September 3, 2020, by Lisa Chin

An introduction to creating surveys with Qualtrics

This post is contributed by Dr Tissa Chandesa, Research Training Development Manager at the Graduate School.


Good research data collection plays a pivotal role in obtaining the relevant information to answer a given research question(s). Several research data collection methods exist, such as interviews, observation, focus groups, questionnaires and surveys. On Monday 24 August 2020, Mr Jaya Kumar Karunagharan (Head of Foundation in Science) and Dr Chuma Owuamalam (Assistant Professor at Division of Organisational and Applied Psychology) jointly conducted a workshop titled An introduction to creating surveys with Qualtrics (a widely used survey tool in academia).

The session introduced the core Qualtrics concepts and tools that participants could explore more fully at their own pace, which includes creating questions and basic question types, simple survey logic, anonymous distribution and reporting basics. The two-hour session aimed to fulfill the following learning outcomes:

  • Use Qualtrics to create a simple questions types, such as multiple choice.

  • Explain how survey logic can be used to adjust survey flow.

  • Distribute a survey through anonymous distribution and social media.

  • View and download survey response data.

Among the topics covered were:

    • Design new survey projects

    • Edit question text

    • Change question types

    • Use the editing pane

    • Enforce data validation to constrain responses based on defined rules

    • Apply themes and manual formatting to survey text and objects

    • Use the Look & Feel Editor

    • Set survey options to control navigation and progression information

    • Share surveys

    • Distribute surveys

    • View and manage individual survey responses and data visualization reports

    • Download response extracts for external analysis

A total of 58 participants attended the session. Participants ranged from postgraduate research students, academic as well as professional members of staff. Below are some of their feedback on the session:

  • Hands on experience & clear explanations

  • Easy for me to create surveys for training in the future

  • Excellent delivery and synergy between Jaya and his ‘guru’

  • Organised structure; patient trainer

  • Learnt about block, logic, options available in Qualtrics

  • Gained a brief knowledge about Qualtrics

  • I know how to roughly create a survey here

  • Having Dr Chuma handle the questions in the chat while Mr Jaya handled the session was very effective in time management and in handling so many questions

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