Asking Questions - The Definitive Guide To Questionnaire Design ...

284 ASKING QUESTIONS
simultaneously. One of the major advantages of computer-assisted
interviews is that the format of the questionnaire can be altered to
do this.
Typefaces
The simple rule is that the type should be sufficiently large and clear
as to cause no strain in rapid reading for all potential respondents.
Some inexperienced researchers believe they can make their forms
appear shorter and easier by using smaller typefaces, but any print
that causes respondents or interviewers to feel eyestrain should be
avoided. We generally recommend using 12-point type for questions,
although 10-point type is also readable in many fonts (particularly
sans serif fonts). Instructions to the interviewer that are
not to be read to the respondent should be distinguished by a different
typeface. One way of doing this is to put the questions in bold
type and instructions in nonbold type, or the other way around.
Another way is to capitalize or italicize all letters in instructions. In
computer-assisted interviewing, color can be used to distinguish
instructions from questions.
Most current data processing programs do not require any
processing instructions on the questionnaire; they are either programmed
into the data entry process (such as skips) or organized
into the data file. If, however, any processing instructions are
needed, they can be put into a different and smaller typeface than
the question and interviewer instructions; most data entry personnel
can handle smaller-sized type more easily than interviewers or
respondents can, since data entry is removed from the demands of
the interviewing situation.
Interviewer Instructions
When giving instructions to interviewers or respondents, the general
rule is to put these instructions at the point in the questionnaire
where they will be used. Instructions are placed just before the
question if they deal with who should answer, whether only one or