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Matrix question

Also called grid question, battery

Several statements sharing one set of answer columns, shown as a grid.

A matrix uses one scale for several statements. Long grids can be difficult to answer on a phone, so preview the layout and consider splitting them into smaller groups.

Count each row when estimating respondent effort. Analyze rows separately unless you have a reason to combine them into a scale.

Keep matrices short, keep every row on the same scale in the same direction, and put the rows that matter most at the top: attention falls measurably down a long grid.

Where it goes wrong

Counting a matrix as one question when estimating length. Ten rows at six seconds each is a minute, and the estimate that called it one question is out by a factor of ten.

See also

Straight-lining
Selecting the same answer across every row of a question battery.
Likert scale
A set of ordered answer options, usually four to seven, running between two poles or up from none of something.
Completion rate
The share of people who started your survey and reached the end; its inverse is drop-off.

All 35 terms

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Put it into practice in your next survey.