SURVEY CREATOR - FILE UPLOAD QUESTIONS

Summary & Best Practices

In Survey Creator, the File Upload question is a powerful, interactive component found in your Toolbox. It allows respondents to attach external files directly to their survey response. Survey respondents can drag and drop documents, images, audio files, or videos into the designated drop zone, or browse their local device or smartphone camera roll to upload them.

When to Use File Uploads

• Use file uploads sparingly for transactional study activities that require participants to submit a specific file, image, audio recording, or video. Appropriate examples include submitting eligibility documentation, documenting study procedures or product use, uploading a photo for verification, or providing participant-generated media required by the protocol.

When Not to Use File Uploads

• Do not use file uploads as a general-purpose document repository or for storing large or extensive collections of study materials. Files should be limited to 5 MB or less. Avoid using uploads when the information could be collected more efficiently through structured survey questions or when the study team does not have a clear process for reviewing, storing, and managing the submitted files.

• Use particular caution when collecting medical records, clinical documentation, or other protected health information (PHI). Depending on the file type, study staff may need to download the file to a local machine to review it, which may create additional privacy, security, and records-management considerations. Before enabling uploads, confirm that the study protocol, consent materials, institutional policies, and applicable privacy requirements support this collection method.

• As a general recommendation, limit file uploads to narrowly defined, transactional purposes with clear instructions, permitted file types, size limits, retention procedures, and access controls. For long-term document storage, extensive records management, or sensitive clinical files requiring ongoing review, use an approved document-management or secure research system instead.

Property Grid

The General settings define the File Upload question’s identity and behavior. You can configure the question name, title, description, comment-area label, and placeholder text. The File source type determines where files come from, such as a local file or camera. Standard controls include making the question visible, read-only, or required; adding a comment box; allowing multiple files; previewing uploaded images; waiting for uploads to complete; confirming file deletion; and storing file content as text in the JSON result.

Additional settings control upload limits and presentation. You can specify accepted file types, set a maximum file size in bytes, and define the display area’s height and width. Separate placeholder messages can guide users when uploading from a local file, using a camera, or choosing between the two sources. Together, these options support basic file validation, user guidance, upload handling, and the visual presentation of uploaded content.

The Conditions properties control the question’s behavior based on survey responses or other conditions. You can determine when the question becomes visible, read-only, or required; set or reset its value; and define default values using expressions. These settings also allow you to hide the question when no choices are available and control when individual choices are visible or selectable.

Data properties manage how the question stores and uses response data. You can specify a Join identifier to connect related data, set or change the correct answer for evaluation purposes, and clear the answer when needed. The section also lets you choose whether display values should appear in dynamic text and determine whether answers to questions hidden by conditional logic should be cleared.

The Validation property allows you to customize the error message displayed when a required question is left unanswered.