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
creator• EGalvez (WMF)
created on7 March, 2016
What problem does this solve?
[edit]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?
[edit]- 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]
- 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--
- you have already made the decision and you want to see how the decision will be received --learning pattern needed--
- 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--
- you do not have enough money, time, or resources to correctly carry out the survey to completion. --learning pattern needed--
- 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--
- 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--).
- 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