Questionnaire and schedule; advantages of the questionnaire over the interview

1. Meaning

A questionnaire is a set of questions, printed or online, that respondents read and answer themselves. A schedule is a similar list of questions that the researcher or an enumerator reads out and fills in face to face. The distinction matters: the questionnaire is self-administered; the schedule is administered by the investigator. The Census of India has traditionally used schedules filled by enumerators because a large part of the population cannot be expected to fill a form unaided.

2. Kinds of questionnaire

• Structured: fixed questions in a fixed order with fixed answer options. Suited to quantitative analysis.
• Unstructured: open questions that let the respondent answer freely.
• Closed questions: yes/no, multiple choice, ranking, rating. Easy to code; may force an answer the respondent would not give.
• Open questions: the respondent writes in his own words. Richer, harder to analyse.
• Mixed: closed questions with an “other (please specify)” option or a few open questions at the end. The usual choice.
• By mode: mailed, hand-delivered, and online (Google Forms and similar tools), now the most common mode for surveys of advocates, students and professionals.

3. Framing questions

1. Use simple language suited to the respondents; translate where needed.
2. One idea per question; avoid double-barrelled questions (“Are the courts fast and fair?”).
3. Avoid leading questions (“Don’t you agree that the new criminal laws are an improvement?”) and loaded words.
4. Avoid questions that assume facts, and questions that depend on memory far back.
5. Approach sensitive matters (caste, income, experience of violence, bribery) indirectly and late, after rapport is built, with a promise of confidentiality.
6. Order questions from general to particular, and group them by theme.
7. Keep it short. Length is the main cause of non-response.
8. Include a covering letter: who the researcher is, the purpose, the assurance of confidentiality, how long it takes, and how to return it.

Scales. Attitudes are measured by scales. The Likert scale (Rensis Likert, 1932) asks respondents to rate agreement with a statement on a five or seven point range from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”. Others include Thurstone’s equal-appearing intervals, Bogardus’s social distance scale and the semantic differential.

Pilot study. The draft is tested on a small group like the intended respondents. The pilot reveals ambiguous questions, missing options, and the time taken, and lets the researcher check that answers can be coded.

4. Advantages of the questionnaire over the interview

1. Cost and economy. A questionnaire reaches hundreds of respondents for the cost of printing or hosting; interviews need travel, time and trained interviewers.
2. Wide coverage. Respondents scattered across a State or the country can be reached at once. A study of the views of district judges across Karnataka is practicable by questionnaire, hardly so by interview.
3. Speed. Data from a large sample arrive in weeks.
4. No interviewer bias. The interviewer’s tone, appearance, caste, gender or expectations can influence answers. A questionnaire puts the same question in the same way to everyone.
5. Anonymity and candour. Respondents answer more frankly on sensitive matters — corruption in court registries, harassment at the Bar — when no one is watching. This is the strongest argument for the questionnaire in legal research.
6. Time to reflect. The respondent can answer at leisure, consult records and give considered answers, which matters for questions of fact such as the number of cases handled.
7. Standardisation and comparability. Uniform questions produce data that can be coded, tabulated and statistically analysed.
8. Reach to busy and senior respondents. Judges and senior advocates who will not give an hour for an interview may fill a short form.
9. Less training needed, and the researcher can work alone.

5. Disadvantages

• It needs a literate respondent, which excludes many of the people whose experience of law matters most: undertrials, agricultural workers, many victims.
• Low response rates, and those who reply may differ from those who do not (non-response bias).
• No clarification: a misunderstood question stays misunderstood.
• No probing and no observation of non-verbal behaviour; answers are often brief.
• No control over who actually answers or whether others influenced the answers.
• Incomplete forms and skipped questions.
• Unsuited to complex or exploratory questions.

6. Choosing between them

7. Increasing response

Keep the form short and attractive; send a reminder; promise and keep confidentiality; secure an endorsement from an institution the respondents respect (a Bar Association, the State Judicial Academy); provide a stamped envelope or a one-click link; and explain how the results will be used.

How this is examined

For the August 2024 question: define questionnaire and schedule, give the kinds briefly, set out the nine advantages with legal examples, then the disadvantages, and conclude with the table and triangulation. A short note on “questionnaire” uses sections 1–3 and five advantages.