Table 4.

Examples of commonly used verbal probes.

Type of verbal probe	Example
Comprehension/interpretation	“What does the term ‘continuing medical education’ mean to you?”
Paraphrasing	“Can you restate the question in your own words?”
Confidence judgment	“How sure are you that you have participated in 3 formal educational programs?”
Recall	“How do you remember that you have participated in 3 formal educational programs?” “How did you come up with your answer?”
Specific	“Why do you say that you think it is very important that physicians participant in continuing medical education?”
General	“How did you arrive at that answer?” “Was that easy or hard to answer?” “I noticed that you hesitated. Tell me what you were thinking.” “Tell me more about that.”

Adapted with permission from the Journal of Graduate Medical Education: Willis & Artino 2013. What do our respondents think we’re asking? Using cognitive interviewing to improve medical education surveys. J Grad Med Educ 5:353–356.