Build the questionnaire · Administrator
Let participants suggest new choices or rows
Use adaptive input when the study design allows panelists to add items that become visible to the panel.
Screenshots from the original Surveylet guide illustrate the controls below. Layouts and labels may vary with your survey configuration. Select an image or “View full size” to open it in a new tab.
How adaptive input works
An adaptive question accepts a participant’s suggestion through an “Other, please specify” input. After saving, supported question types add the new text as a choice; a supported adaptive matrix adds it as a new row. Other participants can then see and answer the added item.
This changes the available questionnaire content during data collection. Decide in advance whether that behavior fits your study. If suggestions should be reviewed privately first, collect them as text instead of immediately exposing adaptive additions.
More screenshots and examples (1)
Configure the question
- Enable Adaptive Question on the supported question or matrix.
- For radio-button or checkbox questions, mark the relevant choice as a text-entry choice.
- Write clear instructions for suggesting an item and saving it.
- If a target question should receive additions from another question, configure its Adaptive Source Question.
- Test one new suggestion, a repeated suggestion, and any linked target question.
The documented behavior appends new choices rather than sorting them alphabetically. If the suggestion matches an existing choice, a new duplicate is not created.
Tell participants what may change
Adaptive additions may affect the progress denominator, particularly when new matrix rows are added. A participant’s percentage can decrease even though their existing answers remain saved. Explain this possibility before the study starts.
Export and document the final item list, including which choices were originally programmed and which were participant-generated.