nicole kotras masters thesis

Bailey (1987) lists several advantages of open-ended questions, including:
(i) They can be used when all of the possible answer categories are not known, or when
the researcher wishes to see what the respondent views as appropriate answer
categories;
(ii) They allow the respondent to answer adequately, in all the detail he or she likes, and
to clarify and qualify his or her answers;
(iii) They can be used when there are too many potential answer categories to list on the
questionnaire;
(iv) They are preferable for complex issues that cannot be condensed into a few
small categories; and
(v) They allow more opportunity for creativity or self-expression by the
respondent.
According to Bailey (1987) the disadvantages of open-ended questionnaires include:
(i) They may lead to collection of worthless and irrelevant information;
(ii) Data are often not standardized from person to person, making comparison or
statistics such as computation or percentages difficult;
(iii) Coding is often very difficult and subjective, leading to low intercoder reliability;
(iv) Open-ended questions require superior writing skills, better ability to express
one's feeling verbally, and generally a higher educational level than do
closed-ended questions;
(v) Open-ended questions designed to be general and to explore all dimensions of the
subject may be too general for the respondent to understand what is meant, requiring
the use of probes or for more specific follow-up questions, administered by the
interviewer;
(vi) Open-ended questions can require much more of the respondent's time and
effort, and may engender a high refusal rate; and
(vii) Open-ended questions require more paper and make the questionnaire look
longer, possibly discouraging some respondents who do not wish to answer a
lengthy questionnaire.
Bailey (1987) stated that the advantages of mailed questionnaires include:
(i) A considerable saving of money;
(ii) Time saving;
56