Question Types

Overview #

There are three types of Questions available in Stackle:

• Open Text
• Multiple Choice
• Multiple Select
• Media Response

Although each question type boasts a distinct interface for crafting questions, they all share a common set of features, which include:

• Question Text
• Context
• Question Stimulus
• Additional Content
• Export Options
• Clearing Participant Data

For further details on utilizing these elements effectively, please refer to the corresponding question type mentioned above.

Open Text Question Type #

An open-text question is a type of question in which respondents are given the freedom to provide their answers in a free-form text format, without any predefined options or constraints. This type of question allows participants to express their thoughts, opinions, or experiences in their own words, making it an invaluable tool for gathering qualitative data in surveys, questionnaires, interviews, or assessments.

Open-text questions are particularly useful for:

1. Gaining deeper insights: They enable you to explore complex topics, emotions, or opinions, and uncover underlying reasons or motivations behind participants’ responses.
2. Encouraging creativity and self-expression: Open-text questions allow respondents to share their unique perspectives, ideas, and experiences, promoting a more genuine and diverse range of responses.
3. Identifying trends and patterns: By analyzing the responses to open-text questions, researchers can identify common themes, patterns, or sentiments that may not be evident through closed-ended questions.
4. Generating new ideas or hypotheses: The unstructured nature of open-text questions can inspire innovative ideas, suggestions, or hypotheses that can be further explored or tested.
5. Enhancing the validity of research: Including open-text questions in a survey or questionnaire can complement and enrich quantitative data obtained from closed-ended questions, providing a more holistic understanding of the research subject.

However, it is essential to note that open-text questions require more time and effort to analyze and interpret compared to closed-ended questions, as the data collected is qualitative and often more nuanced. Authors should be prepared to invest additional resources to effectively process and utilize the information gathered from open-text questions.

Read Configuring Open Text Questions to learn more.

Multiple Choice Question Type #

A multiple-choice question is a type of question in which respondents are presented with a list of predefined options or choices and asked to select one of these options as their answer. Multiple-choice questions are commonly used in surveys, questionnaires, assessments, and quizzes, providing a structured and efficient way to gather quantitative data.

Multiple-choice questions are useful for:

1. Simplifying data analysis: With a fixed set of response options, multiple-choice questions are easy to analyze and interpret, allowing researchers to quickly identify trends, patterns, or correlations in the data.
2. Reducing respondent effort: Participants can quickly and easily choose from the provided options, making multiple-choice questions less time-consuming and demanding than open-text questions.
3. Minimizing ambiguity: Since the response options are predefined, multiple-choice questions help eliminate potential confusion or misinterpretation, leading to more accurate and reliable data.
4. Measuring knowledge or understanding: In educational settings, multiple-choice questions are often used to assess students’ comprehension of specific concepts or topics, as they can quickly determine whether a learner has grasped the material.
5. Gathering demographic or categorical data: Multiple-choice questions are an efficient way to collect information on participants’ background, preferences, or other characteristics that can be used for segmentation or comparison purposes.

Despite their many advantages, multiple-choice questions have some limitations. They may not fully capture the complexity or depth of participants’ thoughts or opinions, and the response options might inadvertently influence or constrain their answers. To overcome these limitations, authors can combine multiple-choice questions with other question types, such as open-text questions, to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the participant’s understanding of a subject.

In Stackle, multiple choice questions come with the added feature of an Open Text area, allowing respondents to provide further explanations or clarifications for their chosen answers. This unique combination enables authors to gain insights through a quick quantitative assessment of understanding, while also offering the opportunity for a more in-depth qualitative analysis when time permits.

Read Configuring Multiple Choice Questions to learn more.

Multiple Select Question Type #

A multiple-select question is a type of question where respondents are presented with a list of predefined options or choices and asked to select more than one of these options as their answer. Unlike multiple-choice questions, where only a single answer is allowed, multiple-select questions enable participants to choose multiple responses that best represent their opinions, preferences, or experiences. They are commonly used in surveys, questionnaires, and assessments to gather nuanced and detailed information.

Multiple select questions are useful for:

1. Capturing diverse perspectives: By allowing respondents to choose multiple options, these questions can more accurately represent the complexity and variety of their thoughts or experiences, providing richer data for analysis.
2. Identifying patterns and correlations: Analyzing the combinations of selected options can reveal trends, relationships, or associations between different response categories, offering deeper insights into the research subject.
3. Assessing preferences or priorities: Multiple select questions can be used to determine respondents’ preferences or priorities among a range of options, such as product features, service offerings, or policy proposals.
4. Evaluating familiarity or awareness: In educational or training contexts, multiple select questions can help assess respondents’ understanding or knowledge of a topic by requiring them to identify multiple correct or relevant answers.
5. Gathering comprehensive data: These questions can provide more detailed information on respondents’ behaviors, habits, or attitudes, as they are not limited to a single response.

It is important to note that multiple select questions may require more time and effort from respondents compared to single-choice questions, as they need to consider and evaluate each option. Additionally, data analysis can be more complex, as authors must examine the various combinations of selected options and their implications. To maximize the effectiveness of multiple select questions, authors should carefully design the response options and consider incorporating other question types to ensure a well-rounded understanding of the research subject.

In Stackle, multiple-select questions come with the added feature of an Open Text area, allowing respondents to provide further explanations or clarifications for their chosen answers. This unique combination enables authors to gain insights through a quick quantitative assessment of understanding, while also offering the opportunity for a more in-depth qualitative analysis when time permits.

Read Configuring Multiple Select Questions to learn more.

Media Response Question Type #

A media response question is a type of question that requires the respondent to submit a video as their response. The respondent can submit the video either through an embed code or a URL to an external video hosting site. This type of question is useful for testing the respondent’s ability to communicate their ideas effectively and clearly through a media format.

Media Response questions are useful for:

1. Communication: Provides the respondent the opportunity to communicate their ideas a bit more effectively and clearly. This can test and improve their skills for in fields that may require to excellent oral communication.
2. Engagement: Provides the unique opportunity for respondents to express their thoughts in a different format. Engagement with the quiz can be encouraged through a more creative way to respond, rather than through the use of the more common question types.
3. Flexibility: Can be used to offer more opportunities to test respondent’s skills. They can be used to test or demonstrate skills such as language and public speaking.
4. Authenticity: Media response questions provide an opportunity for the respondent to demonstrate their knowledge or skills authentically. This can help to increase the validity of the assessment.
5. Feedback: Media response questions provide an opportunity for the respondent to receive feedback on their performance. This feedback can be used to identify areas for improvement and to guide future learning.

If responses are required to be reviewed, it is important to be aware that Media Response type questions can potentially be more time-consuming for this process.

Read Configuring a Media Response Question to learn more.