Why are respondents asked to rank their responses if they give the same rating to two or more statements?

By asking respondents to rank their responses, CPSQ introduces a step that facilitates active self-reflection on behavioural preferences that an individual might not have considered before. The ranking approach overcomes some respondents automatic and unhelpful way of answering questionnaires. For example, individuals who always select the middle option or ‘Strongly Agree’ to positively worded statements. The rate/rank technique is a proven way to encourage thoughtful answers and a range of responses that produce more accurate scores and feedback than a traditional rate-only questionnaire. 
 
However, we appreciate that this method can occasionally mean that an individual cannot always reply in exactly the way they would like, but when scoring we combine rate and rank answers to mitigate this. Also, CPSQ asks 164 questions with at least two questions tapping a similar behavioural theme and this, in practice, means that one-off answers to single questions rarely have much impact on final feedback.