Web experiments and questionnaires are vital epidemiologic techniques that provide crucial information about public health and disease. These are common methods of collecting data that are typically less expensive and time-consuming than face-toface interviews, mail-in questionnaires, or automated phone menu systems. However questionnaires, surveys and Web experiments have significant limitations that need to be addressed in order in order to ensure the validity and reliability of results.
A questionnaire may be affected by response bias. This is the tendency of respondents to answer questions based upon their opinions, rather than research objectives. The layout of a survey can influence responses in many ways. For instance, the wording of the question could affect whether respondents are able to comprehend the question and interpret it in the same way (reliable), whether the question reflects what you are interested in (valid), and whether they are able to accurately answer (credible).
A lack of enthusiasm or engagement with the questions can also make respondents less likely to provide honest answers. A lack of incentives or compensation can also discourage participants from filling out an application.
Online questionnaires can also pose a challenge for some experiments, for example, positioning or reaction time studies. It is challenging to control and measure variables across participants due to the different settings for browsers operating systems, settings, and screen sizes.
Additionally, surveys conducted on the Web are only available to those who have keyboards and are Internet proficient, which currently excludes a significant portion of the population. It is also difficult to Web researchers to provide participants with a report after the experiment window has closed.
