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Learning patterns/Is an online survey the right choice?

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A learning pattern forSurvey
Is an online survey the right choice?
problemIs an online survey the right choice to solve a problem?
solutionFollow these guidelines to see if an online survey will help your problem
creatorEGalvez (WMF)
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created on7 March, 2016


What problem does this solve?

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Surveys are very useful tools for many reasons. From not only research, but also collaborative input, or even formal decision making (like voting). However, not everything can be solved with a survey, and it is important to know when a survey is the right choice.

What is the solution?

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  • Read through What to expect when doing a survey to see if you feel comfortable with the steps, or know someone who can help you if you don't have the experience.
  • It is recommended to not do a survey if...[1]
  1. If you plan to act on the results of your survey (which most often, you should) but you don’t have the money, resources, or ability to act. --learning pattern needed--
  2. you have already made the decision and you want to see how the decision will be received --learning pattern needed--
  3. you don't have a good reason for your survey (e.g. the purpose of the survey is, “It would be great to know….” ) --learning pattern needed--
  4. you do not have enough money, time, or resources to correctly carry out the survey to completion. --learning pattern needed--
  5. you have never done a survey before and aren't getting help from someone who has, or if you are doing a survey too large for your experience level. --learning pattern needed--
  6. you don’t know much about your target audience and you want to use the survey to learn about them (See the learning pattern about focus groups --learning pattern needed--).
  7. you want to use the survey to help you reach a decision about a project that is very small in scope or resources. --learning pattern needed--


This is a Survey Support Desk learning pattern


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References

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