Thursday, November 10
Pretesting Methods
Questionnaire Design
Thu, Nov 10, 1:30 PM - 2:55 PM
Hibiscus A
Using Pretesting Methods to Develop Standardized Survey Qs for Use in Cross National/Cross Cultural/Multi-Lingual Settings

Measuring Disability Equality in Europe: Design and Development of the European Health and Social Integration Survey Questionnaire (303105)

*Amanda Wilmot, Westat 

Keywords: Questionnaire Design, Questionnaire Development, Disability, Europe, Cross-National

Developing standards and guidance for cross-national questionnaire design is important to help ensure that comparable data are collected across countries. Lack of documentation about questionnaire design and development for large-scale cross-national surveys makes it difficult to learn from those who have such experience. This presentation contributes to this area of research by discussing the development of the European Health and Social Integration Survey (EHSIS) questionnaire, administered in 28 European countries in 2012/13.

The approach of EHSIS was different from most other disability surveys. Questions were designed to take a more holistic account of the person, their impairments, activity limitations, the environment, and the inter-relationships between them. To facilitate cross-national comparison using a single data collection instrument, a detailed source questionnaire was provided in English. The questionnaire was developed through multiple rounds of testing in multiple EU countries. Findings from cognitive testing and field piloting in each country, as well as translation reports, were collated and synthesized to provide a data set on which changes to the source questionnaire could be based. Synthesis focused on the feasibility/robustness of the questions, question wording/vocabulary, sequencing, and the comprehensiveness and completeness of explanatory notes. Issues raised in testing were often similar across countries, highlighting those that were cross-national in nature and possibly indicating a problem with the source questionnaire. Some issues were reported only by one or two countries, highlighting where a concept or its sensitiveness was not culturally portable, for example.

This presentation will describe the design and development process, as well as lessons learned.

Disclaimer: Any opinions expressed in this paper are those of the author and do not represent the European Commission’s official position.