In: Operations Management
An open-ended question is defined as the one that cannot be answered in 'yes' or 'no'. It requires a longer and static response. The information that is sought through the open-ended question is already in the knowledge of the respondent. For example, tell me about how you do you find your new manager?
There are the following advantages of open-ended questions:
1. It provides the possibility to have an infinite number of possible answers.
2. It helps in earning qualitative data.
3. The answer provided has more details.
4. It provides insight into the question.
5. It provides an idea about the psychology of the respondent.
There are the following disadvantages of open-ended questions:
1. It is time-consuming especially when group is large.
2. Individual responses are required otherwise it could have group bias.
3. It can lead to a lot of noise, unlike close-ended questions.
4. It is not practical or feasible for larger groups.