The Enubiaka XLSForm Repeat Group Standards

A reference guide for selecting the correct repeat group format for your survey design.

📋 Quick Reference Overview

Format	Structure	Default?	Best For
1. Sequential Positional Loop	Unrolled groups by slot position	No	Fixed-count sequential recording
2. Brand-Fixed Conditional Group Loop	One fixed group per brand/item	No	Brand-dedicated column analysis
3. Automated Selection-Driven Repeat Loop Default	True begin_repeat / end_repeat	✅ Yes	Variable-count, large lists, long format analysis

Sequential Positional Loop

A fixed number of unrolled groups (one per slot position) where the enumerator manually selects a brand or item at the start of each group via a select_one question. Already-selected items are excluded from subsequent groups via choice_filter, preventing duplicates. The total number of groups is fixed at design time.

✅ When To Use

When enumerator control over item order is required
When total number of items is fixed in advance
When a guided one-item-at-a-time CAPI experience is needed
When the list is small (ideally 10 items or fewer)

⚠ When NOT To Use

When the number of items varies per respondent
When brand-fixed columns in raw data are required
When the item list is large
When enumerator control over order is not needed

📊 Best Suited Study Types

Product testing studies — handing out multiple product samples sequentially
Sensory evaluation studies — taste tests, fragrance tests, texture evaluations
Mystery shopping audits — visiting a fixed number of outlets one at a time
Ranked preference studies — deliberate item presentation order
Experimental studies with controlled stimulus order

📁 Raw Data Appearance

Exports as a single flat sheet. Columns are organised by slot position, not by item. The same brand can appear in different slot columns across interviews. Cross-respondent analysis by brand requires filtering by slotN_pick value.

Brand-Fixed Conditional Group Loop

Each brand or item has its own permanently fixed group with hardcoded questions and a unique field name prefix. The enumerator selects all applicable brands upfront via a select_multiple question, and only the selected brands' groups appear — always in the same fixed order. No reshaping is needed for brand-level analysis.

✅ When To Use

When each brand must always occupy its own dedicated columns
When cross-respondent brand comparison is a priority
When the brand list is fully known, stable, and small (under 20 items)
When all brands can be selected upfront before questions begin

⚠ When NOT To Use

When the brand list exceeds 20 items
When a guided one-at-a-time sequential flow is needed
When brands are dynamic or change between survey rounds
When respondents have vastly different numbers of applicable brands

📊 Best Suited Study Types

Brand equity and brand health tracking studies
Retail shelf audits — availability, pricing, and placement for a fixed set of SKUs
Competitive benchmarking studies
Media monitoring surveys — recall, sentiment and exposure for defined channels
Policy compliance audits and facility assessment surveys

📁 Raw Data Appearance

Exports as a single flat sheet with brand-dedicated columns. Each brand always appears under the same columns regardless of interview or selection order. Brands not selected are simply blank. No filtering or reshaping needed for brand-level analysis.

Automated Selection-Driven Repeat Loop ✅ Default

A true begin_repeat / end_repeat group driven by a prior select_multiple question. The repeat runs automatically — once per selected item — iterating through each selection in order using selected-at(). The number of iterations adapts to each respondent's selections. This is the recommended default for most survey designs.

✅ When To Use

When the number of iterations varies per respondent
When the item list is large or may change between rounds
When enumerator control over item order is not required
When analysis will be done in long format or reshaped programmatically
When form performance and maintainability are priorities

⚠ When NOT To Use

When brand-fixed columns are strictly required without reshaping
When enumerator control over which item appears next is required
When complex cross-iteration referencing or deduplication logic is needed

📊 Best Suited Study Types

Household surveys — details per household member, crop, asset, or income source
Health and nutrition studies — per child, illness episode, or food item
Agricultural surveys — per plot, crop type, or livestock category
Market surveys with large or variable brand lists
Panel and longitudinal studies with long-to-wide reshaping in Stata/R
Any study where item count is unknown at design time or varies widely

📁 Raw Data Appearance

Exports as two linked sheets — a main sheet (one row per submission) and a repeat sheet (one row per iteration per submission). All iterations share the same column names and are distinguished by the current_item value. Requires filtering by current_item or reshaping in Stata/R to analyse by specific item.

The Enubiaka XLSForm Repeat Group Standards | By Marvis Onyenwenu Enubiaka