What is meant by fence-sitting and floating? Give an example of each.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Two related problems in question writing stem from the respondent’s desire to choose an acceptable or socially desirable answer and the desire to get through the survey as fast as possible. There is no uniformly correct solution to these problems, so you must carefully select an alternative.
Fence-sitters are people who see themselves as neutral in their attitudes toward a particular issue. If you are truly interested in those who do not have strong feelings on an issue, one alternative is to provide a neutral or undecided response option. The disadvantage of these options is that they may encourage some respondents to take the easy way out rather than really thinking about their feelings. They may also provide an out for respondents who do not want to reveal how they truly feel about an issue. On the other hand, not providing respondents who really have no opinion on an issue with an option such as “undecided” can be very frustrating for them and may encourage them to leave the item blank. Whatever you decide, it is generally a good idea to provide respondents with instructions that ask them to “select the choice in each item that most closely reflects your opinion.” This should help make all respondents feel more comfortable about their answers, particularly those who only slightly feel one way or the other.
Floaters are respondents who choose a substantive answer even when they do not know anything about a particular question. For example, research has shown that one third of the public will provide an opinion on a proposed law they know nothing about if they are not provided with a “don’t know” response option (Schuman & Presser, 1981). Of course, providing a “don’t know” option has the same disadvantage as providing a neutral response option: Its inclusion leads some people who have an opinion to take the easy way out.
Fence-sitters -- Survey respondents who see themselves as being neutral on an issue and choose a middle (neutral) response that is offered.
Floaters -- Survey respondents who provide an opinion on a topic in response to a closed-ended question that does not include a “don’t know” option, but will choose “don’t know” if it is available.