What is Leading question
What Are Leading Questions?
Leading questions are inquiries designed to subtly guide the respondent toward a particular answer. These questions often include hints, assumptions, or bias within their phrasing. For instance, instead of asking, "What do you think about the weather today?" a leading question might ask, "Isn’t it a beautiful day today? There are different types of leading questions you might see. For example:
- Direct implication questions imply the answer is clear or expected.
- Coercive leading questions pressure you to agree or say yes.
- Assumption-based leading questions include unstated ideas that may not be true but expect you to accept them.
- Scale-based leading questions influence your choice by using biased rating scales.
What Is an Example of a Leading Question?
Examples in Everyday Conversations
Imagine a friend asking, "You don’t want to go out tonight, do you?" The assumption here is that you don’t feel like going out, nudging you to agree.
Examples in Legal Scenarios
In courtrooms, a lawyer might ask a witness, "You saw the defendant leave the scene, didn’t you?" This implies the defendant’s guilt before the witness has a chance to provide their version.
Examples in Sales and Marketing
Marketers often use phrases like, "Wouldn’t you agree that this is the best deal you’ve seen today?" to encourage customers to make a purchase.
FAQs
How to avoid leading questions in a survey?
- Use neutral language that does not suggest a preferred answer.
- Avoid assumptions about the respondent’s feelings or actions.
- Make sure the scales are balanced, offering equal positive and negative options.
- Test questions on a small group first to spot bias.
How to identify a leading question?
- Look for questions that hint at a particular response or assume something not confirmed.
- Check if the wording pushes toward approval or disapproval.
- Watch for scales that give more space to positive responses than negative ones.
- If a question feels like it’s guiding your answer, it is likely leading.
When should leading questions be asked during an NPS survey?
Leading questions are generally not recommended during NPS surveys to keep feedback honest. However, they may sometimes be used carefully to explore specific ideas after capturing initial unbiased ratings.
You should place any such questions after the main NPS question to prevent affecting the overall score. This keeps the primary data clear and reliable.
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