Debriefing

Debriefing to Gain Qualitative Feedback

Debriefmgs for the purpose of gaining qualitative feedback occur in three critical phases:

• 1.
  During survey development
• 2.
  Ongoing during survey administration
• 3.
  Upon survey completion

Debriefmgs during survey development are the most common and the most valuable. In such debriefmgs, information is sought on issues that prove difficult for either interviewer or respondent, with the aim of improving the survey instruments, survey protocols, and/or interviewer training materials. The relative emphasis will depend on what other survey development activities have been undertaken; for example, respondent interpretation of questions and requests for clarification will be given less weight in a debriefing if a full cognitive interviewing process preceded the pilot test.

It is less common for a debriefing to occur during the main phase of interviewing; however, such debriefmgs are valuable to allow for fine-tuning of processes, answer categories, or interpretation of data. Generally it is not desirable to change any questions, as that will preclude the standardization usually sought; however, it may be appropriate to add clarifying transitional phrases in the questionnaire or clarifying questions at [Page 182]the end of the questionnaire if mid-survey debriefmgs identify serious issues that were not detected during the development phase.

Debriefmgs following a survey usually focus on the interpretation and limitations of the data collected. Debriefmgs involving respondents may also include an element of benchmarking or comparison, with information fed back to the respondent on how his or her responses compared with others surveyed. This may be for either the survey sponsor's benefit (particularly with business surveys, increased cooperation can often be obtained by the promise of such data, as long as confidentiality pledges are honored), or for the respondent's benefit (as may be the case if the survey is part of an audit procedure).