Screening
How to use screening questions to exclude out-of-target respondents at the start of a survey, and how to pair them with quota management.
Screening questions remove out-of-target respondents at the very start of a survey. kicue supports both SA and MA screening formats.
Why screening matters
- Higher data quality — excluding out-of-target answers sharpens analysis
- Cost efficiency — for panel research with incentives, screening prevents wasted payouts
- Works with quota management — respondents whose attribute quota is already full can be screened out automatically
Two screening formats
| Format | Code | When to use |
|---|---|---|
| Single-answer screening | SCREEN(SA) | Eligible / ineligible based on a single choice |
| Multiple-answer screening | SCREEN(MA) | Eligibility based on multiple selections |
Example: SCREEN(SA)
Q. Have you purchased a personal car in the last 3 months?
- Yes
- No ← screened out
Respondents answering "No" are routed to an exit screen without continuing.
Example: SCREEN(MA)
Q. Which of these services do you currently use? (Select all that apply.)
- Service A
- Service B
- Service C
- None of the above ← only selecting this screens out
Respondents that match the condition (only "None of the above") are screened out.
The exit screen
Screened-out respondents see a polite exit screen — for example, "Thank you for your participation." They are not told explicitly that they were disqualified, which keeps the respondent experience positive.
Quota management integration
kicue's quota management feature works with screening to stop collecting once a specific demographic target is full.
- Example: "Collect 100 males in their 20s"
- After 100 are collected, additional men in their 20s are screened out automatically
Design best practices
- Place screening questions near the start to avoid wasting respondent time
- State eligibility conditions clearly (e.g. "in the last 3 months", "at least once a month")
- Prefer SCREEN(SA) when a single choice is enough — simpler is better
- When pairing with quota management, lay out conditions and target counts in advance
Related topics
- Publish URL — publishing a survey that uses screening
- Response Monitoring — tracking screen-out counts alongside completions