Fun surveys? Developing an innovative approach to assessing learning through citizen science

Assessing the impact of citizen science participation on volunteers is increasingly important. However, traditional methods for evaluating volunteer experiences—such as quantitative surveying—have drawbacks. Response rates are often low, pre- and post-tests provide a coarse metric for assessing learning, and static evaluation techniques have failed to align with the participatory spirit of citizen science, where volunteers are involved in understanding their role in scientific inquiry. In response to these problems, we developed a more engaging type of longitudinal survey aimed at achieving higher response rates and better involving volunteers in understanding the scientific value of their survey efforts. We first reviewed the literature on “fun” and found that fun activities embody six characteristics: autonomy, social connection, playfulness, challenge, transport, and curiosity. We used this “fun heuristic” to design “SciQuest,” an exploratory survey tool that evaluated volunteers’ pr..., The attached CSV contains 243 anonymized survey responses from Qualtrics \"Panelists\" (paid surveytakers). These surveytakers completed a survey in May, 2021 where they answered a variety of questions about their connection to nature, their pro-enviornmental behaviors, and other conservation-related constructs. Each respondent completed two different types of survey analyzing the same construct: one using existing, validated constructs, and one using a new, untested instrument called \"SciQuest.\" 
The goal of collecting this survey data was to quasi-validate the SciQuest version of these constructs. SciQuest is designed to provide a more fun, engaging way of answering survey questions for citizen science evaluators. However, to make sure the SciQuest questions are assessing the same constructs as conventional instruments, we compared responses to the same constructs among these Panelists who took both a conventional survey and a SciQuest version of the same survey constructs. 
T..., , # Data from: Fun surveys? Developing an innovative approach to assessing learning through citizen science

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7d7wm3843](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7d7wm3843)

## Description of the data and file structure

This CSV contains survey data from 243 Qualtrics Panelists (paid survey takers). These Panelists completed a survey evaluating their pro-environmental attitudes and beliefs. The Panelists completed two different survey types assessing the same pro-environmental constructs. The first survey type used existing, validated instruments (e.g. Manfredo's \"Wildlife Value Orientation\"). The second survey type used variations of these existing instruments designed to be more engaging, fun, use interesting graphic elements, etc., for a new type of citizen science survey tool called \"SciQuest.\" The goal of this survey effort was to quasi-validate the survey questions used in SciQuest against the existing, conventional instruments. 

There is also an attached R scri...,