ABSTRACT

Surveys or questionnaires are used to collect information from people concerning a range of ergonomics or human factors variables (Salvendy and Carayon 1997). Questionnaires can be used to evaluate human-machine system performance, e.g. usability evaluations of products or human-computer interfaces, and to evaluate demands on people, e.g. workload, fatigue, stress, and attitudes. They can also be a useful tool in implementing ergonomic programs as a diagnostic tool and in the evaluation phase. They allow the researcher to obtain large amounts of data from large numbers of people at relatively low cost and relatively quickly (Sinclair 1995). Particular attention should be paid to the development of questionnaires. The methods used to develop, implement, and use questionnaires are very important for the quality and usefulness of the data collected. Before developing a questionnaire survey, it is important to clearly specify the objective of the questionnaire: what will the questionnaire be used for? Figure 1 summarizes the issues related to survey design discussed in this article. Two issues related to measurement are highlighted: (1) objectivity/subjectivity, and (2) reliability/ validity. Issues in the process of developing and conducting a survey are also discussed.