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Data Preparation

This document discusses the importance of data preparation in marketing research and outlines several key steps in the data preparation process, including questionnaire checking, editing, coding, classification, consistency checks, and codebook creation. Proper data preparation can enhance the quality of statistical results.

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Senthilvel Rathinam
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148 views16 pages

Data Preparation

This document discusses the importance of data preparation in marketing research and outlines several key steps in the data preparation process, including questionnaire checking, editing, coding, classification, consistency checks, and codebook creation. Proper data preparation can enhance the quality of statistical results.

Uploaded by

Senthilvel Rathinam
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Data preparation

Perhaps the most neglected series of activities in the marketing research process. Handled with care, data preparation can substantially enhance the quality of statistical results.

Data preparation process

Questionnaire checking
A questionnaire returned from the field may be unacceptable for several reasons. Parts of the questionnaire may be incomplete. The pattern of responses may indicate that the respondent did not understand or follow the instructions. The responses show little variance. One or more pages are missing. The questionnaire is received after the preestablished cut-off date. The questionnaire is answered by someone who does not qualify for participation.

Editing
Treatment of unsatisfactory results Returning to the field The questionnaires with unsatisfactory responses may be returned to the field, where the interviewers recontact the respondents. Assigning missing values If returning the questionnaires to the field is not feasible, the editor may assign missing values to unsatisfactory responses. Discarding unsatisfactory respondents In this approach, the respondents with unsatisfactory responses are simply discarded.

Coding
Coding means assigning a code, usually a number, to each possible response to each question. The code includes an indication of the column position (field) and data record it will occupy. Coding questions Fixed field codes, which mean that the number of records for each respondent is the same and the same data appear in the same column(s) for all respondents, are highly desirable. If possible, standard codes should be used for missing data. Coding of structured questions is relatively simple, since the response options are predetermined. In questions that permit a large number of responses, each possible response option should be assigned a separate column.

Coding
Guidelines for coding unstructured questions: Category codes should be mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive. Only a few (10% or less) of the responses should fall into the other category. Category codes should be assigned for critical issues even if no one has mentioned them.

Data should be coded to retain as much detail as possible.

Coding questionnaires
The respondent code and the record number appear on each record in the data.
The first record contains the additional codes: project code, interviewer code, date and time codes and validation code. It is a good practice to insert blanks between parts.

Classification questions

Multiple choice question from the Formula One Racetrack survey

Illustrative computer file held on a flat ASCII file

Example of computer file held on a spreadsheet program

Codebook
A codebook contains coding instructions and the necessary information about variables in the data set. A codebook generally contains the following information: column number record number variable number variable name

question number
instructions for coding

Extract from a survey codebook

Data cleaning Consistency checks


Consistency checks identify data that are out of range, logically inconsistent or have extreme values.

Computer packages like SPSS, SAS, SNAP, EXCEL and MINITAB can be programmed to identify out-of-range values for each variable and print out the respondent code, variable code, variable name, record number, column number, and out-of-range value. Extreme values should be closely examined.

A classification of univariate techniques

A classification of multivariate techniques

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