How to design an evaluation questionnaire: questions, scales and response rates

Set evaluation questions, respondents, use and available response time first. A 5-minute survey immediately after training differs in content and collection from a behavioral-change survey after 3 months.

Add a line specifying the decision informed by each answer. Generally remove questions with no decided use, questions already answered by records and questions that excessively burden respondents.

1. Confirm evaluation questions and use
2. Organize what respondents know and can answer
3. Break information needs into candidate questions
4. Design response formats and options
5. Pilot with a few people and fix unclear points
6. Decide collection, aggregation and sharing processes

Ask one thing at a time, avoid technical terms and specify reference periods and situations. Satisfaction with training content and the instructor must be separated to identify improvements.

Avoid leading wording such as was this very useful training? Use neutral wording allowing positive or negative answers, with not applicable and do not know where needed.

Check option coverage and overlap. Test whether respondents understand each scale level. Different concepts, such as satisfaction and frequency, need not be forced into identical labels.

Open responses help identify reasons behind numbers, unexpected difficulties and concrete improvements. However, relying on them alone makes comparison difficult, so combine options and open responses for important issues.

• Single choice: identify main use or applicable condition
• Multiple choice: identify multiple routes or problems
• Scales: compare understanding, confidence, satisfaction and frequency levels
• Numerical input: ask facts such as counts or amounts
• Open response: supplement reasons, examples and improvement proposals

Response rates matter, but respondents' opinions do not necessarily represent everyone. Check non-respondents and whether respondents' characteristics or use differ substantially from the entire target group.

To increase responses, briefly explain purpose, state completion time and select accessible methods. Explain anonymity and personal-information handling in advance and make clear that non-response carries no disadvantage.

• State completion time at the start
• Explain purpose and use of results
• Select distribution methods fitting the target group
• Check respondent/non-respondent differences
• Specify personal-information handling and voluntary participation