Hidden fields

Question

Hello,

I created a public survey and I have collected data from several anonymous users. However, now that I have the data, I realize that I wish I had a few other columns to keep track of activities associated with each submitted survey.

I think I want to do this with hidden fields. That is, I want several fields that only I (as the administrator) can see that are for me and my colleagues to answer for each survey (i.e. does the survey respondent require a follow-up call, who is that call assigned to, and what are/were the call results).

Can I use hidden fields to do that? And can I add them after I have already started collecting data? Or should I just export the data and keep track of the after-survey activities separately?

I created my survey via the website and not using XLSForms. There doesn't seem to be an option to add a hidden field/question via the website. Or am I missing something?

Thanks in advance,

Esther (my middle name)

JamesTedrick · Accepted Answer

Hi Petronila,

Yes, hidden or calculate questions can be used for this; hidden is normally used to store data that is present when the form loads, while a calculate question will have a formula that updates as the form is filled out.  You add these fields via Survey123 Connect (the Survey123 website does not support these types of questions).  They can be added to a form after publishing without modifying the dataset, though it may be problematic if the form was first authored in the Survey123 website.