Identify the advantages of close-ended questions in survey research : (A) They…
2023
Identify the advantages of close-ended questions in survey research :
(A) They allow unusual responses to be derived.
(B) It is easy to process their answers.
(C) They reduce the possibility of variability in the recording of answers.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below :
- A.
(A) and (B) Only
- B.
(B) and (C) Only
- C.
(A) and (C) Only
- D.
(A), (B) and (C)
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Closed-ended (structured) survey questions restrict respondents to a fixed, predefined set of response categories, unlike open-ended questions, which let respondents answer freely in their own words.
Statement (A) is false: because respondents must pick from predefined categories, closed-ended questions cannot capture unusual or unanticipated responses -- that flexibility is a documented property of open-ended questions, not closed-ended ones.
Statement (B) is true: predefined, standardized response categories can be directly coded and tabulated, so their answers are easy to process.
Statement (C) is true: because respondents select from fixed categories rather than writing free text, there is far less room for variability in how different answers get recorded.
Cross-check: the property named in statement (A) -- capturing unusual, wide-ranging responses -- is the well-documented advantage of open-ended questions, the opposite format, which confirms (A) does not belong among the advantages of closed-ended questions.
So the true advantages listed are (B) and (C) only.