Survey Design

Overview

Overview
Resources

Program evaluation is important for understanding ways in which we can improve our programs for learners, educators, administrators, and others involved in program design and delivery.

The greatest service evaluation can perform is to identify aspects of the course where revision is desirable.^{1, p.238}

~Lee J. Cronbach

[T]he most important purpose of program evaluation is not to prove, but to improve.^{1, p.238}

~Daniel L. Stufflebeam

Surveys are frequently used as data collection tools in conjunction with program evaluation, and careful consideration must be given to survey development to facilitate respondent buy-in and completion, and to maximize data validity, reliability, relevance, utility, and impact.

¹Stufflebeam DL, Madaus GF, Kellaghan T. (eds.). Evaluation models: Viewpoints on educational and human services evaluation. 2^nd ed. New York: Kluwer Academic Publishers; 2000.

The three resources presented below are offered together as companion documents, and are intended to be accessed and reviewed as often as necessary when you engage in survey design or revision activities. The first companion document entitled, “1. Survey of Mistakes – Find the Mistakes,” presents a hypothetical evaluation tool that was intentionally created by the School of Medicine’s Office of Assessment and Evaluation (OAE) to reflect common mistakes made when designing a survey, and to reflect the majority of mistakes listed in the last companion document entitled, “3. Mistakes in Survey Design and Item Writing – Quick Tips Guide.”

See if you can first identify the mistakes in the evaluation tool. As a recipient of numerous invitations to complete surveys during your lifetime, you have likely encountered the majority of these mistakes that may frustrate or confuse respondents, such that you are already well equipped to notice them. Once you have reviewed the survey for mistakes, the additional companion document entitled, “2. Survey of Mistakes – Answer Key,” notes the common mistakes in the context of this particular hypothetical evaluation tool.

PDF Files:

Note: The files below may be viewed appropriately only when accessed through Internet Explorer 11, Firefox or Opera.

Office of Assessment and Evaluation (OAE) welcomes your feedback. If you wish to provide feedback related to one or more of these three companion resources, please complete our Feedback Form for Resources – Mistakes in Survey Design and Item Writing.

About the Author

Teresa R. Johnson, PhD
Director, Office of Assessment and Evaluation
Assistant Professor, Health Sciences Informatics
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Module Editor

Rachel Levine, MD, MPH
Associate Dean for Faculty Educational Development
Associate Professor of Medicine
Associate Vice Chair for Women’s Academic Careers, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

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About the Author

Module Editor