Before publishing your survey, Deepfield automatically validates your survey configuration to catch potential issues. Understanding these validation rules helps you create surveys that work correctly for participants.

How Validation Works

When you attempt to publish or test your survey, the system checks for:

Errors - Must be fixed before publishing (red indicators)
Warnings - Recommended fixes but won't block publishing (yellow indicators)

Validation runs automatically and shows issues in the survey editor with indicators next to problematic questions or sections.

Validation Categories

Structure Validation

These checks ensure your survey has the required elements.

Issue	Severity	Description
Empty section title	Warning	Section has no title
Empty section	Warning	Section contains no questions
Empty question text	Warning	Question has no text
Empty option text	Warning	Multiple choice option has no text
Empty matrix row text	Warning	Matrix row has no text

Question Configuration

These checks ensure questions are properly configured for their type.

Issue	Severity	Description
Multiple choice without options	Error	MCQ, ranking, allocation, or multi-numeric has no options defined
Matrix without rows	Error	Matrix question has no row items
Matrix without columns	Error	Matrix question has no scale options
Insufficient options	Error	Allocation or multi-numeric needs at least 2 options
Currency on wrong type	Warning	Currency setting only applies to numeric questions
Max selections without multi-select	Warning	Max selections requires "allow multiple" enabled

Conditional Logic Validation

These checks ensure conditional display rules work correctly.

Issue	Severity	Description
Invalid question reference	Error	Conditional rule references a question that doesn't exist
Invalid matrix row reference	Error	Rule references a matrix row that doesn't exist
Invalid operator	Error	Operator not valid for the referenced question type
Empty expected value	Error	Rule has no value to compare against
Self-referential condition	Error	Question's display rule references itself
Forward reference	Error	Rule references a question that comes later in the survey

Screening Rule Validation

These checks ensure screening (termination) rules work correctly.

Issue	Severity	Description
Invalid question reference	Error	Screening rule references non-existent question
Invalid matrix row reference	Error	Rule references non-existent matrix row
Invalid operator	Error	Operator not valid for the question type
Empty expected value	Error	Rule has no value to compare against
Forward reference	Error	Rule references a question that comes later

Variable Reference Validation

These checks ensure text variables (dynamic content) work correctly.

Issue	Severity	Description
Invalid variable reference	Error	Question text uses `#{{question_id}}` that doesn't exist
Forward variable reference	Error	Variable references a question that comes later

Option Piping Validation

These checks ensure questions that reuse options from other questions work correctly.

Issue	Severity	Description
Column filter without source	Error	Filter defined but no source question selected
Empty column filter	Error	Column filter selected but no columns chosen
Matrix source needs filter	Error	When piping from a matrix, you must select which columns to use

Common Issues and Fixes

"Multiple choice question has no options"

Problem: You've created a multiple choice, ranking, allocation, or multi-numeric question but haven't added answer options.

Fix: Add options to your question:

Select the question
In the options section, click "Add option"
Enter text for each option
Ensure you have at least 2 options for allocation/multi-numeric

Alternative: If you want to reuse options from another question, select a source question in the "Use options from" setting.

"Conditional rule references a question that appears later"

Problem: You've set up conditional logic that depends on a question the participant hasn't answered yet.

Fix: Reorder your questions so the referenced question comes before the conditional question:

Find the question being referenced in the condition
Drag it to appear before the question with the conditional rule
Or, change the condition to reference a different question

"Question text references non-existent variable"

Problem: Your question text contains #{{some_id}} but that question ID doesn't exist.

Fix:

Open the question text editor
Use the variable inserter to select a valid question
Or, manually check that the variable ID matches an existing question

"Matrix question has no column options"

Problem: You've created a matrix question but haven't defined the rating scale.

Fix: Add scale options to your matrix:

Select the matrix question
In the "Scale" or "Options" section, add your rating scale
Common scales: 1-5, Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree, etc.

"Screening rule has empty expected value"

Problem: You've created a screening rule but haven't specified what answer should terminate the participant.

Fix:

Select the question with the screening rule
In the screening rule settings, specify the answer value(s) that should disqualify
For multiple choice, select which option(s) trigger termination

Best Practices

Before Publishing

Review all errors - These must be fixed
Consider warnings - Fix if they affect participant experience
Test your survey - Use test mode to walk through as a participant
Check all paths - If using conditional logic, test each branch

Conditional Logic Tips

Order matters - Ensure conditions only reference earlier questions
Test all branches - Every conditional path should lead to a valid experience
Don't over-complicate - Complex conditional chains are hard to debug

Screening Rule Tips

Screen early - Place screening questions at the start
Be clear about criteria - Know exactly who qualifies
Consider the participant - Don't waste time screening on questions 20-30

Variable Tips

Keep it simple - Only use variables when truly needed
Test with data - Variables display actual answers, so test what participants see
Check for empty values - What if the referenced question was skipped?

Understanding Operators

Different question types support different comparison operators in rules:

Question Type	Available Operators
Multiple choice (single)	Equals, Not equals, Is one of, Is not one of
Multiple choice (multi)	Is one of, Is not one of
Numeric	Equals, Not equals, Greater than, Less than
Matrix	Equals, Not equals, Is one of, Is not one of
Ranking	Equals, Not equals, Is one of, Is not one of
Allocation	Equals, Not equals, Greater than, Less than
Open text	AI automated checking

Special Operators

Is empty / Is not empty - Check if a question was answered (no expected value needed)
AI automated checking - For open text, AI evaluates the response against criteria

Validation in Test Mode

When you enter test mode:

Validation runs automatically
Errors must be fixed before testing
You can preview the survey as a participant would experience it
Test all conditional branches and screening paths

Test mode helps you catch issues before real participants encounter them.

Survey Validation