Business Studies

Describe the process of coding a questionnaire. Is precoding a questionnaire a good idea? Why or why not?

ANSWER

The Process of Coding a Questionnaire

Coding is the procedural action of assigning specific and concise values to data elements collected through questionnaires, surveys, and other forms of research (Jones and Hidiroglou, 2013). This allows easy and quick counting through statistical analysis. The values are in an alphanumeric format which is a common practice in coding data. Coding a questionnaire entails transforming the questionnaire data into another form in the computer as numbers each of value. The main aim of coding a questionnaire is to transform the data into a better form to allow computer-aided analysis.

The first step of coding a questionnaire is giving a number on each of the completed questionnaires. The code number is used to link the data keyed into the computer to represent the actual questionnaire that the data was obtained. After giving each questionnaire a number, the data is entered into the computer. Microsoft excel is the easiest in entering data. The data is then entered to make a matrix with every questionnaire item at the top and the data going down. While conducting the data entry, one has to ensure that each questionnaire has the right code for the responses given to every item. To avoid data cleaning, which consumes a lot of time, one needs to choose consistent and suitable codes for all variables.

The precoding entails a format of asking questions based on the predetermined categories in the questionnaire form. Precoding of questionnaires is a good idea since it speeds up the process. Tabulating and analyzing data makes precoding questionnaires desirable. Ideally, the respondent checks the answer and recognizes the code that will be transferred to the computer. The reproduction and physical layout of the questionnaire influences the success of respondents. Precoding allows acceptance of the questionnaire by the respondents and makes it more efficient to control and handle the questionnaires. Precoding a questionnaire has a desirable effect since it forces a researcher to think through each question and find the possible answers.

References

Jones, J., & Hidiroglou, M. (2013). Capturing, coding, and cleaning survey data. Designing and conducting business surveys, 459-504.