Introduce a slider with a neutral starting position and consistent response recording

This request is based on feedback and requirements provided by one of our customers. I am submitting the idea to the portal on their behalf.

The current slider behavior creates usability and data-integrity risks.

When a slider is displayed at a predefined position, respondents naturally assume that the visible value is already selected. However, the response is only recorded after the respondent actively moves the slider. This means that respondents who agree with the initially displayed value must first move the slider away from that position and then move it back for their answer to be registered.

Making the question mandatory does not fully solve the problem, as respondents may not understand why they need to move a slider that already appears to show their intended answer.

In addition, displaying a predefined value—particularly a non-neutral one—can influence respondents and introduce bias into the survey results.

Requested functionality:

• Provide a neutral or clearly unanswered starting position that is not associated with any value on the scale.

• Clearly distinguish between an unanswered slider and a selected response.

• Once a value is visually selected, ensure that the same value is recorded in the survey results.

• If a predefined starting value is displayed, it should be recorded even when the respondent does not move the slider.

• Ideally, allow survey creators to configure whether the slider starts without a selection or with a predefined value.

This would improve usability, reduce respondent confusion, prevent missing or incorrectly interpreted responses, and help avoid bias caused by a predefined slider position.

The customer plans to launch their survey at the end of November 2026 and therefore needs a suitable solution before then.