You may have seen certain questions more frequently than others and wondered why that happens. They are probably backstop questions.
The poll unit loads engagement questions first, followed by one or two value questions and then a profile question. If a question is pinned to the page, it is loaded first. If no pinned question is present, an engagement question from a feed is served first.
If a respondent answers questions repeatedly on the page, they may reach the end of the available engagement questions. In that case, a backstop question will be asked. (Backstop questions are engagement questions; they're lower priority than others.) If no backstop questions are available, a value question will be served.
Backstop questions can be re-asked at varying intervals from 0 to 30 days.
Examples of backstop questions include:
- How are you feeling today?
- Do you subscribe to a print newspaper?
- Would you say you've seen something you deem to be 'fake news' / 'fake media' this week?