Selecting and Constructing

Data Collection Instruments

Introduction

•Data Collection Strategies

•Characteristics of Good Measures
•Quantitative and Qualitative Data
•Tools for Collecting Data

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Data Collection Strategies

• No one best way: decision depends on:

• What you need to know: numbers or stories
• Where the data reside: environment, files, people
• Resources and time available
• Complexity of the data to be collected
• Frequency of data collection
• Intended forms of data analysis

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Rules for Collecting Data

•Use multiple data collection methods

•Use available data, but need to know
• how the measures were defined
• how the data were collected and cleaned
• the extent of missing data
• how accuracy of the data was ensured

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Rules for Collecting Data

•If must collect original data:

• be sensitive to burden on others
• pre-test, pre-test, pre-test
• establish procedures and follow them (protocol)
• maintain accurate records of definitions and
coding
• verify accuracy of coding, data input

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Structured Approach

•All data collected in the same way

•Especially important for multi-site and cluster
evaluations so you can compare
•Important when you need to make
comparisons with alternate interventions

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Use Structured Approach When:

•need to address extent questions

•have a large sample or population
•know what needs to be measured
•need to show results numerically
•need to make comparisons across different
sites or interventions

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Semi-structured Approach

• Systematic and follow general procedures but

data are not collected in exactly the same way
every time
• More open and fluid
• Does not follow a rigid script
• may ask for more detail
• people can tell what they want in their own way

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Use Semi-structured Approach
when:
•conducting exploratory work
•seeking understanding, themes, and/or
issues
•need narratives or stories
•want in-depth, rich, “backstage” information
•seek to understand results of data that are
unexpected

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Characteristics of Good Measures

•Is the measure relevant?

•Is the measure credible?
•Is the measure valid?
•Is the measure reliable?

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Relevance

Does the Do not measure

measure capture what is easy
what matters? instead of what
is needed

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Credibility

Is the measure believable? Will it be

viewed as a reasonable and
appropriate way to capture the
information sought?

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Internal Validity

How well does the Are waiting lists a

measure capture valid measure of
what it is supposed demand?
to?

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Reliability

A measure’s How reliable are:

precision and • birth weights of
stability- extent to newborn infants?
which the same • speeds measured by
result would be a stopwatch?
obtained with
repeated trials

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Quantitative Approach

•Data in numerical form

•Data that can be precisely measured
• age, cost, length, height, area, volume, weight,
speed, time, and temperature
•Harder to develop
•Easier to analyze

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Qualitative Approach

• Data that deal with description

• Data that can be observed or self-reported, but not
always precisely measured
• Less structured, easier to develop
• Can provide “rich data” — detailed and widely
applicable
• Is challenging to analyze
• Is labor intensive to collect
• Usually generates longer reports
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 Which Data?

If you: Then Use:

- want to conduct statistical analysis
- want to be precise Quantitative
- know what you want to measure
- want to cover a large group
- want narrative or in-depth information
- are not sure what you are able to measure Qualitative
- do not need to quantify the results

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Obtrusive vs. Unobtrusive Methods

Obtrusive Unobtrusive
data collection methods data collection
that directly obtain methods that do not
information from those collect information
being evaluated directly from evaluees
e.g., document analysis,
e.g. interviews, surveys, GoogleEarth, observation at a
focus groups distance, trash of the stars

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How to Decide on Data Collection Approach

•Choice depends on the situation

•Each technique is more appropriate
in some situations than others
•Caution: All techniques are subject
to bias

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Triangulation to Increase Accuracy of Data

•Triangulation of methods
• collection of same information using different
methods
•Triangulation of sources
• collection of same information from a variety of
sources
•Triangulation of evaluators
• collection of same information from more than one
evaluator
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Data Collection Tools

• Participatory Methods
• Records and Secondary Data
• Observation
• Surveys and Interviews
• Focus Groups
• Diaries, Journals, Self-reported Checklists
• Expert Judgment
• Delphi Technique
• Other Tools

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Tool 1: Participatory Methods

•Involve groups or communities heavily in

data collection
•Examples:
• community meetings
• mapping
• transect walks

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Community Meetings

•One of the most common participatory

methods
•Must be well organized
• agree on purpose
• establish ground rules
• who will speak
• time allotted for speakers
• format for questions and answers

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Mapping

•Drawing or using existing maps

•Useful tool to involve stakeholders
• increases understanding of the community
• generates discussions, verifies secondary sources
of information, perceived changes
•Types of mapping:
• natural resources, social, health, individual or civic
assets, wealth, land use, demographics

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Transect Walks

• Evaluator walks around community observing

people, surroundings, and resources
• Need good observation skills
• Walk a transect line through a map of a
community — line should go through all zones
of the community

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Tool 2: Records and Secondary Data

• Examples of sources:
• files/records
• computer data bases
• industry or government reports
• other reports or prior evaluations
• census data and household survey data
• electronic mailing lists and discussion groups
• documents (budgets, organizational charts, policies and
procedures, maps, monitoring reports)
• newspapers and television reports

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Using Existing Data Sets

Key issues: validity, reliability, accuracy,

response rates, data dictionaries, and
missing data rates

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Advantage/Challenge: Available Data

Advantages Often less expensive and faster

than collecting the original data
again

Challenges There may be coding errors or

other problems. Data may not be
exactly what is needed. You may
have difficulty getting access. You
have to verify validity and
reliability of data
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Tool 3: Observation

•See what is happening

•traffic patterns
•land use patterns
•layout of city and rural areas
•quality of housing
•condition of roads
•conditions of buildings
•who goes to a health clinic
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Observation is Helpful when:

•need direct information

•trying to understand ongoing behavior
•there is physical evidence, products, or
outputs than can be observed
•need to provide alternative when other data
collection is infeasible or inappropriate

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Degree of Structure of Observations

•Structured: determine, before the

observation, precisely what will be
observed before the observation
•Unstructured: select the method depending
upon the situation with no pre-conceived
ideas or a plan on what to observe
•Semi-structured: a general idea of what to
observe but no specific plan

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Google Earth

•Maps and satellite images for complex or

pinpointed regional searches
•Has an Advanced version and an Earth
Outreach version
•Web site for Google Earth
• http://earth.google.com/

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Ways to Record Information from
Observations

•Observation guide
• printed form with space to record
•Recording sheet or checklist
• Yes/no options; tallies, rating scales
•Field notes
• least structured, recorded in narrative,
descriptive style

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Guidelines for Planning Observations

•Have more than one observer, if feasible

•Train observers so they observe the same
things
•Pilot test the observation data collection
instrument
•For less structured approach, have a few key
questions in mind

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 Advantages and Challenges:
Observation

Advantages Collects data on actual vs. self-

reported behavior or perceptions. It is
real-time vs. retrospective

Challenges Observer bias, potentially unreliable;

interpretation and coding challenges;
sampling can be a problem; can be
labor intensive; low response rates

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Tool 4: Surveys and Interviews

•Excellent for asking people about:

• perceptions, opinions, ideas
•Less accurate for measuring behavior
•Sample should be representative of the
whole
•Big problem with response rates

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Structures for Surveys

• Structured:
• Precisely worded with a range of pre-determined
responses that the respondent can select
• Everyone asked exactly the same questions in
exactly the same way, given exactly the same
choices
• Semi-structured
• Asks same general set of questions but answers
to the questions are predominantly open-ended

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 Structured vs.
Semi-structured Surveys

Structured harder to develop

easier to complete
easier to analyze
more efficient when working with large numbers
Semi- easier to develop: open ended questions
structured more difficult to complete: burdensome for
people to complete as a self-administrated
questionnaire
harder to analyze but provide a richer source of
data, interpretation of open-ended responses
subject to bias
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Modes of Survey Administration

•Telephone surveys
•Self-administered questionnaires
distributed by mail, e-mail, or websites
•Administered questionnaires, common in
the development context
•In development context, often issues of
language and translation

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Mail / Phone / Internet Surveys

•Literacy issues
•Consider accessibility
• reliability of postal service
• turn-around time
•Consider bias
• What population segment has telephone
access? Internet access?

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 Advantages and Challenges of Surveys

Advantages Best when you want to know what

people think, believe, or perceive,
only they can tell you that
Challenges People may not accurately recall their
behavior or may be reluctant to reveal
their behavior if it is illegal or
stigmatized. What people think they
do or say they do is not always the
same as what they actually do.

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 Interviews

•Often semi-structured
•Used to explore complex issues in depth
•Forgiving of mistakes: unclear questions can
be clarified during the interview and changed
for subsequent interviews
•Can provide evaluators with an intuitive
sense of the situation

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Challenges of Interviews

•Can be expensive, labor intensive, and time

consuming
•Selective hearing on the part of the
interviewer may miss information that does
not conform to pre-existing beliefs
•Cultural sensitivity: e.g., gender issues

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Tool 5: Focus Groups

•Type of qualitative research where small

homogenous groups of people are brought
together to informally discuss specific
topics under the guidance of a moderator
•Purpose: to identify issues and themes, not
just interesting information, and not
“counts”

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Focus Groups Are Inappropriate when:

•language barriers are insurmountable

•evaluator has little control over the situation
•trust cannot be established
•free expression cannot be ensured
•confidentiality cannot be assured

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 Focus Group Process
Phase Action

1 Opening Ice-breaker; explain purpose; ground rules;

introductions
2 Warm- Relate experience; stimulate group interaction;
up start with least threatening and simplest questions
3 Main Move to more threatening or sensitive and
body complex questions; elicit deep responses; connect
emergent data to complex, broad participation
4 Closure End with closure-type questions; summarize and
refine; present theories, etc; invite final comments
or insights; thank participants
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Advantages and Challenges of
Focus Groups

Advantages Can be conducted relatively quickly and

easily; may take less staff time than in-depth,
in-person interviews; allow flexibility to make
changes in process and questions; can
explore different perspectives; can be fun

Challenges Analysis is time consuming; participants not

be representative of population, possibly
biasing the data; group may be influenced by
moderator or dominant group members

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Tool 6: Diaries and Self-Reported
Checklists

•Use when you want to capture information

about events in people’s daily lives
•Participants capture experiences in real-time
not later in a questionnaire
•Used to supplement other data collection

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 Guidelines for Diaries or Journals

Step Process
1 Recruit people face-to-face
• encourage participation, appeal to altruism, assure
confidentiality, provide incentive
2 Provide a booklet to each participant
• cover page with clear instructions, definitions, example
• short memory-joggers, explain terms, comments on last
page , calendar
3 Consider the time-period for collecting data
• if too long, may become burdensome or tedious
• if too short may miss the behavior or event 49
Self-reported Checklists

• Cross between a questionnaire and a diary

• The evaluator specifies a list of behaviors or events
and asks the respondents to complete the checklist
• Done over a period of time to capture the event or
behavior
• More quantitative approach than diary

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Advantages and Challenges of Diaries
and Self-reported Checklists

Advantages Can capture in-depth, detailed data that might be

otherwise forgotten
Can collect data on how people use their time
Can collect sensitive information
Supplements interviews provide richer data

Challenges Requires some literacy

May change behavior
Require commitment and self-discipline
Data may be incomplete or inaccurate
Poor handwriting, difficult to understand phrases

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Tool 7: Expert Judgment

Use of experts, one-

on-one or as a panel Can be structured
or unstructured
E.g., Government task
forces, Advisory Issues in
Groups selecting experts

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Selecting Experts

•Establish criteria for selecting experts not

only on recognition as expert but also based
on:
• areas of expertise
• diverse perspectives
• diverse political views
• diverse technical expertise

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Advantages and Challenges of
Expert Judgment

Advantages Fast, relatively inexpensive

Challenges Weak for impact evaluation

May be based mostly on perceptions
Value of data depends on how
credible the experts are perceived to
be

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Tool 8: Delphi Technique
• Enables experts to engage remotely in a dialogue and
reach consensus, often about priorities
• Experts asked specific questions; often rank choices
• Responses go to a central source, are summarized
and fed back to the experts without attribution
• Experts can agree or argue with others’ comments
• Process may be iterative

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 Advantages and Challenges of
Delphi Technique
Advantages Allows participants to remain anonymous
Is inexpensive
Is free of social pressure, personality influence,
and individual dominance
Is conducive to independent thinking
Allows sharing of information
Challenges May not be representative
Has tendency to eliminate extreme positions
Requires skill in written communication
Requires time and participant commitment

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Other Measurement Tools

- scales (weight)
- health testing tools:
- tape measure i.e. blood pressure
- stop watches - aptitude and
- chemical tests achievement tests
i.e. quality of water -citizen report cards

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Data Collection Summary

Choose more than one data collection

technique

No “best” tool

Do not let the tool drive your work but

rather choose the right tool to address
the evaluation question
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 A Final Note….

“I never guess. It is a capital mistake

to theorize before one has data.
Insensibly one begins to twist facts and theories,
instead of theories to suit facts.”
--Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Questions?

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•APA Style
•Reporting results

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