Asking multiple questions about several items: the design of matrix structures on application forms.

It is common practice on application forms to locate questions in column headings. Two experiments are reported both showing that this yields poorer performance than having the same questions as row headings. Siting questions in row headings also makes it easier to include short notes alongside the questions, rather than having them located elsewhere on the form. When several questions share a column or row heading the form filler must use letter codes to indicate which question is being answered. The present data show that the use of letter codes can lead to unnecessary errors and wastes time. It is preferable to arrange the information in a matrix so that answers can be given as ticks.