WELCOME

To a
Presentation on…
DATA COLLECTION
It’s TYPES, METHODS and
TOOLS
Data Collection
 It is a term used to describe a process of
preparing and collecting data.
 The purpose of data collection is to obtain
information to keep on record, to make
decisions about important issues, to pass
information on to others.
 Primarily, data is collected to provide
information regarding a specific topic.
Data Collection Plan
 Data collection usually takes place early on
in an improvement project, and is often
formalised through a data collection plan
which often contains the following activity.
1. Pre collection activity – Agree goals, target data,
definitions, methods.
2. Collection – data collection.
3. Present Findings – usually involves some form of
sorting analysis and/or presentation.
Types of Data
 PRIMARY DATA: Are those which are
collected fresh and which happens for the
first time, thus it is original in character.

 SECONDARY DATA: Are those which have

been collected already by someone else and
which have already passed through the
statistical process.
Collection of Primary Data
 There are several methods of collecting the
primary data, particularly in surveys and
descriptive research.
 In a descriptive research, the data can be
obtained either through observation or
through direct communication with
respondents in one form or through personal
interviews.
Collection of Secondary Data
 These are readily available data which were
collected and analysed by someone else.
 It may either be a published data or an
unpublished data.
 The researchers must be careful in using a
secondary data because sometimes it may
not suit our topic of study.
Methods of Data Collection
 PRIMARY DATA:
 OBSERVATION METHOD: It’s a method under
which data from the field is collected with the help
of the observation of the observer or by
personally going into the field.

 “Observation may be defined as systematic

viewing, coupled with the consideration of seen
phenomenon.” – P.V. Young.
Methods of Data Collection
 INTERVIEW METHOD:

 This method involves presentation or oral-verbal

stimuli and reply in terms of oral response.

 There are several types of interviews like

personal interviews, telephonic interviews,
focused interviews, structured interviews… etc.
Types of Interview
 PERSONAL INTERVIEWS:
 The interviewer asks the question generally in a
face to face contact to the other person or
persons.
 TELEPHONIC INTERVIEWS:
 When it is not possible to contact the respondents
directly, they are interviewed through telephone.
Types of Interview
 STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS:
 In this case there are a set of pre-decided
questions to be asked to the candidate.
 UNSRTUCURED INTERVIEWS:
 In this case they don’t follow a system of pre-
determined set of questions.
 FOCUSED INTERVIEWS:
 The key attention is on the given experience of
the respondent and its possible effects.
Types of Interview
 CLINICAL INTERVIEWS:
 It’s concerned with the board’s underlying feelings
or motivations or with the course of the
individual's life experience rather than with the
effects of a specific experience as in focused
interview.
 GROUP INTERVIEWS:
 A group of six to eight individuals are interviewed
together.
Types of Interview
 INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEWS:
 The interviewer meets a single person and
interviews him/her.
 SELECTION INTERVIEWS:
 Such interviews are conducted for selecting
candidates for certain jobs.
 DEPTH INTERVIEWS:
 It deliberately aims to elicit the unconscious as
well as other types of material relating to
personality dynamics and motivation.
Methods of Data Collection
 QUESTIONNAIRE METHOD:
 It’s a popular method of data collection.
 The questionnaires are sent to the respondents
who are expected to read and understand the
questions and reply in the space provided.
 The respondents are expected to answer the
questions on their own as it may affect the survey.
How to Construct a Questionnaire
 The researcher should note the following with
regard to these three main aspects of
questionnaire:
 General Form.
 Question sequence.
 The type of questions.
 Direct Questions, Indirect Questions, Open form
questionnaires, Closed form questionnaires,
Dichotomous questions and Multiple Choice
Questions.
Methods of Data Collection
 SCHEDULE METHOD:

 It’s one of the important methods for the study of

social problems.

 “The schedule is nothing more than a list of

questions which it seems necessary to test the
hypothesis.” – Thomas Carson Macromic
Methods of Data Collection
 CASE STUDY METHOD:
 It is essentially an intensive investigation of
particular unit under consideration.
 It’s important characteristic are as follows:
 The researcher can take one single social unit or
more of such units for his study purpose.
 The selected unit is studied to minute details.
Methods of Data Collection
 SURVEY METHOD:
 One of the common method to diagnose and
solve a problem is by conducting a survey.
 “Many research problems require such systematic
collection of data from population through the use
of personal interviews or other data gathering
devices” – Festinger and Kat.
Methods of Data Collection
 PANEL METHOD:
 In this method the data is collected from the same
sample respondents at some interval either by
mail or by personal interview. This is used for the
studies on:
 Expenditure Pattern
 Consumer Behaviour
 Effectiveness of Advertising
 Voting Behaviour and so on.
Data Collection Tools
 Data collection tools are instruments used to
collect information for performance
assessments, self-evaluations, and external
evaluations.
 The data collection tools need to be strong
enough to support what the evaluations find
during research.
Data Collection Tools
 Three main types of Data Collection Tools

 Secondary Participation.

 In-Person Observations.

 Case-Studies and Content Analysis.

Secondary Participation
 Data collection tools involving secondary
participation require no direct contact to
gather information.
 Examples of secondary data collection tools
would include:
 Postal mail
 Electronic mail
 Telephone
 Web-based surveys
Secondary Participation

 These data collection tools do not allow the

researcher to truly gauge the accuracy of the
information given by the participants who
responded.
In-Person Observations
 Data collection tools used in personal contact
observations are used when there is face to face
contact with the participants.
 In-person surveys – used to gain general answers to
basic questions
 Direct or participatory observations – where the
researcher is directly involved with the study group
 Interviews – used to gain more in depth answers to
complex questions
 Focus groups – where certain sample groups are asked
their opinion about a certain subject or theory
In-Person Observations
 These data collection tools allow for a true
measurement of accuracy.

 It lets the researcher obtain any unspoken

observations about the participants while
conducting research.
Case Studies and Content
Analysis
 These are data collection tools which are
based upon pre-existing research or a search
of recorded information.
 It may be useful to the researcher in gaining
the required information which fills in the
blanks not found with the other two types
during the data collection process.
Case Studies and Content
Analysis
 Some examples of this type of data collection tool
would include:

 Expert opinions – leaders in the field of study

 Case studies – previous findings of other researchers
 Literature searches – research articles and papers
 Content analysis of both internal and external
records – documents created from internal origin or
other documents citing occurrences within the
research group
Conclusion
 These data collection tools and methods are the
primary sources for gaining information during
research.
 The most effective being the In-Person
Observations with the use of Case Studies and
analysis for verification resources.
 While each type of data collection tool can be used
alone, most often they are used in either
combination or conjunction with each other in
various ways.
THANK YOU

A Presentation by,
R. VIGNESH KUMAR