Cascading Dropdown
Cascading Dropdown
A cascading dropdown questions are suitable for questions where options have hierarchical relationships. They present these relationships in a nested manner, allowing respondents to make selections step by step. This type of question is ideal for scenarios requiring categorized choices, helping respondents narrow down their options and improve answering efficiency.
Cascading dropdown questions are designed with a multi-level structure, where options are categorized hierarchically, such as "Country-Province-City." This clear structure makes it easier for respondents to understand and select. Respondents make choices level by level, gradually narrowing down the options to find the most accurate answer.
By filtering options hierarchically, cascading dropdown avoid displaying too many choices at once, reducing distractions. At the same time, the hierarchical selection helps respondents quickly locate their desired options, improving answering efficiency. Additionally, hierarchical filtering reduces the likelihood of incorrect selections, ensuring data accuracy.
Connection Method for Cascading Questions
Cascading questions need to be implemented in conjunction with dropdown menu questions. A cascading question connects to a dropdown menu question as a primary directory, and this dropdown menu question can further connect to other dropdown menu questions as secondary directories, or even tertiary directories. Up to three levels of nesting are supported. After connecting a dropdown menu question to a cascading question, the cascading question automatically retrieves the questions of the dropdown menu question as its own options.
As shown in the figure above, there is a cascading start output port at the bottom of the cascading question node box, which connects to a dropdown menu question. Essentially, the dropdown menu question node serves as the data provider for the cascading question, and using other nodes will result in an error. The dropdown menu question connected below the cascading start is referred to as the cascading data group. The dropdown menu question that serves as the data provider for the cascading question is no longer an independent question and will not appear separately as a question during the answering process. Therefore, there will be some changes in the attribute settings of the dropdown menu question in the cascading data group, specifically:
- Required: Indicates that a selection must be made at the corresponding cascading level;
- Multiple Choice: Indicates that multiple selections can be made at the corresponding cascading level, and a range for the number of multiple selections can be specified;
- Randomize Options: Indicates that the order of options will be shuffled at the corresponding cascading level when displayed;
After connecting the cascading data group to the cascading question, the cascading question automatically generates all options. Changes to the options of the cascading question can only be made by changing the cascading data group.
Example
The figure below demonstrates an application case where cascading dropdown questions are used to inquire about an employee's department and job title.
- The first level involves selecting the department they belong to;
- The second level, because positions differ across departments, the job options will vary after selecting the department;
The final effect seen by the respondent is that the cascading question first displays the department selection, followed by different job positions after the department is chosen.
Settings
Render Template
The layout settings allow individual control over the menu popup method for each cascading level, and the system provides three display methods:
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Basic Template: Each level uses a dropdown list for selection, and the next level of options is displayed after selection.
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Tier: Displayed like a multi-level question, with selected parts expanding layer by layer for continued selection.
More Global Configuration Settings