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CHAPTER SEVEN
SOURCES AND METHODS
OF DATA COLLECTION
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Types of Data
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Primary data:
Are those data, which are collected by the
investigator himself for the purpose of a
specific inquiry or study.
Such data are original in character and are
mostly generated by surveys conducted
by individuals orCompiled
research institutions.
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Secondary data:
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Data which have already been collected by
others
Such data are primary data for the agency that
collected them, and become secondary for
someone else who uses these data for his own
purposes.
Secondary data can be obtained from journals, reports,
government publications, publications of
professionals and research organizations.
Secondary data are less expensive to collect both in
money and time.
The choice of methods of data collection is
largely based on theCompiled
accuracy ofB. the information
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they yield.
DATA COLLECTION TOOLS
The most important issue related to data collection is
selecting the most appropriate information or
evidence to answer your questions.
To plan data collection, you must think
about the questions to be answered and
the information sources available.
Also, you must begin to think ahead about
how the information could be
organized, analyzed, interpreted and
then reported to various audiences.
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DATA COLLECTION TOOLS
o The quality of research depends to large extent on the quality of
the collection tools. Types of research instruments
Interviews
Questionnaires
Observations and others
Interviewing and administering questionnaires are probably the
most commonly used research techniques.
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The validity depends on the quality of these instruments.
Good questionnaires are difficult to construct;
Bad questionnaires are difficult to analyze.
Questionnaire is a research tool which contains only
questions and statements to be answered
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the following questions should be considered before designing
them:
What exactly do we want to know, according to the objectives and
variables
Is questioning the right technique to obtain all answers, or do we
need additional techniques, such as observations or analyses of records?
Are our informants mainly literate or illiterate?
How large is the sample that will be interviewed?
Questionnaire
State the purpose of the questionnaire
who is sponsoring the research
the agency responsible for the questionnaire.
Give clear instructions on how to answer the
questions
It should be clearly written
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Grouping Questions
Group questions with similar topics
Use a transition statement when moving to a
new topic within the questionnaire.
Demographic Questions:
Place all demographic questions at the end of
the questionnaire. Demographic questions
include asking a person’s age, gender, amount of
formal education, ethnic group, etc.
Ask only the demographic information you need
to know for analyzing data
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Other Comments:
Remember to thank the respondent for
completing the questionnaire.
repeat the deadline for returning the completed
instrument, and
the name and address of the person it should be
mailed to.
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The Questionnaire Design Process
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Data
Implementati Collection
on Method
Question
response
Format
Final copy Study Question
objectiv Wording
e
Pre-test &
Revise Flow &
layout
Obtain Evaluate
approval Layout
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Determine the Question Format
Close-ended questions: are questions in which
respondents will be given the opportunity to
choose answers from the list of possible responses
developed by the researcher.
Open-ended questions: are questions in which
respondents in which will be given the opportunity
to respond as they wish
To make choice consider factors including:
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Knowledge of the investigator about the
subject matter
Depth of information required
Sample size
Length of questionnaire
Skills on methods of existing data analysis
technique
Time available
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Determine the Question Wording
Keeping it simple
Questions must be straightforward
Find synonyms for multi-syllable words
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Avoid Two-in-one Questions
Two-in-one questions: asking about more than one
topic.
Do you think that women and men headed households
should be given equal agricultural inputs?
‘Have you experienced productivity loss, shortage of
input supply or shortage of human power?
Better to ask different separate questions
Avoid Leading Questions
Puts words onto the respondents’ mouth
e.g., don’t you think -------------
wouldn’t you agree that……….
Can also be caused by supplementing
information.
e.g., as you probably know, improved seed
varieties ……Do you think that it should be
made available to farmers?
Avoid Ambiguous Wording
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Establish Questionnaire Flow andbyLayout
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Some general rules are:
Go from general to particular.
Go from easy to difficult.
Go from factual to abstract.
Start with closed format relevant to the
main subject.
Do not jump from one subject to other
Evaluate the Questionnaire and Layout
Look for problems with introductions, instructions, or
explanations from the respondent’s point of view
Determine if there are problem with assumptions made or
the
underlying logic
Assess questions for sensitive nature or wording, and for bias
Assess the adequacy of the range of responses to be recorded
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Pre-test
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Purpose of pre-test
Check the clarity of instruments
Are questions easily understood by the study participants?
Correction of the survey instruments before the actual survey
To estimate the time and budget needed for the actual data
collection
Pre-test……..
Test the entire data collection instruments with a small
number of people
In this phase of pre-testing, one can identify:
Questions that don’t work;
Whether the needed information is indeed
available from the intended data sources;
Any ambiguous questions;
Closed questions that cause trouble
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Questionnaire development summary
In questionnaire development remember to:-
Use simple language;
Avoid two elements to be collected through one question;
Pre code the responses to facilitated data processing;
Avoid embracing & painful question;
Do not overload your interview, start with simpler
question;
Ask the same questionCompiled
to all respondents
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