Response tendency in a questionnaire without questions

Abstract

In a replication of an earlier study by Berg and Rapaport (1954), a questionnaire with items lacking content and containing merely answer possibilities was administered to 197 Dutch psychology freshmen. Students clearly did not react in accordance with the laws of statistical probability but showed, like Berg and Rapaport’s subjects, a preference for positive options such as yes, true, and satisfied over negative options such as no, false, and dissatisfied. No sex differences or differences due to position of the answer possibilities were found. This result is in contrast with the 1954 findings, because Berg and Rapaport found that option position and subjects’ sex did influence response bias.