This document discusses when to use open-ended versus closed-ended questions in user research. Open-ended questions are best for exploratory research, understanding needs and problems, qualitative data, and unexpected answers. Closed-ended questions are better for controlled conversations, quantifiable data, statistical analysis, and higher response rates from larger groups. The document provides examples of each type of question and considerations for various research goals and contexts.
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19 Things to consider when deciding on Question type for User Research
4. 2.
You want to
explore
respondents’
needs & behavior
● You want to
understand the needs
of the users
● How your customers
use your product
● Which of the users’
problems you want to
solve
Open - ended
6. 4.
You expect Long
Responses
● Multiple sentences,
stories, lists or even
paragraphs
● Spontaneous
responses
Open - ended
7. 5.
You want to
know User’s
opinions and
feedback
● Opportunity for users
to complain about a
bad experience
Open - ended
8. 6.
You want to
uncover user’s
experience with
your product
● Insights to improve
your product
● Advantage of getting
insights you can’t (or
difficult to) collect
through other ways
Open - ended
9. 7.
When you don’t
want to miss
opportunity to gain
insights on topic
you are not familiar
with
● Respondents may
share attitudes,
behaviors and concerns
you might not expect
or is aware of
Open - ended
10. 8.
To use before a
conclusive
research
● These responses will be
useful to design the
survey structure and
questions
Open - ended
11. 9.
You want
qualitative data
● Difficult to compile into
charts or tables
● Sometimes you can
code responses,
however it is difficult to
interpret respondents’
words correctly
Open - ended
12. 10.
You want to
know what, how,
why
● Questions begin with
these words
● ‘Why’ can sometimes
mislead to come up
with a reason even
when there isn’t any
Open - ended
15. 12.
You want higher
response rates
● Where you can easily
distribute and expect
quick responses
● For larger populations
● For repeated research
Closed - ended
16. 13.
You want to
keep the
conversation in
control
● Yes or No, Agree or
Disagree type answers
or responses with
limited choices
● You want exact,
quantifiable and
predictable responses
Closed - ended
19. 16.
Easy to Analyze
● Responses can be
given a no. or value to
code for analysis
Closed - ended
20. 17.
When you have
in-depth
knowledge of topic
● Researcher must have
clear understanding of
the topic to provide
options for responses
● He/ she should be
aware of how it ties to
the overall research
problem
Closed - ended