{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,11]],"date-time":"2025-09-11T18:22:20Z","timestamp":1757614940780,"version":"3.44.0"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,5]],"date-time":"2025-09-05T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1757030400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Res. Metr. Anal."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Surveys are commonly associated with quantitative methods, yet there is growing recognition of their potential to yield qualitative insights into complex social phenomena. However, the effectiveness of open-ended survey questions is often limited by issues such as respondent fatigue and low-quality responses. To address these limitations, researchers are increasingly exploring the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to support dynamic survey design, probing questions, and participant engagement. This article explores the role of qualitative surveys in social science research, by considering their alignment with qualitative paradigms. The content assesses how AI-powered features, such as machine learning and chatbot-driven interfaces, can enhance data collection through adaptive questioning. The article also discusses key challenges related to data quality, participant inclusivity, and ethical considerations. Particular attention is given to the concept of \u201cfelt anonymity\u201d in online surveys, which can encourage candid disclosures on sensitive topics and broaden participation across diverse populations. When designed with ethical and methodological care, qualitative surveys can thus serve as powerful tools for accessing underrepresented perspectives. By integrating AI into qualitative survey design, researchers can enhance both the richness and reach of their data. This article argues that AI-powered qualitative surveys, especially those capable of dynamic probing, offer a promising hybrid approach, bridging the scalability of surveys with the responsiveness of interviews, and calls for further empirical study of their ethical and epistemological implications.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/frma.2025.1519008","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,5]],"date-time":"2025-09-05T11:43:23Z","timestamp":1757072603000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["The online survey in qualitative research: can AI act as a probing tool?"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"10","author":[{"given":"Ryan Thomas","family":"Williams","sequence":"first","affiliation":[]},{"given":"Ewan","family":"Ingleby","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,5]]},"reference":[{"volume-title":"AI and the Social Sciences: Opportunities, Risks and Ethics","year":"2023","key":"B1"},{"key":"B2","first-page":"742","volume":"2","author":"Ben-Nun","year":"2008"},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1191\/1478088706qp063oa","article-title":"Using thematic analysis in psychology","author":"Braun","year":"2006","journal-title":"Qual. Res. Psychol. 3"},{"volume-title":"Successful Qualitative Research: A Practical Guide for Beginners.","year":"2013","author":"Braun","key":"B4"},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"641","DOI":"10.1080\/13645579.2020.1805550","article-title":"The online survey as a qualitative research tool","volume":"24","author":"Braun","year":"2021","journal-title":"Int. J. Soc. Res. Methodol."},{"key":"B6","first-page":"1","article-title":"\u201cCollecting textual, media and virtual data in qualitative research,\u201d","author":"Braun","year":"","journal-title":"Innovative Methods for Qualitative Data Collection: A Practical Guide to Textual And Virtual Techniques"},{"key":"B7","first-page":"243","article-title":"\u201cInnovations in qualitative methods,\u201d","author":"Braun","year":"","journal-title":"The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Social Psychology"},{"key":"B8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"13849","DOI":"10.1109\/JIOT.2021.3088875","article-title":"A survey of recent advances in edge-computing-powered artificial intelligence of things","volume":"8","author":"Chang","year":"2021","journal-title":"IEEE Internet Things J."},{"volume-title":"The Effects of Question Customization on the Quality of an Open-Ended Question","year":"2017","author":"Chen","key":"B9"},{"key":"B10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4324\/9781315456539","author":"Cohen","year":"2017","journal-title":"Research Methods in Education"},{"key":"B11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"97","DOI":"10.18653\/v1\/P17-4017","article-title":"\u201cSuperagent: a customer service chatbot for e-commerce websites,\u201d","author":"Cui","year":"2017","journal-title":"Proceedings of ACL 2017, System Demonstrations"},{"journal-title":"Exploring the Subjectivities of People with Alopecia Areata: A Critical Qualitative Study to Inform Applied Psychology Practice","year":"2019","author":"Davey","key":"B12"},{"key":"B13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1377","DOI":"10.1111\/bjd.17463","article-title":"Living with alopecia areata: an online qualitative survey study","volume":"180","author":"Davey","year":"2019","journal-title":"Br. J. Dermatol."},{"volume-title":"The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research, 5th Edn.","year":"2018","author":"Denzin","key":"B14"},{"key":"B15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"10","DOI":"10.5172\/conu.13.1.10","article-title":"Making sense of methodologies: a paradigm framework for the novice researcher","volume":"13","author":"Grant","year":"2002","journal-title":"Contemp. Nurse"},{"journal-title":"Computer-Aided Qualitative Data Analysis: Theory, Methods and Practice","year":"1995","author":"Kelle","key":"B16"},{"key":"B17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"57","DOI":"10.1002\/ev.1459","article-title":"Qualitative and quantitative methods: when stories converge","volume":"1987","author":"Kidder","year":"1987","journal-title":"New Dir. Prog. Eval."},{"volume-title":"Interviews: Learning the Craft of Qualitative Research Interviewing, 3rd Edn","year":"2015","author":"Kvale","key":"B18"},{"key":"B19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/16094069231211248","article-title":"Exploring the use of artificial intelligence for qualitative data analysis: the case of ChatGPT","author":"Morgan","year":"2023","journal-title":"Int. J. Qual. Methods"},{"key":"B20","first-page":"472","article-title":"\u201cBuilding rapport between human and ECA: a pilot study,\u201d","volume-title":"International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction","author":"Novick","year":"2014"},{"key":"B21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"102722","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cpa.2024.102722","article-title":"Artificial intelligence and qualitative research: the promise and perils of large language model (LLM) \u2018assistance'","volume":"99","author":"Roberts","year":"2024","journal-title":"Crit. Perspect. Account"},{"key":"B22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"249","DOI":"10.1080\/15391523.2020.1767525","article-title":"Effects of self-regulation scaffolding on online participation and learning outcomes","volume":"53","author":"Song","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Res. Technol. Educ."},{"key":"B23","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"295","DOI":"10.1177\/0011000006290983","article-title":"The pond you fish in determines the fish you catch: exploring strategies for qualitative data collection","volume":"35","author":"Suzuki","year":"2007","journal-title":"Couns. Psychol."},{"key":"B24","first-page":"14","article-title":"\u201cI think gorilla-like back effusions of hair are rather a turn-off\u201d: \u2018Excessive hair' and male body hair (removal) discourse","volume-title":"Body Image","author":"Terry","year":"2016"},{"key":"B25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"15","DOI":"10.1017\/9781107295094.003","article-title":"\u201cShort but often sweet: The surprising potential of qualitative survey methods,\u201d","volume-title":"Collecting Qualitative Data: A Practical Guide to Textual, Media and Virtual Techniques","author":"Terry","year":"2017"},{"key":"B26","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"272","DOI":"10.1177\/0959353517732592","article-title":"Negotiating the hairless ideal in A\u0304otearoa\/New Zealand: choice, awareness, complicity, and resistance in younger women's accounts of body hair removal","volume":"28","author":"Terry","year":"2018","journal-title":"Fem. Psychol."},{"key":"B27","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e12253","DOI":"10.1111\/lnc3.12253","article-title":"Chatbots for troubleshooting: a survey","volume":"11","author":"Thorne","year":"2017","journal-title":"Lang. Linguist. Compass"},{"journal-title":"Computational Approaches to Dialogue","year":"2017","author":"Traum","key":"B28"},{"key":"B29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"354","DOI":"10.1177\/1461444818797082","article-title":"The first-level digital divide shifts from inequalities in physical access to inequalities in material access","volume":"21","author":"Van Deursen","year":"2019","journal-title":"New Media Soc."},{"key":"B30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"131","DOI":"10.1080\/00926239708405314","article-title":"Pretending orgasm during sexual intercourse: Correlates in a sample of young adult women","volume":"23","author":"Wiederman","year":"1997","journal-title":"J. Sex Marital Ther."},{"key":"B31","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"41","DOI":"10.1080\/25783858.2023.2179893","article-title":"Think piece: ethics for the virtual researcher","volume":"5","author":"Williams","year":"2023","journal-title":"Practice"},{"key":"B32","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1331607","DOI":"10.3389\/frma.2024.1331589","article-title":"Paradigm shifts: exploring AI's influence on qualitative inquiry and analysis","volume":"9","author":"Williams","year":"","journal-title":"Front. Res. Metr. Anal."},{"key":"B33","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1331607","DOI":"10.3389\/feduc.2023.1331607","article-title":"The ethical implications of using generative chatbots in higher education","volume":"8","author":"Williams","year":"","journal-title":"Front. Educ."},{"key":"B34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"105","DOI":"10.1080\/25783858.2024.2380282","article-title":"Artificial Intelligence (AI) in practitioner education in higher education (HE)","volume":"6","author":"Williams","year":"2024","journal-title":"Practice"},{"key":"B35","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1145\/3381804","article-title":"Tell me about yourself: using an AI-powered chatbot to conduct conversational surveys with open-ended questions","volume":"27","author":"Xiao","year":"2020","journal-title":"ACM Trans. Comput. Hum. Interact."},{"key":"B36","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"72","DOI":"10.1080\/19312458.2022.2156489","article-title":"Comparing chatbots and online surveys for (longitudinal) data collection: an investigation of response characteristics, data quality, and user evaluation","volume":"18","author":"Zarouali","year":"2024","journal-title":"Commun. Methods Meas."}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Research Metrics and Analytics"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/frma.2025.1519008\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,5]],"date-time":"2025-09-05T11:43:26Z","timestamp":1757072606000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/frma.2025.1519008\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,5]]},"references-count":36,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/frma.2025.1519008"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/frma.2025.1519008","relation":{},"ISSN":["2504-0537"],"issn-type":[{"type":"electronic","value":"2504-0537"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,5]]},"article-number":"1519008"}}