Survey study, 1989
Does the way researchers ask survey questions change the answers about PMS?
Yes. When women rated their non-period symptoms first and then their period symptoms on a separate form, they reported more distress during non-period days, which is opposite to what most PMS studies find.
What they did
150 Israeli women answered questions about menstrual cycle symptoms in a different way than usual. Instead of comparing period symptoms to non-period symptoms directly, they first rated how they felt during non-period days on one form, then on a separate form rated how they felt during period and pre-period days.
What they found
When questions were asked this way, women reported higher distress scores during non-period days than during period or pre-period days. This is opposite to what most research studies have found when using the same questionnaire in the standard way.
What it means for you
The way survey questions are asked might influence what women report about PMS symptoms. This raises questions about whether previous PMS research has overestimated how much PMS bothers women. The study was done in one country with one questionnaire, which limits how much we can conclude.
150
women studied
About the study
- Original title
- The measurement of perimenstrual distress
- Authors
- Pazy A, Yedlin N, Lomranz J
- Journal
- The Journal of psychology
- Year
- 1989
- Study design
- Survey study
- What was tested
- None - this tested different ways of asking survey questions
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/00223980.1989.10543012