Assistance with Online Surveys
Research Services assists researchers in constructing online surveys. Online surveys offer a quick and cost-effective method of data collection for research. An online survey is directly analagous to a paper-based or telephone survey, but allows the survey taker to input data directly into a database. The surveys can be taken by anyone with access to a Web browser and the Internet.
Research Services offers several ways to construct online surveys. The PHP Easy Survey Package (phpESP) offers an easy way to publish straightforward surveys on the Web. Simple survey questions that use such as Yes/No responses, text boxes in which respondents type in replies, scales (for example, rate from 1 to 5), selecting answers from checkboxes, and dropdown lists with a list of possible responses are easily done with phpESP.
SurveyMonkey.com offer an inexpensive solution and provides an easy to use Web interface to construct more complex surveys. No programming experience is required. SurveyMonkey offers SSL encryption for an additional charge. Encryption helps to meet IRB requirements. SurveyMonkey's Help Center offers more information.
Other options may involve programming, using languages such as Perl, Java, or PHP, and databases such as MySQL. For more information about constructing online surveys, please contact Research Services (researchservices@bc.edu).