Framing

The impact of context when a respondent answers a question. Examples of contexts that frame a question include:

• The introduction to the questionnaire.
• Previous questions.
• Introductory parts of a question.
• The order of options within a question.
• The situation of the respondent when they answer the question.

Most research into framing effects in surveys relates to how they can bias the results of a question, where the bias may be deliberate, such as in push polling, or, inadvertent. However, framing also occurs when wording questions designed to encourage participation in a survey (e.g., describing the objectives of the survey to a respondent) and when questions are ordered in a way to make it easier for respondents to understand.

Also known as

• Context.