What is a leading question?

• Leading questions make it clear that there is a “correct” answer the question is leading you towards.
• These will always result in false information as the respondent wasn't given the option for an honest response.
• An example of a leading question is: "How much more motivated are you at work when you receive recognition?".
• This question is set up in a way where it's assumed the responder is motivated by the recognition they are receiving.
• The responder is now obliged to rate how much more motivated they were.

Consequences of leading questions

• Your survey responses will be skewed.
• You won't gain any new results or insights as you've directed the survey to get the response you want.

What to do instead

• Ensure the questions in a survey give the responder options so they are able to choose objectively.
• Let's use the question mentioned above which was "How much more motivated are you at work when you receive recognition?" as an example.
• To prevent this from being a leading question it should be reworded to the following: "To what extent does the recognition you receive at work motivate you?"