- Be sure that it is almost impossible to give a one word answer to your questions.
- If they are used on a paper-based questionnaire make sure there is sufficient room for the length of response you are anticipating.
- Be aware of where they are placed in the questionnaire. Opening with this type of question is not a good idea; having a long list of them is not a good idea. Place them at intervals throughout the questionnaire. The most popular use of this type of question is at the end with the statement ‘If there is anything you would like to add please do so in the space below’ – usually this comes back blank! People will need to have fairly strong opinions about the topic to go to the trouble of constructing a response without any guidelines whatsoever.