Editing Survey methodology (section)

===Questionnaires as tools===
A variable category that is often measured in survey research are demographic variables, which are used to depict the characteristics of the people surveyed in the sample.<ref name="Shaughnessy2011"/> Demographic variables include such measures as ethnicity, socioeconomic status, race, and age.<ref name="Shaughnessy2011"/> Surveys often assess the preferences and attitudes of individuals, and many employ self-report scales to measure people's opinions and judgements about different items presented on a scale.<ref name="Shaughnessy2011"/> Self-report scales are also used to examine the disparities among people on scale items.<ref name="Shaughnessy2011"/> These self-report scales, which are usually presented in questionnaire form, are one of the most used instruments in psychology, and thus it is important that the measures be constructed carefully, while also being reliable and valid.<ref name="Shaughnessy2011"/>