Tools of Data Collection

exercised in collecting data as because they form the foundation of statistical method. If data are faulty, the conclusion drawn can never be reliable.

1. Types of Data: Generally data are of two types-

a) Primary Data: The data which are originally collected by an agency for the first time for any statistical investigation are said to be primary data.

b) Secondary Data: The data which have already been collected by some agency and taken over from there and used by any other agency for their statistical work are termed as secondary data. So in simple if a primary data collected for a statistical investigation are used in other statistical investigation then those data are called as secondary data.

Questionnaire Method

Under this method, a list of questions pertaining to the survey (known as questionnaire) is prepared and sent to the various informants by post. The questionnaire contains questions and provides space for answer. A request is made to the informants through a covering letter to fill up the questionnaire and sent it back within a specified time. The respondents have to answer the questions on their own. The questionnaire can be delivered directly hand by hand, through surface post or as an electronic questionnaire.

Case Studies

A case study is a thorough description of a process, structure, or experience at one organization. Case studies use surveys, statistics about usage, and qualitative data collection techniques. While performing a research quantitative data is gathered first and then the qualitative strategies are used.

Surveys

Surveys are performed through questionnaires. A standard set of questions are used for performing the survey of any specific topic.

Checklists

The checklist is a list structure of points which needs to be observed or evaluated. Using this technique, you can mark the presence or absence of criteria or can note down short comments about a topic.

Observation

Observation is a data collection technique that is performed by monitoring or viewing the subject.

Sometimes observations are performed continuously or in a set of time periods. There can be different types of observations like structured, unstructured, and semi-structured.

Interviews

An interview is another data collection technique.

For collecting the data through this technique, interviews are performed in groups or on a one-on-one basis. During interviews, the data can be collected using stenography, video recordings, audio recordings, or written notes.

  

Information from Correspondents 

Under this method, the investigator appoints local agent or correspondents in different places to collect information. These correspondents collect and transmit information to the central office where the data are processed. The special advantage of this method is that it is cheap and appropriate for extensive investigation. However, it may not always ensure accurate results because of the personal prejudice and bias of the correspondents. Newspaper agencies generally adopt this method.

Happy Learning!

Anamika Gupta

IAAN