Survey research and development
Survey research
Effective survey research starts with asking the right questions. Only when you clearly define what you want to know and measure can you collect reliable data and generate meaningful insights. A well-designed questionnaire-based research approach helps you better understand your research problem and supports evidence-based decision-making.
When setting up an online survey, factors such as wording, structure, and response options are crucial. Centerdata supports you throughout the entire process, from questionnaire design to data collection and analysis.
Working with Centerdata
Designing and conducting survey research requires specialized expertise. Centerdata has extensive experience in survey research and works with a team of skilled researchers and methodologists. Our experts have backgrounds in psychology, sociology, data science, and research methodology, and combine broad and specialized expertise to support you at every stage of the research process. This support can cover the entire research process or specific components, such as data collection or questionnaire development.
What are the options?
We can field your research questionnaire in the LISS panel or in an existing group of respondents, for example your own member group. Collecting data in the LISS panel offers the further advantage of having the option to enrich your data at a later stage with other data collected previously about our panel members.
Before fielding a questionnaire, we wish to discuss it with your first. We can then examine the purpose of your research, what exactly you wish to find out, and how this can best be investigated. We can also advise you about the language level used in the questionnaire and whether all the respondents will understand the questions, and whether the questionnaire will actually measure what it is meant to measure (validity).
We are also happy to help you if you don’t have a questionnaire (yet) but do have a research question. With our expertise in the field of questionnaire design and our in-house multidisciplinary know-how, we are happy to develop a questionnaire or experiment for your study. This is an iterative step-by-step process through which we design an optimum measuring tool together.
The next step is to program the questionnaire or experiment using our self-developed survey software. We have a vast amount of experience with both small and large-scale questionnaires, sometimes including complex routing (flow logic), so that respondents are guided through the questionnaire in a way that makes sense and are only presented with questions that are relevant to them. Techniques such as factorial survey design, split ballot experiments, randomization, permutations and the reuse of previous data are all part of our standard programming work.
As soon as a questionnaire has been programmed, you are invited to test it and to find out how the respondent experiences the completion process. The test results can then be used to further finetune the questionnaire. Once you and we are satisfied with the result, the questionnaire can be fielded. We apply response design technology so that the questionnaire can be completed on a PC, tablet and smartphone.
Examples of survey research at Centerdata
Education: student and parent satisfaction (VO-raad)
For the VO-raad (secondary school council), an existing questionnaire used to measure student satisfaction and social safety was reviewed and improved, with a strong focus on reliability and validity.
Based on cognitive interviews, where students were asked for their feedback on the questions, as well as statistical testing and validation, an improved measurement instrument was developed. This questionnaire is now used annually by the VO-raad, with results published on Scholenopdekaart.nl. Previously, a similar approach was used to improve the questionnaire for measuring parent satisfaction.
Pension funds: trust and compliance with the Code
For the Monitoring Committee Code of Pension Funds, Centerdata conducted research into trust in pension funds. For this project, Centerdata developed the questionnaire and carried out the data collection, analysis, and reporting.
A key focus was translating complex governance standards into clear and understandable questions for both pensioners and working individuals who contribute to pension schemes.