This type of validity addresses whether or not a survey covers all relevant parts of the topic it aims to study. Content validity is threatened when aspects of the topic are missing, or when irrelevant aspects are included.Â
For Example…
Pretend you are a researcher trying to gauge whether the federal response to the pandemic has impacted Americans’ views on the 2020 election. Content validity would be threatened if your survey does not include questions related to COVID-19, but includes questions exploring the increase in pet adoption due to the pandemic. Not only does the survey miss a key piece of the research question, but the survey is inquiring into irrelevant information.
