Questions with no fixed responses; participants answer in their own words. This describes which type?

Questions with no fixed responses; participants answer in their own words. This describes which type?

• A. Open-ended questions
• B. Closed-ended questions
• C. Unobtrusive measures
• D. Archives (unobtrusive)

Answer: (A)

This item tests the type of question that yields free-form responses from participants. Descriptions of questions with no fixed responses, where participants answer in their own words, align with open-ended questions. Open-ended questions let respondents express thoughts in any form, capturing nuance and ideas the researcher might not anticipate. They differ from closed-ended questions, which provide fixed options and constrain how people can respond. Other options describe methods that don’t rely on participants giving verbatim, self-authored responses to a specific question—unobtrusive measures involve non-interactive data like behavior observations, and archives use existing records. So the description best fits open-ended questions.

This item tests the type of question that yields free-form responses from participants. Descriptions of questions with no fixed responses, where participants answer in their own words, align with open-ended questions. Open-ended questions let respondents express thoughts in any form, capturing nuance and ideas the researcher might not anticipate. They differ from closed-ended questions, which provide fixed options and constrain how people can respond. Other options describe methods that don’t rely on participants giving verbatim, self-authored responses to a specific question—unobtrusive measures involve non-interactive data like behavior observations, and archives use existing records. So the description best fits open-ended questions.