Demographic and Health Surveys Methodology - Measure DHS

MODEL QUESTIONNAIRESThe basic approach of the DHS program is to collect data that are comparable across countries. Toachieve this, standard model questionnaires have been developed, along with a written description of whycertain questions or sections have been included. These model questionnaires—which have beenreviewed and modified in each of the four phases of the DHS program—form the basis for thequestionnaires that are applied in each country. Typically, a country is asked to adopt the modelquestionnaire in its entirety, but can add questions of particular interest. However, questions in the modelcan be deleted if they are irrelevant in a particular country.DHS surveys are designed to collect data on marriage, fertility, family planning, reproductive health,child health, and HIV/AIDS. Due to the subject matter of the survey, women of reproductive age (15–49)are the focus of the survey. Women eligible for an individual interview are identified through thehouseholds selected in the sample. Consequently, all DHS surveys utilize a minimum of twoquestionnaires—a Household Questionnaire and a Women’s Questionnaire.The Household Questionnaire is used to list all the usual members and visitors in the selected households.Some basic information is collected on the characteristics of each person listed, including his/her age, sex,education, and relationship to the head of the household. The main purpose of the HouseholdQuestionnaire is to provide the mechanism for identifying women eligible for individual interview andchildren under five who are to be weighed, measured, and tested for anemia. In addition, information iscollected about the dwelling itself, such as the source of water, type of toilet facilities, materials used toconstruct the house, ownership of various consumer goods, and use of iodized salt.DHS questionnaires for women distinguish between countries with high and low contraceptive prevalencerates. The DHS Model “A” Women’s Questionnaire is for use in the high contraceptive prevalencecountries, while the DHS Model “B” Women’s Questionnaire is for use in countries with relatively lowcontraceptive use. The main difference between these questionnaires is that the “A” core collectsconsiderably more information on family planning than the “B” core. Both versions of the Women’sQuestionnaire cover the following sections:• Background characteristics (age, education, religion, etc.)• Reproductive history• Knowledge and use of contraceptive methods• Antenatal care, delivery care and postnatal care• Breastfeeding and infant feeding practices• Immunization, child health, and nutrition• Marriage and recent sexual activity• Fertility preferences• Knowledge about HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases• Husband’s background and respondent’s workIt was also recognized that some countries have a need for special information not contained in the corequestionnaires. To accommodate this need and to achieve some level of comparability across countriesthat applied them, optional questionnaire modules were developed on a series of topics, as follows:• Female genital cutting• Maternal mortalityGuide to DHS Statistics 2 September 2003