SingleSurveyHow-ToGuide4/4/2017 1

CreatingandDistributingaSingleSurveyinREDCap–How-ToGuide

AnydatacollectionforminREDCapcanbeenabledasasurvey,allowingparticipantstoenterdataforthemselves,withouthavingaccesstotheREDCapprojectanditsdata.SurveyparticipantsdonotneedtohaveGatorLinkaccesstocompletesurveys,onlythosewhoneedtoseethedataandcreatethesurveysneedaccesstotheREDCapproject.Thisguidedescribeshowtocreateanddistributeasinglesurvey(theprojectcontainsonlyonedatacollectioninstrumentthatisenabledasasurvey),methodsforcollectinganonymousandnon-anonymoussurveydata,howtosetuplongitudinalsurveycollection(theonesurveyisdistributedmultipletimestoparticipants)andhowtogetnotifiedwhenaparticipantsubmitsasurvey.REDCaphasanonlineHelp&FAQspagedetailingsurveydesign,thedifferentdistributionmethods(PublicLinkvs.ParticipantList),andtheadvantages/limitationsofeachofthesemethods.Itisrecommendedthatyoureadtherelevantsectionsbelowbeforesendingoutyoursurveytoparticipants.SurveyDesign:Help&FAQs:https://redcap.ctsi.ufl.edu/redcap/index.php?action=help#ss41Surveys:AnonymousSurveys:Help&FAQs:https://redcap.ctsi.ufl.edu/redcap/index.php?action=help#ss56Surveys:InviteParticipants:Help&FAQs:https://redcap.ctsi.ufl.edu/redcap/index.php?action=help#ss57Surveys:AutomatedSurveyInvitations(longitudinalsurveydata):Help&FAQs:https://redcap.ctsi.ufl.edu/redcap/index.php?action=help#ss58EnablingaDataCollectionFormasaSurvey:Onceyouhavebuiltthedatacollectionformthatisintendedtobeasurvey,thefirststepistoenabletheformtobeasurvey.OntheProjectSetuppage,clickon‘Enable’nextto‘Usesurveysinthisproject’(Figure1).Onceenabled,thetextwillbecomegreen(Figure2).

Figure1:

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Figure2:

Aftersurveyshavebeenenabled,gototheOnlineDesignerpagetoenabletheformitselfasasurvey.

Clickon‘Enable’under‘Enabledasurvey’(Figure3).Figure3:Nowthattheformisenabledasasurvey,clickon‘SurveySettings’(Figure4)todesignyoursurvey.Figure4:ThiswilltakeyoutotheSurveySettingspage(Figures5-8).TheSurveySettingspageiswhereyoudesignyoursurvey,suchaschoosingthefont,textsizeandthesurvey’scolortheme,andconfigureitssettings,suchasthequestiondisplayformat(allononepageormultiplepages),

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settingupanexpirationdate,enablingText-to-Speechfunctionality,enteringthesurveycompletiontext,andsettingupconfirmationemailsforrespondents.Figure5:

QuestionDisplayFormat(Figure6)–Thesurveycanbeonepageormultiplepages.Tobreakthesurveyintosectionsformultiplepages,usetheBeginNewSection(withoptionaltext)fieldtype.Eachsectionwillbeitsownpageofthesurvey.

Figure6:

Allow‘Save&ReturnLater’optionforrespondents?(Figure7)–Ifyou’resurveyislongoryouwanttoallowrespondentstosavethesurveyandreturntoitlater,youcanenablethathere:

Figure7:

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SurveyCompletiontext:Thisisthetextthatwillappearwhentherespondentsubmitsthesurvey.Itisnotemailedtothem,itmerelyappearsonthescreenwhentheyclickSubmit.

Figure8:

Nowthatthesurveysettingsaredone,thesurveyneedstobedistributed.Therearetwomethodsofdistributingthesurvey:viathePublicSurveyLinkandviatheParticipantList.PublicSurveyLink:UsingthePublicSurveyLinkisthesimplestandfastestwaytocollectresponsesforyoursurvey.Responseswillbecollectedanonymously(unlessthesurveycontainsquestionsaskingforidentifyingdatafromtheparticipant).NOTE:Sincethismethodusesasinglesurveylinkforallparticipants,itallowsforthepossibilityofparticipantstakingthesurveymultipletimes,whichmaybenecessaryinsomecases,andREDCapdoesnotkeeptrackofwhichrespondentshavetakenthesurveyandwhichhavenotsincetherespondent’semailsarenotcapturedwithinthe

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system.ThePublicSurveyLinkcanbeusedforlongitudinaldatacollectionaslongasthe‘Designatedanemailfieldtouseforinvitationstosurveyparticipants’hasbeenenabledontheProjectSetuppageunder‘Enableoptionalmodulesandcustomizations,’andtheinitialsurveycollectstherespondent’semailaddress.ParticipantList:TheParticipantListoptionallowsyoutosendacustomizedemailtoanyoneinyourlistandtrackwhorespondstoyoursurvey.Itisalsopossibletoidentifyanindividual'ssurveyanswersbyprovidingan‘identifier’foreachparticipant(thisfeaturemustfirstbeenabledontheParticipantListpage).Note:Allsurveyresponsescollectedareconsideredanonymousunlessyou1)areusingParticipantIdentifiersor2)haveenabledtheDesignatedanemailfieldtouseforinvitationstosurveyparticipants(longitudinaldatacollectiononly)ontheProjectSetuppageunderEnableoptionalmodulesandcustomizations.IftheParticipantIdentifierisnotenabled,REDCapwilltrackwhohasrespondedandwhohasn’tontheParticipantListpage,butyouwillnotknowwhichindividualsurveybelongstowhichrespondent.

HowcanIsendmultiplesurveystoparticipantsandlinktheirresponses?Iftheresponsesneedtobeanonymous,pleaseseethesectionSurveys:Anonymousbelow.Ifresponsesdonotneedtobeanonymous,youmustatsomepointcollectindividualemailaddressestosendparticipantsmultiplesurveysandhavethedatalinked.Thiscanbedoneintwoways:

1. Project’sfirstinstrumentisaSurvey&UseofPublicURL&Designateanemailfield:IfyouwanttoutilizethePublicSurveyURLtodistributeaninitialsurveyandinviteparticipantsforfuturesurveys,thesurveyMUSTcontainatextfieldwithvalidation=emailtocollecttheparticipant’semailaddress.

OntheProjectSetuppageàEnableoptionalmodulesandcustomizationsàEnable:‘Designateanemailfieldtouseforinvitationstosurveyparticipants.’Designatetheemailaddressfieldyouarecollectingonthefirstsurvey.

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Whenparticipantscompletethefirstsurvey,theiremailaddresseswillpre-populatetheParticipantListandwillallowyoutosendadditionalsurveysforthesamerecord.SurveyswillbeautomaticallylinkedbyRecordID.The‘ParticipantIdentifier’ontheParticipantListwillnotbeeditableafterthesurveyhasbeensent.LIMITATION:Onlyparticipantsthatanswerthefirstsurveywithanemailaddresswillbeabletorespondtothefollow-upsurveys.

2.Project’sfirstinstrumentisaSurvey&UseofParticipantList:Ifhaveindividualemailaddresses,youcancreateaprojectwithmultiplesurveys.YouwouldaddindividualemailstotheParticipantListwithorwithoutaParticipantIdentifier.Thenyoucansendthesurveyinvitesthrough“ComposeSurveyInvitations.”LIMITATION:Onlyparticipantsthatanswerthefirstsurveywillbeabletorespondtothefollow-upsurveys.Ifyouwishtocollectadditionalsurveysforthenon-responders,youwillneedtocreateadditionalREDCapprojectswiththefollow-upsurveys.

Surveys:AnonymousCanIusetheParticipantListtocollectanonymoussurveydatafromparticipants?Technically,no.DataisnotanonymouswhencollectedusingtheParticipantList;butitcanbe"coded"and"unidentifiable"totheprojectadmins.REDCap'suserinterfacehastwoseparatemodulesfor(1)sendingemailsandtrackingresponders/non-responders(ParticipantList)and(2)viewingdata/responses.ThroughtheREDCapinterface,thereisnolinkbetweenthemodulesandnoconnectionbetweentheemailaddressenteredandtheresponsescollectedunlessyouenteruniquevaluesintothe"ParticipantIdentifier(optional)"field.The‘ParticipantIdentifier’fieldlinkstheemailaddresstothesurveyresponses.Toensureconfidentialityofthedata,REDCaptracksresponsesbyattributingittoanemailaddress.IftheParticipantListà‘ParticipantIdentifier’fieldisnotused,theprojectadministratorsarenotprivytothisinformation.**Ifyoutrulyneedanonymousdata,usethePublicSurveyLink.**

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PublicSurveyLink(non-longitudinaldatacollection)PublicSurveyLink:Clickon‘ManageSurveyParticipants’underDataCollection(left-handmenu)ontheProjectSetuppage.ThiswilltakeyoudirectlytothePublicSurveyLinkpage.

Toviewwhatthesurveywilllookliketorespondents,clickon‘Openpublicsurvey.’The‘PublicSurveyURL’isthelinkthatyouwouldprovidetoallthedesiredrespondents.Thiscanbeemailedtotheparticipants,postedonawebsiteorrecruitmentletter,savedtoadesktop/device,oropenedwhiletherespondentispresent.

ParticipantList(non-longitudinaldatacollection)

ParticipantList:Clickon‘ManageSurveyParticipants’underDataCollection(left-handmenu)ontheProjectSetuppage.Thenclickon‘ParticipantList.’

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ParticipantIdentifier:Ifyouneedtobeabletoidentifywhichsurveyresponsebelongstowhichrespondent,clickon‘Enable’nexttoParticipantIdentifier.Note:Onceyousendoutthesurveysyoucannotenablethisoptionfortheinvitesthathavealreadybeensentoutsotheresponseswillbeanonymous.ToaddpeopletotheParticipantList,clickon‘Addparticipants.’

Ifnotusingthe‘ParticipantIdentifier,’addtheemailaddressesoftherespondents,oneperline(Figure1).Ifusingthe‘ParticipantIdentifier,’addtheemailaddressesoftherespondents,oneperline,aswellastheparticipant’sidentifier(Figure2).Clickon‘Addparticipants’whenallemailshavebeenentered.

Figure1: Figure2:TosendthesurveytothoseontheParticipantList,clickon‘ComposeSurveyInvitations.’

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TheComposeSurveyInvitationspageiswhereyousetupwhenthesurveyshouldbesent(immediatelyvs.aspecificdateandtime),reminderemailsiftheparticipanthasnotrespondedbyaspecifiedtimeandtheemailthatwillgooutwiththesurveyinvitation.Note:Reminderemailsmustbesetupbeforethesurveyissentoutandcannotbesetupretroactively.Ifyouforgettosetupreminders,you’llhavetore-sendthesurveytotheparticipantiftheydonotrespond.Theemailaddresseswithabluecheckmarkunderthe‘ParticipantList’headingaretheemailaddressesthatwillbesenttheinvitationtothesurvey.Youcanuncheckanemailaddressifyoudonotwantaninvitationtobesenttothisaddress.Clickon‘SendInvitations’whenfinished.Thesurveyinviteshavenowbeensent!YoucangobacktotheParticipantListpagetoseewhohasrespondedtothesurvey,ifaninvitationhasalreadybeensentandtheuniquesurveylinkforthatparticipant.Thegreybubbleunder‘Responded’willturngreenwhenthesurveyhasbeensubmitted.Ifthereisanenvelopeiconwithagreenarrowunder‘InvitationSent’thentheinvitationhasalreadybeensenttotheindividual.Toviewtheuniquesurveylinkfortheindividual,clickontheiconunderthe‘Link’column.ToremoveanindividualfromtheParticipantList,clickon‘remove’inthefar-rightcolumn.

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PublicSurveyLink(longitudinaldatacollection)

YoucanusethePublicSurveyLinkforcollectinglongitudinaldata,andhaveallthesurveyslinkedtotheindividual,butonlyifyouarecollectingtheemailaddressesoftherespondentsintheinitialsurveyandenablethe‘Designateanemailfield’underOptionalModulesandCustomizations.Theprojectmustalsobesetuplongitudinally,withatleast2events(seebelow).

OntheProjectSetuppageàEnableoptionalmodulesandcustomizationsàEnable:‘Designateanemailfieldtouseforinvitationstosurveyparticipants.’Designatetheemailaddressfieldyouarecollectingonthefirstinstanceofthesurvey.

Thenextstepistosetup‘AutomatedInvitations’forthesurveysthatwillbesentoutafterthe‘first’surveyissentout.The‘first’instanceofthesurvey(i.e.,Event1)willstillbesentoutusingthePublicSurveyURLmethod.Clickon‘AutomatedInvitations’tosetupthefollowingsurveys(i.e.,Events2and3).

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AutomatedSurveyInvitationssetuppage:

Step1:Composeyoursurveyemailmessage.Step2:Specifytheconditionsforsendingtheinvitations.Forthesecondsurvey,youwouldspecify‘Whenthefollowingsurveyiscompleted:“Survey”–Event1.’Forthethirdsurvey,youwouldspecify‘Whenthefollowingsurveyiscompleted:“Survey”–Event2.’Step3:Specifywhenthenextsurveyshouldbesentoutoncethepersoncompletestheprevioussurvey.Step4:Activeyoursurveysbyclickingon‘Active.’Theautomatedsurveyinvitationswillnotbesentuntiltheyareactivated.Clickon‘Save’oncefinished.Tosendtheinitialsurvey,gotothePublicSurveyLinkpagetoobtainthesurvey’sURL.

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ParticipantList(longitudinaldatacollection)YoucanusetheParticipantListforcollectinglongitudinaldata,andhaveallthesurveyslinkedtotheindividual,byenteringtheemailaddressesoftherespondentsintotheParticipantListandbyenablingthe‘Designateanemailfield’underOptionalModulesandCustomizations.Theprojectmustalsobesetuplongitudinally,withatleast2events(seebelow).

OntheProjectSetuppageàEnableoptionalmodulesandcustomizationsàEnable:‘Designateanemailfieldtouseforinvitationstosurveyparticipants.’Designatetheemailaddressfieldyouarecollectingonthefirstinstanceofthesurvey.

Thenextstepistosetup‘AutomatedInvitations’forthesurveysthatwillbesentoutafterthe‘first’surveyissentout.The‘first’instanceofthesurvey(i.e.,Event1)willstillbesentoutusingtheParticipantList/ComposeSurveyInvitationsmethod.Clickon‘AutomatedInvitations’tosetupthefollowingsurveys(i.e.,Events2and3).

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AutomatedSurveyInvitationssetuppage:Step1:Composeyoursurveyemailmessage.Step2:Specifytheconditionsforsendingtheinvitations.Forthesecondsurvey,youwouldspecify‘Whenthefollowingsurveyiscompleted:“Survey”–Event1.’Forthethirdsurvey,youwouldspecify‘Whenthefollowingsurveyiscompleted:“Survey”–Event2.’Step3:Specifywhenthenextsurveyshouldbesentoutoncethepersoncompletestheprevioussurvey.Step4:Activeyoursurveysbyclickingon‘Active.’Theautomatedsurveyinvitationswillnotbesentuntiltheyareactivated.Clickon‘Save’oncefinished.Tosendtheinitialsurvey,gototheParticipantListpagetoentertheemailaddressesandcomposetheinitialsurveyinvitation.

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ItisrecommendedthatyouDONOTenabletheParticipantIdentifierifcollectingdatalongitudinallyusingtheParticipantList.BecauseyouareusingtheDesignateemailfieldoption,REDCapknowswhichrecordtheemailbelongstoandwillnotatethesubject’sRecordIDwhenthesurveyiscompleted(seebelow).Ifyoudoenablethe‘ParticipantIdentifier’field,theidentifieryougivethemwillappearnexttotheiremailaddressinsteadoftheirRecordID,makingtheirRecordIDnumberhardertofindifyouneededtopullupthisrespondent’ssurveyresults.Howtogetnotifiedwhenasurveyhasbeensubmitted:GototheOnlineDesignerpageandclickon‘SurveyNotifications.’Alistofallprojectusersandtheiremailaddresseswillbelistedhere.Toselectwhogetsthesurveynotificationemails,selecttheiremailaddressundertheRecipientemailaddresscolumn.Onceenabled,therewillbeagreencheckmarkunderNotificationsEnabledcolumn.Exampleemailfromasurveynotification: