the end Allow respondents to raise opinions and vent feelings by providing open

ended questions at the end

31 The scope of the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not focus on the topic that it is supposed to cover

Rate 1 part of it focusses

Rate 2 focusses but topic is not covered in full

Rate 3 focusses and the topic is covered in full

32 Questionnaire item sequence

Rate 0 no items or if all items are irrelevant

Rate 1 sequence seems to

(1) introduce a particular response style or bias and

(2) force respondents to respond in an inefficient manner and

(3) make respondents feel emotionally uncomfortable

Rate 2 if the sequence seems to cause any two problems

Rate 3 if the sequence seems to cause any one problem

Rate 4 if the sequence does not seem to cause any of the problems

4 Questionnaire functionality

The issue to be evaluated is whether the questionnaire is structured in such a manner that

it can function maximally in the light of its declared purpose Does the structure of the

questionnaire (kinds of items and the sequence) support the questionnairersquos functionality

(ie what the questionnaire could be used for what it is capable of) given its declared

purpose (ie the kind of information it is expected to deliver) In other words the structure

and functionality of a questionnaire is a function of its declared purpose

41 The functionality of the questionnaire

Rate 0 the structure limits its functionality with regard to all three functions

(1) to obtain accurate information

(2) to provide a standard format for recording facts comments and attitudes

(3) to facilitate data processing

Rate 1 structure limits its functionality with regard to two

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 31: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

30

Rate 2 structure limits its functionality with regard to one

Rate 3 structure limits its functionality with regard to none

Activity 73 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

QWAN stands for Quality Without A Name No single person can be absolutely sure that

the ratings heshe assigns are absolutely correct The QWAN is the quality we all strive for

but that no one can claim It is simply a standard against which you measure yourself

8 Evaluate a manual

Outcome product

An evaluated manual

Method

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Activity 83 Compare your evaluations to the QWAN

Resource reference

Manual The purpose and structure of a manual

Activity 81 Explore a manualrsquos rating scale

The main issues one should consider when evaluating this kind of manual are

1 the extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose and

2 the quality of the information provided in the manual

1 The extent to which the manual constitutes its purpose

The purpose of a questionnaire manual is to provide information for the person who plans

to use the questionnaire Questionnaire administrators need to know three things

(a) Whether the questionnaire is relevant for the purpose the questionnaire administrator

has in mind

(b) whether the questionnaire will work and

(c) how the questionnaire should be used

The manual constitutes its purpose if it provides information about (a) the nature of the

questionnaire (ie the aim and design of the questionnaire and the population it can be

used with) (b) the functionality of the questionnaire (ie the analysis and selection of items

for the questionnaire and the reliability and validity of the questionnaire) and (c)

instructions for using the questionnaire (ie instructions for administration scoring and

interpretation) Focus on whether the manual is able to achieve its purpose not whether it

has in fact achieved this purpose

11 The purpose areas covered in the manual

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 32: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

31

Rate 0 no information about the following purpose areas

(a) the nature of the questionnaire

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

Rate 1 information about one

Rate 2 information about any two

Rate 3 information about all three

Proper communication requires a logical presentation and clear and correct language The

manual should start with a description of

(a) the nature of the questionnaire then discuss

(b) the functionality of the questionnaire and conclude with

(c) instructions for using the questionnaire

The logical sequence would be (a) (b) (c)

12 The logical sequence of the presentation

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

Rate 1 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo but purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 2 if your rating in 11 is lsquo2rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Rate 3 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo but if the purpose areas are not in the logical sequence

Rate 4 if your rating in 11 is lsquo3rsquo and if the purpose areas are logical

Each of the purpose areas refer to specific content topics

The nature of the questionnaire refers to

- the aim of the questionnaire

- the target population

- the design of the questionnaire

The functionality of the questionnaire refers to

- the sample used to test the questionnaire

- the analysis and selection of the questionnairersquos items

- the reliability of the questionnaire

- the validity of the questionnaire

The instructions for using the questionnaire refer to

- instructions for administration

- instructions for scoring

- instructions for interpretation

A manual should cover ten different content topics kept together in their distinct groups

namely the three purpose areas

13 The logical grouping of the content topics

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo or lsquo1rsquo

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 33: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

32

Rate 1 content topics of none of the three purpose areas are kept in their logical groups

Rate 2 one kept

Rate 3 two kept

Rate 4 all kept

Effective communication requires clear precise and correct language written in short

direct sentences to enable unambiguous and precise communication Technical information

should be simple and straightforward

14 The clarity of the manualrsquos language

Rate 0 if your rating in 11 is lsquo0rsquo

Rate 1 if the manual contains

(a) difficult language and

(b) ambiguous statements and

(c) grammar and spelling mistakes

Rate 2 any two of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 3 any one of (a) (b) and (c)

Rate 4 none of (a) (b) and (c)

2 The quality of the information provided in the manual

The manual should cover ten content topics

21 The aim of the questionnaire

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

23 The design of the questionnaire

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

27 The validity of the questionnaire

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

21 The aim of the questionnaire

Rate 0 manual does not provide sufficient information

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) what the questionnaire measures

(2) how the information obtained could be used

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 34: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

33

22 The population targeted by the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the target population but it is not appropriate

Rate 2 describes the target population and it is appropriate

23 The design of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 if the manual describes one of the following

(1) the domain of the questionnaire

(2) how the questionnaire items cover the domain

(3) the types of items used in the questionnaire

Rate 2 any two

Rate 3 all three

24 The sample used to test the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 describes the sample used but if the characteristics of the sample group differ from

target population

Rate 2 describes the sample used and if the characteristics of the sample group correspond

to the target population

25 How items were analysed and selected for the questionnaire Rate 0 not sufficient

information about the analysis and selection of

questionnaire items

Rate 1 describes one of the following

(1) the technique used for item analysis

(2) the criteria used for including items in or excluding items from the questionnaire

Rate 2 describes both (1) and (2)

26 The reliability of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) describes the method used to determine reliability

(2) motivates why the particular type of reliability is used

(3) evaluates the reliability coefficient in terms of what can be regarded as an

acceptable level of reliability

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

27 The validity of the questionnaire

Rate 0 not sufficient information

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 35: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

34

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) names the category of validity that is relevant to the questionnaire

(2) explains how evidence for the questionnairersquos validity was gathered

(3) discusses to what extent the questionnaire measures what it claims to measure

Rate 2 any two of (1) (2) and (3)

Rate 3 all three of (1) (2) and (3)

28 Instructions for administering the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 instructions include one or two of the following

(1) an indication of the kind of person who is allowed to administer the questionnaire

(2) the situations in which the questionnaire can be administered

(3) the material required for the administration of the questionnaire

(4) the ways in which enquiries about items should be handled

(5) guidelines as to how the questionnaire should be introduced to people who are

about to complete the questionnaire

Rate 2 include three or four

Rate 3 include all five

29 Instructions for scoring the questionnaire

Rate 0 if scoring (but no decoding) is required but it does not provide instructions

Rate 1 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for scoring but

not for decoding

Rate 2 if both scoring and decoding are required and provides instructions for both

210 Guidelines for interpreting the information obtained via the questionnaire

Rate 0 does not provide instructions

Rate 1 does one of the following

(1) provides instructions for interpretation of the information

(2) explains how the interpretation fits the aim

Rate 2 does both (1) and (2)

Activity 82 Use the manualrsquos rating scale to evaluate a manual

Action Study the manual below

Manual for ldquoTHE MARSTON PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE (THE MPQ)rdquo

The Marston Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was designed to measure individualsrsquo

preferred behaviour styles in their work environments The MPQ is intended to be used with

the Marston Job Description System (MJDS) a method to describe any job in terms of

behaviour styles Once a job has been described by the MJDS one knows what kind of

behaviour style would be required of the person who does the job

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high

Page 36: 2016 EXAMPACK 2016 · total score (summated scale.) Ensure that the scale is uni-dimensional - all the items measure the same dimension or topic. It is important to have both favourable

35

The MPQ measures preferred behaviour style in terms of drive (the ability to get things

done personally) interaction (the ability to work with people) management (the ability to

keep systems going) and regulation (the ability to adhere to rules and regulations) Each

factor is measured on a ten point scale

50 multiple choice items If ltdescription of work situationgt I prefer to

(a) ltdescription of lsquodriversquo actiongt

(b) ltdescription of lsquointeractionrsquo actiongt

(c) ltdescription of lsquomanagementrsquo actiongt

(d) ltdescription of lsquoregulationrsquo actiongt

To counter response bias the sequence in which the action descriptions are provided is

varied randomly Nine hundred university students used in the development of the

questionnaire

The original MPQ consisted of 145 items Item analysis showed 63 really good but that the

remaining 82 items did not meet the criteria to be included Thirteen were excluded thus 50

items were retained The validity coefficient of 091 is high