personality scale construction
fence sitting
staying close to the middle of the scale solution: even numbered scale
advantages of closed ended questions
-we get exactly what were asking for and nothing else
social desirability
A tendency to give socially approved answers to questions about oneself
semantic differential scale
a five-point scale in which the opposite ends have one- or two-word adjectives that have opposite meanings
likert scale
a numerical scale with odd number of options used to assess something; includes a set of possible answers with labeled anchors on each extreme
forced choice scale
a scale where a person must choose between only two response alternatives for each item (yes/no scale)
disadvantages of open ended questions
might never get stuff you care about -time consuming
open ended questions
allow people to respond to questions in their own ways
double barreled question
asking two questions in one ex: do you think that legalizing marijuana will decrease crime rate and lead to a happier, healthier population
reverse coded vs negatively worded
extraversion: tends to be quiet: reverse coded tends to be not talkative: negatively worded
interview
face to face and telephone interviews, one subject at a time or focus group interviews (almost never used in psych)
what is important about question order
how does 1 question impact the interpretation of the next question (contrast effect)
what is important about question phrasing
need to avoid: -leading questions (if it seems like one answer is better than another) - double barreled -negative worded questions (not, never, wouldn't, shouldn't) makes it more cognitively difficult -jargon (keep questions simple) -use equal numbers of positive and negative categories for scalar questions
advantage of open ended questions
people tell you what's important to them
questionnaire
personal admin to groups or individuals (mail, internet, in person)
closed ended questions
provide people with specific rating dimensions of interest (yes or no, 1-5 scale, etc)
types of self reports
questionnaires and interviews
response sets
shortcuts
disadvantage of closed ended questions
we don't get what is personally meaningful to them
acquiescence
yea-saying tendancy
