Closed-ended questions have short, simple answers like “yes” or “no,” but some can be more open. They are useful for simple information, but limit possible answers. Open-ended questions have many answers, but can be difficult to quantify. Both types can be used effectively together.
A closed-ended question is one that has only a short, simple answer which is usually “yes” or “no,” although there may be more “open” types. The strictest definition is typically a question that has only one answer as a “true” or “false” condition, such as “Did you like that movie?” or “Is today Monday?” A more “open” form of closed-ended question still has only one short answer, but one that isn’t limited to just “yes” and “no,” such as “How old are you?” or “What day is it?” These are in contrast to true open-ended questions which allow for a wide range of lengthy answers such as “How are you today?” or “What did you think of that movie?”
There are some advantages and disadvantages to using a closed-ended question. One of the main strengths of these types of questions is that they allow the asker to retain power in the process, as the answer should be short. They can be used quite effectively to determine very simple types of information and to make data quantitative or numerical. For example, someone surveying a movie might ask, “Did you like the movie?” with only “yes” and “no” as answers, allowing for simple analysis by comparing the number of “yes” and “no” answers.
One major disadvantage of asking a closed-ended question, however, is that it eliminates a large amount of possible answers, since only one remains valid. For example, in the above case, someone might have liked the movie but thought the title was flawed or misleading. With no ability to provide this kind of information, the use of a closed-ended question only determined someone’s enjoyment of the film, not whether the title would lead them to see it in the first place. During an interview, this type of question is helpful in the beginning, but can prevent many breakthroughs from happening in the long run.
Using an open-ended question helps alleviate many of these weaknesses, although there are some drawbacks as well. Unlike a closed-ended question, open-ended ones have many possible answers and this provides the questioner with a much more in-depth answer. The information obtained from them can be difficult to quantify or easily used as part of a numerical study. It is often preferable to have open and closed question options as part of a survey or questionnaire; this provides opportunities for both types to be used effectively, allowing each to reduce the other’s weaknesses.
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