Chapter 5

Methods of Data Collection

• Primary Data The primary data are those which are
collected afresh and for the first time, and thus happen to
be original in character.

• Secondary Data :are those which have already been

collected by someone else and which have already been
passed through the statistical process

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 Collection of Primary Data
• Primary data is collected through
Observation
Interview
Telephone interview
Questionnaire
Schedule

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 Data Collection through Observation
• Observation methods can be (structured or
unstructured observation)
1. Participant observation-The observer making himself a
member of the group observed
2. Non- participative
• Disguised observation-the researcher presence may be
unknown to the people he is observing
4. Controlled observation: takes place according to definite
pre-arranged plans, involving experimental procedure
5. Uncontrolled observation : if is done in its natural
setting

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 Data Collection through Interview
• Personal interviews: a person known as interviewer
asking questions generally in a face to face contact to
the other party
Interview can be:
 Structured interview
 Unstructured interview
 Semi-structured interview
 Clinical interview-broad underlying feeling/motivation
or life experience of individual
 no-directive interview-simply to encourage
respondents to talk about the given topic
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 Cont…
• Pre-requisites of interviewing:
• Interviewer must be carefully selected, trained and briefed.
• There should be honest ,sincere, hardworking
• Every effort should be made to create friendly atmosphere of
trust and confidence
• Must ask questions properly
• Should not show surprise or disappoint

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 Telephone Interviews
 In telephone interviews, respondents are contacted by
telephone in order to collect data for surveys
 Telephone interviewing has been used for decades and, in
some ways, has advantages over other methods of
undertaking surveys
 With improvements in the IT-field, computers can be used to
assist in telephone interviewing, and answers given by
respondents can be entered by interviewers directly into the
computer, saving effort, time and cost

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 What is a questionnaire
• A research tool for data collection
• It’s function is measurement
• The term ‘questionnaire’ used in different
ways:
– often refers to self-administered and postal
questionnaires (mail surveys)
– some authors also use the term to describe
interview schedules (telephone or face-to-
face)

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 Why use a questionnaire?
• Target large amount of people
• Use to describe, compare or explain
• Can cover activities and behaviour,
knowledge, attitudes, preferences
• Specific objectives, standardised and highly
structured questions
• Used to collect quantitative data – information
that can be counted or measured
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 Techniques for minimising non-response
• Good design
– Thoughtful layout, easy to follow, simple questions,
appearance, length, degree of interest and importance, thank
people for taking part
• Pre-notification
• Explanation of selection
• Sponsorship, e.g. letter of introduction / recommendation
• Cover letter
• Incentives
– Small future incentives, e.g. prize draw
– Understanding why their input is important
• Reminders
• June
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 Con..
• Abbreviations
• Alternative meanings (tea, cool, dinner)
• Ambiguity and vague wording (fairly, generally, you – the
respondent, household, family?)
• Doubled barrelled – ‘do you speak English or French?’
• Double negatives
• Inappropriate categories
• Leading questions
• Memory issues
• Social desirability
• June
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Question wording – other things to think about

• Missing categories – include ‘other’, ‘don’t

know’ and ‘not applicable’
• Sensitive questions
• Simple language – not technical or slang
• Question ordering
• Open or closed questions?
– Closed question – choice of alternative replies
– Open question – written text (or spoken answers)

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 Strength Limitation
OPEN Freedom & Time-consuming
spontaneity of answer
Opportunity to probe Coding more
problematic
Useful for testing More effort from
hypothesis about ideas respondents
or awareness
CLOSED Requires little time Loss of spontaneous
responses
No extended writing Bias in answer
categories
Low costs Sometimes too crude
Easy to process May irritate respondents

Make group
comparisons easy
Useful for testing
specific hypothesis

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 Data Collection through Schedule
• It is very much like the collection of data through questionnaire
• The difference is that-schedule( Performa containing a set of
questions) are being filled in by the enumerators who are
specially appointed for the purpose
• This method requires section of enumerators for filling up
schedules or assisting respondents to fill up schedules
• Such enumerators have to be carefully selects and trained
• Enumerators should be intelligent and must possess the
capability of cross-examination in order to find out the truth
• He should be honest, sincere, hardworking and patience

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 Types of questions
• Unstructured questions
• Structured questionnaire:
-Open ended questions
-Closed-ended questions
• Dichotomous or two –choice questions
• Multiple- choice questions
• Declarative questions-as choice but list of
statements
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 Essentials of good questionnaire

• It should be comparatively short and simple

• The size of the questionnaire should be kept to the minimum
• Questions should proceed in logical sequence flow from easy-
to –difficult
• Personal and intimate questions should be left out
• Technical terms and vague expressions should be avoided
• Danger words, catch words or words with emotional
connotations should be avoided
• Caution must also be excised in the use of phrases.

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 Secondary Data
• Primary Vs Secondary
• What is secondary data?
• Types? (Saunders 2000:190)
• Documentary
– Written documents
• Survey based secondary
– Census
– Continuous survey
– Adhoc surveys

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 Collection of Secondary Data
• Sources of secondary data can be:
• various publications (governmental and international)
• Journals, books, magazines, News papers
reports, Public records, Statistics
Characteristics of Secondary data
• Secondary data should possess the following
characteristics:
• Reliability of the data-who collect, what were the source,
what was the method, when it was collected, was there any
bias, level of accuracy?
• Suitability of data
• June
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 Issues in documentary research
• Authenticity
– You can’t always believe what you read
• Check – does it make sense / different versions / consistency / transcribed
by many/ circulated via those with interest/ reliable source
• Credibility
– Is it free from error / distortion
• Representativeness
• Constitute a representative sample of the universe of
documents as they originally existed
– Partial account of one person

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