Section outline

  • Course Overview

    This is a foundational course that introduces students to the fundamentals of writing and disseminating questionnaires. It will provide a clear understanding of what a questionnaire is and the benefits of using this method, as well as considerations when designing questionnaires, and tips for locating respondents and improving response rates.

    Learning Outcomes

    This course will help you to:

    1. Identify when using a questionnaire is suitable in research
    2. Distinguish between the different types of questions in questionnaires 
    3. Locate potential respondents
    4. Collect and handle data from questionnaires 

    • Course Instructor: Dr. Helen Kara

      • Dr. Helen Kara

        Dr. Helen Kara (FAcSS) has been an independent researcher since 1999 and an independent scholar since 2011. She writes about research methods and research ethics, and teaches doctoral students and staff at higher education institutions worldwide. Her books include Qualitative Research for Quantitative Researchers and four books in the Sage Little Quick Fix series. Helen also writes comics and fiction. In 2021, at the age of 56, she was diagnosed autistic. Her neurodiversity explains her lifelong special interest in, and ability to focus on, words, language, and writing.

        View Bio for Dr. Helen Kara

      • Pre-Course Self Assessment

        Before you dive into this course, spend a few moments reflecting on your familiarity with the topic and your current level of skills confidence. 

        You will then re-visit the same questions in our Post-Course Self Assessment and reflect on how the course has helped you develop in confidence and grow your skills. 

        • Module One: Is a Questionnaire Right for My Project?

          This module will help you to:

          1. Identify whether a questionnaire is suitable for use in your research 
          2. Recognize who might struggle to respond to a questionnaire 
          3. Select an appropriate delivery method for questionnaires so that they can be delivered, completed, and returned 

        • Module Two: How Do I Draft a Questionnaire?

          This module will help you to:

          1. Recognize the different types of questions used in questionnaires  
          2. Identify when and why to use each question type  
          3. Distinguish between the different question types in a complete questionnaire 

        • Module Three: How Do I Find Respondents and Test My Questionnaire?

          This module will help you to:

          1. Test and revise a draft questionnaire 
          2. Identify your potential respondents 
          3. Find respondents and ask them to help with your research 

        • Module Four: How Can I Handle Questionnaire Data?

          This module will help you to:

          1. Maximize the number of completed questionnaires you receive 
          2. Recognize how to schedule work with questionnaires  
          3. Identify how to prepare your data for analysis  
          4. Verify the quality of your data, and decide what to do with any poor-quality data you may have 

        • Glossary of Key Terms

          In addition to the glossary you’ll find woven throughout the course, you can find the full glossary collated in one place here.

        • Post-Course Self Assessment

          Now you’ve completed the course, spend a few moments reflecting on where your familiarity with the topics and your confidence skills levels are at now. 

          Has the course helped you develop new skills and grow your confidence?

          You'll need to complete the Post-Course Self Assessment in order to download your certificate. If you didn't do the Pre-Course Self Assessment before starting the course, please go to the top of the page and reflect on your familiarity with the topic and your level of skills confidence before you started the course.

          • Completion: Certificate

            Completing all modules (plus the pre and post-course assessments) will unlock the course certificate, which you can then download here. Your course certificate will only be made available once you have completed all these sections.

            If you have difficulty accessing your certificate, please contact the Sage support team at: onlinesupport@sagepub.co.uk. You can also check out this FAQ page which may be helpful.

            • Give Feedback About This Course

              Did you enjoy the course? Please take two minutes to share your feedback. We use learner feedback in future course updates and developments to provide an excellent learning experience.

            • Accessibility

              We have high standards of accessibility on Sage Campus and as of May/June 2024 all activities within this course are keyboard and screen reader compatible. For more details on accessibility standards, please see the Sage Campus Accessibility Guide.

              For those using assistive technology, please note that within this course:

              • Tab components: JAWS and NVDA behave slightly differently. For NVDA to keep reading, it is best to exit focus mode and go back to browse mode. 
              • Matching: JAWS does not read out question label on dropdown focus.