Web-based experiments and questionnaires are a crucial method of epidemiology that provide crucial information about the state of public health and disease. They are a popular method of gathering data that is often less expensive and time-consuming than face-to-face interviews, mailed questionnaires or automated telephone menu systems. Questionnaires and Web tests are not without limitations, and these must be addressed to ensure reliable and accurate results.

A questionnaire may be affected by response bias, the tendency of respondents to answer questions based on their own opinions instead of the research goals. The design of a questionnaire may influence responses in many ways. For instance, the wording of the question could influence how respondents respond to the question and interpret it in the same manner (reliable) and whether the question is a good indicator of what you’re interested in (valid) and if they are able to accurately answer (credible).

Respondents may also experience survey fatigue or a lack of interest in the questions asked which decreases the probability of them giving honest answers. Additionally, a lack of incentives or compensation could discourage respondents from taking the time to complete an application.

Online questionnaires can be difficult for certain research designs, like studies of reaction times or positioning. It is difficult to measure and control variables across participants because of the differences in settings for browsers, operating systems, and sizes of screens.

Finally, web-based surveys may only be accessed by people who are keyboard and Internet knowledgeable. This excludes a substantial part of the population. Furthermore, it’s often difficult for Web researchers to debrief participants advantages and disadvantages of questionnaires when the window for an experiment has closed.