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secondary data analysis

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1 Secondary Data Analysis as one of the most effective Qualitative Technique. Reason Chivaka

Introduction
Secondary data analysis which is the term used for the reanalysis of previously collected and analysed data is one of
the widely used data collection technique in social science research (Punch:2005). Its use can be traced back to the
time of great Social scientists such as Durkheim, Karl Max and Max Weber. Whilst an important data collection
technique with a long tradition of use in social science research, secondary data collection is not without its critics.
One of the major criticism is that it is only suitable for use by well experienced researcher. However, despite its
inherent weaknesses, secondary data analysis remains a valuable data collection technique not only in social sciences
but in any type of research. Curwin and Slater (2007), argued that, it is very difficult to imagine any type of research
that does not benefit from secondary data analysis.

The paper starts with the definition of secondary data analysis from various sources and then discusses the various
sources of secondary data. This is followed by a discussion on why researchers use secondary data analysis. The
paper concludes that, whilst acknowledging that secondary data analysis like any other methods has its own inherent
weaknesses, its merits overwhelm its weaknesses. Weisberg et al (1996) argued that, even its critics acknowledge
that, secondary data analysis is popular among researchers

Definition of Secondary Data Analysis

Secondary data involves using data gathered by other researchers usually for a different purpose (Nachmias and
Nachmias:1992). Punch (2005), defined it as the reanalysis of previously collected and analysed data whilst Bryman
(2004), referred to secondary data analysis as the analysis of data by researchers who were not involved when the
data was collected. A similar definition is from Reason and Bradbury (2001), who defined it as the analysis of data
by anyone other than those who were responsible for its original commissioning. However, others such as Frankfort
et al (1992), William (2003), and Kiecolt and Nathan (1985) added another dimension to the definition, they
argued that, secondary data analysis refers to research findings based on data collected by others. Whilst these
definitions seem to be in dis-agreement they all agree on the source of data used, that is data collected by others.
Sources of Secondary Data Analysis

There are many sources of data used for secondary data analysis. The source to use depend on the research focus,
(David and Sutton:2004). A research focusing on understanding the causes behind poverty in a particular country,
say Malawi or Zimbabwe will use statistical data provided by either the respective Governments, Non-Governmental
Organisations or organs of the United Nations such as Food and Agricultural Organisation. Another source of
secondary data is from national survey research organisations. The data gathered by these organisations is usually
useful in providing answers to public opinions, say towards a political party, Presidential candidate, or an impending
major legislation or on voting patterns in a particular region (Sarantakos:2005). A good example is North America
where these attitudes surveys are used to provide clues before a major election. Census data is a valuable source of
secondary data analysis. According to Nachmias and Nachmias (1992), most social scientists use census data to
research on structures of households, immigration and migration patterns and other various social phenomena notably
income distribution and redistribution. Scholarly journals are a very good source of secondary data analysis. They
contain data on original research done by experts in a specific field. Seale (2004) argued that, data from journals is
valuable as it is accurate and reliable. The fact that, articles which are published in journals are peer reviewed gives

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2 Secondary Data Analysis as one of the most effective Qualitative Technique. Reason Chivaka

credibility to the data (Reeve and Walberg:1997). Other sources of secondary data analysis are reference books,
trade journals, and technical reports.

Critics of Secondary Data Analysis

Secondary sources of data are not without problems. Critics of secondary data analysis such as Thorne (1994)
argued that, secondary data analysis, as a data collection technique is only useful if it is done by experienced
researchers. Stewart (1984), said that, the size of the data can be overwhelming even to an experienced
researcher. Bickman and Rog (1998), argued that, there is a problem with data accuracy as the researcher is using
data whose collection process he had no control of.

Wolberg (1997) added that, the problem is that, the sources of the data may not be relevant to the research problem.
The question is, faced with such critics, why do social science researchers use secondary data analysis as a data
collection technique.

Why Secondary Data Analysis as a Data Collecting Technique?

There are various reasons why researchers opt for secondary data analysis as a data collection technique. The major
reasons behind the use of secondary data analysis are,

▪ Conceptual and Substantive Reasons -for some research problems, secondary data may be the only
available data. For example, social and political historians usually rely on secondary than primary data,
(Nachmias and Nachmias:1992)
▪ Methodological Reasons -secondary data analysis provides opportunities for replication. This important in
research as research findings gain credibility if they appear in various studies, (David and Sutton:2004).
▪ Economic Reasons -primary research data collection is very expensive, and funding is not easy to get.
Given the high cost and effort involved in gathering primary data, researchers will opt for a cheaper and less
time- consuming method, (Schensul et al:1999).

In addition to the three major reasons above, it is important to note that, secondary data analysis has been part of
social science research for a long time. According to Nachmias and Nachmias (1992), secondary data analysis has
a rich intellectual tradition in the field of social sciences. For example, Emil Durkheim (1858-1917) studied suicide
rates in protestant and catholic countries using secondary data, whilst Karl Max (1858-1947) in his class struggle
theses which argued for economic determination used secondary data. Similarly, Max Weber (1864-1920) was able
to challenge Karl Max's analysis by studying the official protestant churches ideologies and other various historical
ideologies. Through the use of secondary data, Max Weber was able to conclude that, socio-political behaviour was
linked to religion and not economic determination as concluded by Karl Max.

Despite the inherent weaknesses, the use of secondary data analysis by these prominent social scientists, gives
credibility to this data collecting data method. Hammersly (1997) and Thompson (1998), also observed that there
was an increase in secondary data analysis among social science researchers. Balnaves and Caputi (2001) noted
that, the increasing primary research costs have compelled researchers to opt for secondary data analysis. Similar
argument is from Schensul et al (1999), who said that, given the high cost and effort for primary data collection, any
method that reduces the process and save resources is more appealing to researchers. These, arguments show that,

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3 Secondary Data Analysis as one of the most effective Qualitative Technique. Reason Chivaka

though it has weaknesses, secondary data analysis is an important data collection technique. As highlighted in the
preceding paragraph, the reasons behind the use of secondary data analysis vary from economic to methodological
among others.

The cost of gathering primary data is now beyond the reach of many researchers. The situation is made worse by
the fact that, for most researchers, funding is not easy to get especially for large scale data collection (Punch:2005).
Consequently, most researchers opt for the cheaper method of gathering data. Seale (2004), argued that, during
the times of economic hardships, secondary data analysis is the most attractive since it is less expensive and less
time consuming. Similar supporting argument is from Schnsul (1999), who said that, as primary data collection
requires effort, time money and resources, any method that reduces the process and save resources will appeal to
most researchers. However, critics argue that, whilst it is a cheaper way of gathering data, secondary data analysis
sources may not be easy to access, and the volume of the data may overwhelm the researcher. Frankfort and
Nachmias (1992), argued that, the original investigators may not want to make their data accessible. Therefore,
arguing on the basis of less time and effort is weak, as the time taken by the researcher locating the sources can
require tremendous time and effort, (Kiecolt and Nathan:1985). One can argue that, this was true during the 1980s
when the internet was not yet an important research tool, now the problem of accessibility is no longer a challenging
one. David and Sutton (2004) argued that, creativity in locating the relevant data and measuring the variables are
the key skills a researcher opting to use secondary data analysis should have, otherwise the benefits of secondary
data analysis are quite immense. According to Stewart (1984), Procter (1996) and Seale (2004), the best way to
deal with the weaknesses relating to accessibility of data and time management is by careful planning and
consideration of the type of data relevant in light of the proposed research. Researchers should concentrate on
sources with the relevant data they want to use, hence they should appraise the sources before the actual data
collection. In addition (Stewart:1984), suggested that, a researcher embarking on secondary data analysis should
first of address questions pertaining to the sources of the secondary data such as, what was the purpose of the study
and the conceptual framework that informed the study

.
Secondary data analysis is employed in many types of research designs such as comparative studies, times series
and to provide background information prior to embarking on primary data collection (Bickman and Rog:1998).
Secondary data analysis enables the researcher to argue that a certain problem exists and that various techniques
are available to solve it (Sooben:2002). It also helps to provide the description and the nature of the problem. For
example, to find out the reasons behind the shortage of nurses in the National Health Service, one should use
secondary data analysis, to investigate whether,

▪ sufficient nurses are undergoing training.

▪ trained nurses are staying or leaving the profession.
▪ trends exist in term of recruitment and retention of nurses.

After creating the sample and justifying the study the researcher will be able to embark on primary research phase.
Therefore, secondary data analysis has methodological advantages as such data cannot be collected using primary
research. The analysis of data from these sources result in findings of higher quality, compared to one who embarked
on primary research only without making use of secondary data analysis . Whilst, critics argue that, secondary data

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4 Secondary Data Analysis as one of the most effective Qualitative Technique. Reason Chivaka

contains many variables and the data is collected from massive samples, (William:2003), given the nature of the
problem in the example above, it is only through analysis of secondary data that can lead to better quality findings.
Whilst acknowledging the existence of biases inherent in the secondary data, it is important to be aware of and work
around the anticipated biases (Gorard:2002).

Secondary data analysis provides the opportunity of longitudinal analysis which is rare is social science due to time
and costs involved, (Bryman:2004). According to Menard (1991), longitudinal research involves the collection and
analysis of data over time. Through secondary data analysis, researchers can conduct longitudinal analysis which is
very important in social science research as researchers are able to measure social change. Procter (1996), argued
that, researchers can describe patterns of change and locate the causes behind change using of secondary data
analysis. Despite that, others argue that, longitudinal studies are costly and time consuming, their use helps to ensure
a holistic approach to empirical research, (Oyen:1990). For, some types of research, secondary data analysis is the
only technique that can be used to gather data (Nachmias and Nachmias:1992). For example, Historians rely
more on secondary data than primary data, as to enable to understand what happen during the second world war,
they have to search for data in archives, books, and journals. Conclusively, the argument is that, secondary data
analysis is part and parcel of social science research.

Conclusion

Despite its weaknesses, researchers benefit much from the use of secondary data analysis. It is important that, the
researcher should be aware of these weaknesses and work around them. Issues pertaining to relevance, data
availability accuracy and sufficiency when considered in depth before the gathering data, helps to minimise the threats
posed by the weaknesses. In conclusion, secondary data analysis is an important data collection technique.

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