How do I merge respondent groups or reporting segments when one group is too small to report separately?

Sometimes a reporting segment is too small to stand on its own. This may happen with small departments, small manager groups or small 360 reviewer groups such as customers or peers.

In such cases, the reporting setup may need to be adjusted.

Recommended decision logic:

1. Check whether the group is below the reporting threshold
   • If Hidden Identity or Advanced Hidden Identity is used, start by checking whether the group is actually too small to report.
2. Decide whether merging is methodologically acceptable
   • Do not merge groups automatically. First decide whether the merged group still makes sense analytically.
3. Create a merged reporting view
   • Depending on the setup, this may be done through filters, grouped comparisons or a broader segment definition prepared in respondent data.
4. Review how the merged result will be interpreted
   • Make sure the merged category is clearly explained to report viewers.
5. Re-test governance and thresholds
   • Check that the merged view does not create new identification risks and still behaves correctly in reports and LiveReports.

Related articles:

• How to use Hidden Identity
• How to use Filters
• How to create a new Value Filter
• How to use Cross-Tabulation