Closed questioning techniques are types of questions aimed at gaining a specific answer from someone. They are also known as convergent or “yes/no” questions because the response typically is either a yes/no answer, known facts, or a single word.
This type of questioning is often used in customer service, research, teaching, and counseling. With closed questions, the person asking the question is in control of the conversation, as they are leading the conversation, while guiding the respondent to answer with a specific response.
Closed questions can be helpful in many aspects, such as getting to the core of a problem or issue quickly, or in validating or clarifying information. They are useful for gathering facts, or for encouraging the respondent to respond with facts rather than personal opinions.
Closed questions also help limit the amount of information provided, as the question cannot be answered with a long and drawn out explanation.
Closed questions can be more challenging to answer, as the respondent is restricted to particular answers that the questioner is seeking. This is often why they are used in work and research settings, as they can help quickly provide answers to questions that have been carefully constructed.
However, they can also be limiting and unhelpful, as they do not allow the respondent to provide more expansive or creative answers.