General Description

The 1KA service is designed to provide information support for the online survey process. The corresponding process is described in detail in Callegaro, Lozar-Manfreda and Vehovar: Web Survey Methodology, Sage (pp. 10–11), as well as on the WebSM website. It is structured into three phases (I–III), which are further divided into 12 stages (a–l):

1. Preparation (a. sampling, b. survey mode, c. technical preparation, d. nonresponse strategy, e. management, f. questionnaire preparation),
2. Data collection (g. processing and monitoring, h. recruitment, i. measurement), and
3. Post-survey activities (j. preliminary analyses, k. data preparation, l. export and documentation).

The three basic phases and 12 stages of the survey process are also presented in a corresponding figure.

For the purposes of information support, the survey process outlined above, which represents a substantive and methodological view of the survey process, can be structured into five steps. From a technical perspective, these steps combine and integrate the 12 stages listed above. These five steps represent the basic structure of the 1KA service and also the structure of the Help section:

1. EDITING: This step covers the development, design and technical creation of an online questionnaire and corresponds to stage f. questionnaire preparation. Import and export from word-processing applications allow questionnaire development to be combined with offline development. At the same time, the system supports – and this is also recommended by Callegaro et al. (p. 113) – carrying out the entire questionnaire development process online in 1KA, without offline development tools such as Word or Google Docs. 1KA also provides a powerful system for testing and commenting, making online questionnaire development particularly efficient. In terms of visual design, the 1KA interface supports simple customisation, such as colours, fonts and logos, while more advanced design changes can be implemented directly using CSS. Particular attention is given to editing long and structured questionnaires, supported by powerful and transparent branching logic and block-based structuring.
2. TESTING: Once a particular version of a questionnaire has been created, it can be easily archived, changes can be tracked, data entry can be simulated and functionality can be tested. Based on estimated completion time and preliminary diagnostics, recommendations for improvements are also provided. From a methodological and process-oriented perspective, questionnaire testing belongs – together with question editing and design – to stage f. questionnaire preparation. However, because of its importance, complexity and distinct role, 1KA presents testing as a separate step that is also closely connected to stage c. technical preparation.
3. PUBLISHING: Once the questionnaire has been created and tested, it needs to be published. There are many ways to publish a survey or distribute invitations, ranging from directly sharing the questionnaire address to distribution through social networks and sending invitations. The invitation functionality supports optimisation of sample selection (stage a. sampling), repeated invitation sending in the form of reminders (stage d. nonresponse), and repeated surveying, for example in an online panel. Plugins can also be used to recruit respondents from commercial online access panels, both domestic and international. 1KA also supports postal data collection, including preparation of invitations and questionnaire entry, as well as telephone data collection. This enables the selection and combination of different survey modes (stage b. survey mode). Since 2024, respondents can also be selected using the probability-based 1KA panel.
4. DATA: Respondents' answers are collected (stage i. measurement) and stored in real time. Basic paradata, such as device type and page timestamps, are stored by default, while advanced paradata collection can also be enabled, including mouse movements, scrolling, clicks and similar interactions. The statuses of nonresponding units and units that terminate the survey at a particular stage are recorded in detail. Non-substantive and missing responses, such as “don't know”, skips, follow-up questions and missing values, are also recorded in detail. Where restrictions apply, quotas can be established so that the survey can be closed early, for example when quotas have been reached. Together with the status bar summarising survey progress, this step supports processing and monitoring (stage g.), which, together with other diagnostic information, supports management of the entire process (stage e.) and additional recruitment (stage h.). Collected data can be reviewed continuously, edited afterwards (stage k. data preparation), and archived (stage l. export and documentation).
5. ANALYSIS: Once data collection has been completed, automatic summary analyses can be performed. These automatically take into account the nature of the question, including tables, question type and measurement scale, and can also be presented as charts (stage j. preliminary analyses). Various bivariate analyses, custom analyses, segmentations and other analyses and outputs are also available, including outputs of individual responses. All of these analyses can also be performed while data collection is still in progress.

Across these five steps, 1KA provides powerful, user-friendly and reliable support for the entire survey process. Since the beginning of 1KA's operation, there has never been a case in which survey data were lost. 1KA is particularly distinguished by its speed and the minimal number of clicks required to perform tasks; further details are provided in the overview of comparative advantages. As an open-source application, 1KA also offers the advantages of transparent source code and free availability for installation.