Logic allows you to hide or show questions or sections depending on the answer to previous questions. Logic helps you ask more specific questions and ensure participants see questions that are relevant to them based on previous responses. Logic is available on the Pro plan.
Key features
By toggling on logic on a question or section, you can choose to hide or show that section or question based on a condition. The target of the condition must come before the question/section you wish to hide or show.
All questions and section types can have logic applied to them (except the first question/section as it won’t have any conditions!), but only the following question and section types can be used as conditions:
Single-choice (radio button) questions
Multiple-select (checkbox) questions
Linear scale questions
Preference tests
Prototype task flows
You can see which sections have conditions applied in the test summary:
And in the results pages once the test is complete:
Questions/sections with no conditions applied to them are shown to all participants.
We use“hide/show” logic, which is different when compared to “skip/jump” logic or creating logic branches. Once a participant has interacted with a question/section that has been conditionally hidden or shown, they’ll move on to the next question/section with no conditions.
Here’s a flow diagram to illustrate how it works:
Previewing a test with logic
When you select ‘save and preview’, you’ll see exactly what the test taker will see. This means the preview will change, depending on your answers.
Using logic with the Lyssna panel
You can use logic with tests run with the Lyssna panel, or your own self-recruited participants. If you use logic on a test sent to the Lyssna panel, you’ll be charged for the longest possible duration the test might take. The tester is also paid the longer amount.
Test logic troubleshooting & limitations
We currently only support using test logic with preference tests, prototype flows, single-choice questions, multiple-select questions, and linear scale questions. In the future, we will add support for some slightly more complex comparisons, based on your feedback. Let us know if you want this!
We don't currently have any logic options for a navigation test. If you’d like more options for branching or conditional navigation, a Prototype task might be a better alternative for your needs. You can use logic to show/hide a question based on whether a participant completed the Prototype task or not. Find out more about our Prototype task feature here.
When you’re designing your logic flow we want to ensure everything works as intended the first time, so we’ve added messaging to ensure you don’t leave anything out. Logic conditions cannot be added to the first question or section on your test, so we’ll let you know if you inadvertently do this:
You’ll also notice an alert message when you add logic conditions that are based on responses to questions marked optional. Optional questions can be skipped by test participants, which means your conditions may be skipped. This can cause your test section to be shown/hidden for all participants who choose not to answer your target question. We’ll let you know if this happens:
Helpful tip: If you have set up logic conditions for any section of your test, you won’t be able to use question randomization on that section. If you enable question randomization on a section with a logic flow, the logic conditions will be automatically disabled. To re-enable logic, you’ll need to first turn off question randomization. Any logic that you previously added to other sections of the test will remain unchanged.
Common questions
Can I use logic to screen participants in or out of my test?
Technically, yes, but this is not something we recommend if you're placing an order from our panel. If you are recruiting from your own audience, it may work for you to "hide" the rest of the test from participants who do not answer early questions a certain way.
That said, using the logic feature as a screener when ordering from the Lyssna panel will lead to unnecessary expenses if you're on a budget. We always pay panelists for the longest possible duration through a test, which means you'll still pay for responses that do not meet the criteria you are seeking to target, and we can not replace these participants for you once "screened out".
Need a screener for your study? Check out this article to get started with screeners!