Abstract
For collecting informed public opinions a special kind of questionnaire has been developed: the Choice Questionnaire. With this questionnaire, information relating to a decision problem is made available to respondents. This information includes the various options from which a choice has to be made, and the consequences of these options. The Choice Questionnaire also contains a procedure that is designed to assist participants in processing this information and in making a choice based on it.
This paper studies the extent to which the Choice Questionnaire is a useful instrument for collecting informed opinions and the effects the instrument has on the decision-making process of the participants. The factors influencing its performance are also considered. This evaluation study has been carried out in a real life context: the choice made by the Dutch population concerning the further application of nuclear power.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Beckwith, N.E. & D.R. Lehmann (1975) The importance of halo effects in multi-attribute attitude models. Journal of Marketing Research 12: 265–275.
Bishop, Y.M.M., S.E. Fienberg, & P.W. Holland (1975) Discrete Multivariate Analysis: Theory and Practice. Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press.
Converse, P.E. (1964) The nature of belief systems in mass publics. In D. Apler (ed.), Ideology and Discontent. New York: Free Press.
Edwards, W. (1977) Use of multiattribute utility measurement for social decision making. In D.E. Bell, R.L. Keeney, & H. Raiffa (eds.). Conflicting Objectives in Decisions. New York: Wiley.
Hagenaars, J.A.P. (1985) Loglineaire analyse van herhaalde surveys. Panel-, trend-, en cohortonderzoek. PhD dissertation, University of Brabant.
Keeney, R.L. & H. Raiffa (1976) Decisions with Multiple Objectives: Preferences and Value Tradeoffs. New York: Wiley.
Neijens, P. (1987) The Choice Questionnaire. Design and Evaluation of an Instrument for Collecting Informed Opinions of a Population. Amsterdam: Free University Press.
Neijens, P., J.A. de Ridder, & W.E. Saris (1988) Variation in response functions and prescription for information integration. In W.E. Saris (ed.), Variation in Response Behavior: A Source of Measurement Error in Attitude Research. Amsterdam: Sociometric Research Foundation.
Slovic, P. & D. MacPhillamy (1974) Dimensional commensurability and cue utilization in comparative judgment. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance 11: 172–194.
Verba, S. & N.H. Nie (1972) Participation in America. New York: Harper and Row.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Neijens, P., De Ridder, J.A. & Saris, W.E. An instrument for collecting informed opinions. Qual Quant 26, 245–258 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00172428
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00172428