Ranking vs. preference: A comparative study of self-reporting

Abstract

This paper introduces a comparative analysis between rating and pairwise self-reporting via questionnaires in user survey experiments. Two dissimilar game user survey experiments are employed in which the two questionnaire schemes are tested and compared for reliable affect annotation. The statistical analysis followed to test our hypotheses shows that even though the two self-reporting schemes are consistent there are significant order of reporting effects when subjects report via a rating questionnaire. The paper concludes with a discussion of the appropriateness of each self-reporting scheme under conditions drawn from the experimental results obtained. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.