InfoGuides: Collect Data with a Survey: Qualtrics

Qualtrics is an online survey tool that is very popular with researchers because of the combination of power and ease of use. There is a university-wide license for Qualtrics. All students, faculty, and staff are allowed an account, but access is managed locally (either school, department, center, or other unit). DDSS does not control or administer Qualtrics accounts or licenses.

To get an account, find the contact person for your unit at Qualtrics Administrators (ITS).

Using Qualtrics Effectively

Best Bet:

XM Experience Basecamp by Qualtrics

You will need to sign-in to your Qualtrics account in order to view the videos.

Start with Platform Basics
See also Best Practices (2 hrs Total) - Collection with great tips on designing and implementing a survey.
More Useful Webinars: Designing a Survey, Launching, Analyzing Data, Reporting (each is ~1hr)

The Basics
Qualtrics Basics (DoIT @ Stony Brook U)	~5 min	Overview/Sections, Edit Multiple, Test Responses
Adding and Styling Questions	~5 min	Text and Matrix Questions. Embedding Videos
Using Anonymous Distributions	~3 min	Publish, Activate/Deactivate, get a Link, Options

Important Features
Displaying and Hiding Questions and Answers	~4 min	Blocks, Skip Logic, Display Logic, Preview
Controlling Questions and Answer Choices	~4 min	Force Response, Validation, Messages, Randomization
Locating and Editing Responses	~8 min	Responses in Progress, Retake surveys, and more
Managing Results Pages	~5 min	Results, Filters, Widgets, Exporting
Visualizing Data	~2 min	Widgets, Chart Types, Customizing Visualizations

Useful to Know About
Handling Longer Surveys	~4 min	Carry Forward, Loop & Merge
Using the Survey Flow to Navigate Participants	~4 min	Blocks: Logic and Randomization
Adding Global Styles	~3 min	Themes, Progress bars, Fonts
Setting Text and Answer Choices	~4 min	Piped Text, Page Break, Default Choices
Recoding Values	~2 min	("variable names" become value labels for SPSS files)
Sending Invites via Email	~4 min	see also Creating and Managing Contacts

Also Good:

Qualtrics Basics from DoIT @ Stony Brook U (~5 min) - Overview/Sections, Edit Multiple, Test Responses
- See the whole 7-video playlist: Qualtrics Basics

Tips: Survey Design in Qualtrics

Tips from DDSS

Consider how the data is going to be affected by choices such as making a multiple choice question into a multiple response question. Although they look similar on the surface, they are quite different in how you will need to handle the data. Generate some test response and download the data before collecting it from actual participants to make sure you know
Use logic to make sure that people do not get questions that are not relevant to them. Skip logic is only appropriate to send a respondent to the next block or to the end of the survey. If some people are not eligible for your study, use screening questions at the beginning to send them to the end. Otherwise, Display Logic is more appropriate, either for questions or for a block.
Before you copy a question or block consider the Loop & Merge functionality. Most experiments should use it.
Always put an open-ended comment box at the end of the survey for people to write anything they want. People may report problems there you wouldn't otherwise have noticed or give other feedback that they would not otherwise email you for.

Tips: Exporting Data From Qualtrics

Many people can do what they need within Qualtrics without having to use another software. Consider this!
Avoid using Excel to analyze your data. If you need a free, easy-to-use statistical software, try Jamovi.
There is rarely a need to export the data in Excel format. The data management and analysis tools within Qualtrics are quite robust and useful. Or, if you are using any statistical software, download it in SPSS format so that you will have the metadata (labels and values, etc). You can (and should) specify variable names and values within Qualtrics so that your data file is clean and orderly when you download it.

Transferring Data to Statistical Software

Step 1: Define your variable names and values within Qualtrics

How to export analysis-ready survey data (Crystal Lewis)
Qualtrics Recoding Variable Names and Value Label Coding ~5 min (Dr E Research Videos)
Note: If you have moved or deleted response choices, they may not be 1,2,3,4, etc.
You can do these even after collecting data. BUT, only use the built-in tools, do NOT remove answer choices or change the answer choice labels themselves.

Step 2: Download your data in SPSS format and import into your software

How to Export Response Data
- If your data is not appearing in a way that is easy to use, check out the explanation of various Export Options you may wish to use.
Use File -> Import to open your data in non-SPSS software.
- Importing Data in RStudio
- Old versions of Stata may require using the user-contributed command: usespss
If you must use Excel, then download in either Excel or CSV format, but avoid this.

Step 3: Clean your Data

Qualtrics automatically includes additional respondent variables with useful information.
How to Download Qualtrics data and Begin Cleaning Data in SPSS ~20 min (Lannin Lab)
- Shows how to use the automatic variables and syntax to remove observations you do not want.
- if you are planning ahead, use Requirements and Validation to reduce cleanup needs.

Step 4: Deal with Special Situations

Meg Huntoon has several videos on solving issues using recoding, such as if you did an experiment and used randomization. These are old videos, so the Qualtrics interface has changed. But, the steps in SPSS are the same.

More Help From Qualtrics

Help from Qualtrics

Documentation (Search)

Textbook: Product Experience (PX) Research
See also: Community Message Boards, Events & Webinars, and the Vimeo Channel

Special Features

Learn to use CSS and Javascript to customize elements
Slideshow: Little Known Features of Qualtrics Research Suite That Will Make Your Life Easier

YouTube Qualtrics XM Community

2 minute Tips - Newer videos have annoying background music

Basics
- Adding Instructions to a Survey - Text/Graphic, Multiple Choice, and Text Entry Questions
- Question Numbers (which will become Variable Names)
- Display Logic & Skip Logic
- Response Requirements - Validation, especially for multiple response and text entry questions.
- Survey Preview - Allows you to skip validation
Versioning & Publishing
- Survey Versions
- Publish Your Survey
- Undoing Mistakes
- Importing & Exporting Surveys (to PDF, Word, or QSF files, not for Data)
- Compose & Distribute Emails via Qualtrics
- Sharing a Qualtrics Survey
Special Features
- Survey Translation
- Accessible Survey Design - Question types, Alt Text, ExpertReviw
- Add Free Response Options ("Other")
- Calendar Picker Question
Survey Flow & Customized Wording
- Carry Forward Choices
- Loop & Merge - Repeat a block of questions
- Piped Text
- Query Strings
Data & Analysis Tab Tutorials - 5 video playlist (~13 min)

Collect Data with a Survey