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The Question Metadata panel allows you to configure the technical properties of an individual question. These settings do not affect how the question appears to respondents, but they determine how the question is represented when exported to statistical software such as SPSS. Question metadata is useful for researchers and data analysts who need clean variable names, consistent data types, and standardized missing values. To access the Question Metadata panel:
  1. Open the questionnaire in the Editor Panel.
  2. Click the question you want to configure.
  3. Open the Question Metadata section from the right-side panel.

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Label Preparation

The Label Preparation section controls how the question is identified in exported datasets.

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Question Full Text

Displays the complete text of the survey question. This text is used as a reference when generating documentation and variable labels.

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Example

Question shown to respondents:
How satisfied are you with your recent online shopping experience?

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Variable Label

The Variable Label is the descriptive label assigned to the variable in exported files such as SPSS. Choose a short, meaningful label that clearly describes the question.

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Example

In SPSS, analysts will see:

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Bytes Counter

Displays the number of bytes used by the Variable Label. This helps ensure the label does not exceed the limits of the export format.

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Example

Variable Label:
Bytes Counter:

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Advanced SPSS Settings

These settings control how the selected question is stored in SPSS. Most users can keep the default values unless their organization has specific data formatting requirements.

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Read Only

Prevents accidental changes to the metadata.

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Example

If enabled, the SPSS settings cannot be edited until Read Only is disabled.

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Numeric Width

Specifies the maximum number of digits that can be stored. Default: 10

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Example

Question:
How many products did you purchase?
Possible value:
Width:
This allows values up to ten digits long.

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Numeric Decimals

Defines how many decimal places should be stored. Default: 0

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Example

Question:
How many hours did you shop online?

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Numeric Format

Defines how numeric values appear in SPSS. Default: F (Fixed Numeric)

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Example

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String Width

Defines the maximum number of characters allowed for text responses. Default: 255

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Example

Question:
Please describe your shopping experience.
Maximum response length stored:

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SPSS Format

This section summarizes the formatting applied to the selected question. Available settings include:
  • Format
  • Width
  • Decimals
  • Configuration Level
  • Admin Defaults

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Example

If your administrator has defined default settings, they will automatically be applied unless you override them.

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Missing & Special Values

Sometimes respondents cannot or do not want to answer a question. Instead of leaving the response blank, you can assign predefined Missing & Special Values. These values are recognized by SPSS as missing data rather than valid responses. Common examples include:
  • Don’t Know
  • Refused to Answer
  • Not Applicable

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Add a Missing Value

Click + Add Missing Value and enter:
  • Code
  • Label
  • Configuration Level

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Example

Question:
What is your annual household income?
Configure the following values: When exported: SPSS treats 98 and 99 as missing values instead of actual income values.

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Reset Missing Values

Click Reset Missing Values to restore the administrator’s default missing value definitions. Use this option if you have customized the values and want to return to the system defaults.

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Data Type Information

This section displays how the selected question will be stored in exported datasets.

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Measurement Level

Defines the statistical measurement level of the question. Common levels include:
  • Nominal
  • Ordinal
  • Scale

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Example

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Data Type

Shows the type of data stored for the question. Possible data types include:
  • Numeric
  • String
  • Date

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Example

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Complete Example

Suppose you create the following survey question:
How satisfied are you with your recent online shopping experience?
Respondents answer using a 1–5 rating scale. You configure the metadata as follows: When the questionnaire is exported to SPSS, the variable appears similar to: This allows analysts to immediately understand what the variable represents and ensures that missing responses are handled correctly during statistical analysis.

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Best Practices

  • Use clear and descriptive Variable Labels so exported datasets are easy to understand.
  • Keep the default SPSS settings unless your organization requires a different format.
  • Define consistent Missing & Special Values across all questionnaires.
  • Use standard missing value codes (such as 97, 98, and 99) throughout your organization.
  • Review the metadata before exporting to SPSS to ensure variables are correctly configured.

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Summary

The Question Metadata panel controls how each question is represented in exported datasets, especially SPSS files. You can configure variable labels, numeric formatting, string length, missing value codes, and data type information without affecting the respondent experience. Properly configuring metadata produces cleaner datasets, reduces post-processing work, and makes your survey data easier for analysts to understand and analyze.