What are open-ended questions allowed in surveys?

Open-ended questions in surveys are designed to allow participants to express their thoughts, feelings, and opinions in their own words. This format encourages a richer and more nuanced response, giving respondents the freedom to articulate their perspectives beyond predefined options. By using open-ended questions, researchers can gather qualitative data that may reveal insights not captured by closed-ended questions, which typically restrict responses to a set of choices such as yes or no, numerical values, or check boxes.

This approach is particularly valuable in research because it can uncover themes, motivations, and reasons behind a respondent’s answer that may not have been anticipated by the survey designer. The use of open-ended questions can provide depth to the data collected and enhance the overall understanding of the subject matter being researched.