I work for a market research company and they put questions in like this to make sure the surveys are being answered by actual people. Some scammers write survey bots or programs that answer surveys in order to earn money and other compensation. I took a survey once and there was a question that asked "How many fatal heart attacks have you had in the past year? Thought it was funny, but if you didn't answer "0" you g0t terminated - obviously.
It's so that even a first-grader can fill in the blanks. Nowadays, a lot of kindergarteners know the answer, too. One of my son's cats could probably answer the question as well if he wanted to, but I would guess that for the purposes of helping you out, he'd prefer not to answer.
Yeah, I understand about the need of bot defense, but they can be too aggressive. I've had a survey terminate because of such bot detection--when in reality the problem was I correctly answered the control question--on the wrong line. It was a grid of questions on the left, ratings across the top.
This is super common. I've seen them in surveys for professional stuff and for "what kind of soap do you buy?" stuff.
Sometimes, it's done differently. Example: after the "We want to know your opinion about soap for Upper Respiratory Elm Disease" bit, it says, "We know sometimes people aren't really paying attention, so please check the box that says "I like tacos."
And then it says
Treat them for two weeks with bug spray Give them an NSAID and tell them to stay out of the forest I like tacos Immediately perform surgery for splinters
I like the thought of contracting upper respiratory elm disease from climbing trees and acting like a nut, too! Doesn't seem to be one of the options, though.
I work for a market research company and they put questions in like this to make sure the surveys are being answered by actual people. Some scammers write survey bots or programs that answer surveys in order to earn money and other compensation. I took a survey once and there was a question that asked "How many fatal heart attacks have you had in the past year? Thought it was funny, but if you didn't answer "0" you g0t terminated - obviously.
ReplyDeleteLOL...it's a wake up call.
ReplyDeleteIt's so that even a first-grader can fill in the blanks. Nowadays, a lot of kindergarteners know the answer, too. One of my son's cats could probably answer the question as well if he wanted to, but I would guess that for the purposes of helping you out, he'd prefer not to answer.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I understand about the need of bot defense, but they can be too aggressive. I've had a survey terminate because of such bot detection--when in reality the problem was I correctly answered the control question--on the wrong line. It was a grid of questions on the left, ratings across the top.
ReplyDeleteThis is super common. I've seen them in surveys for professional stuff and for "what kind of soap do you buy?" stuff.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, it's done differently. Example: after the "We want to know your opinion about soap for Upper Respiratory Elm Disease" bit, it says, "We know sometimes people aren't really paying attention, so please check the box that says "I like tacos."
And then it says
Treat them for two weeks with bug spray
Give them an NSAID and tell them to stay out of the forest
I like tacos
Immediately perform surgery for splinters
Well, ok, not JUST like that...
I like the thought of contracting upper respiratory elm disease from climbing trees and acting like a nut, too! Doesn't seem to be one of the options, though.
ReplyDeleteI guess I'm safe. I'm scared of heights, although I have to admit I do occasionally (ahem!) act like a nut.
ReplyDeleteWell, you know what they say: Sometimes you feel like a nut...
ReplyDelete