Collect the data Data Pieces of information or facts that are collected in scientific investigations.

, how do we collect / find data? Secondary data Primary data * Secondary data data someone else has collected e.g Vital Statistics birth, death certificates &Hospital, clinic, school nurse records Advantage 1- Cost and time 2- Availability 3- Less expensive 4- Less time intensive 5- Readily available 6 Disadvantage 1- When was it collected? For how long 2- Is the data set complete? 3- Are the data consistent/reliable? * Primary data find data you need to suit your purpose e.g Surveys Focus groups, Questionnaires ,Personal interviews & Experiments and observational study Advantage 1- Researcher collect the data 123Disadvantage Need time & money Uniqueness :May not be able to compare to other populations Researcher error: Sample bias

Data Collection Strategies No one best way: decision depends on: What you need to know Where the data reside Resources and time available Complexity of the data to be collected

 Frequency of data collection 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

The choice of data collection method is determined by the study hypothesis or research question of the study. c. Criteria for selection of data collection instrument Practicality of the instrument Reliability of the instrument (Consistency and stability) Validity of the instrument (Ability to gather data that is intended to gather. Concerns that content of the instrument. Will the instrument gather data that is needed in the research. Data collection methods 1. Questionnaires Paper and pencil, self-report instrument. Contains questions the respondents are asked to answer in writing. 1. Guidelines in wording questions i. Affirmative rather than negative (never say never). ii. Avoid ambiguous questions (many, generally, few, often) iii. Avoid double negative questions iv. Neutral wording v. Double-barreled questions 2. Types of questions a. Demographic Data on the characteristics of the subjects. Demographic or attribute variables. Age, educational background, religion. b. Open-ended questions Essay, fill-in-the-blank

c. Closed-ended questions Respondent is asked to choose from given alternatives. Must be collectively exhaustive (all possible answer provided) and mutually exclusive ( no overlap between categories)

d. Contingency questions Items that is relevant for some respondents and not for others. Eg. If yes.. e. Filler questions a. Items in which the researcher has no direct interest but are included in a questionnaire to reduce the emphasis on the specific purpose of other questions. 2. Interviews b. Interviewer obtains responses from a subject in a face-to-face encounter or through a telephone call or online or through mail . Effective way of gathering information, Involves verbal and non-verbal communications

1. Unstructured interview Interviewer given a great deal of freedom to direct the course of the interview. Conducted more like a normal conversation. 2. Structured interviews Asking the same questions in the same order and in the same manner of all respondents in the study. Even subtle changes in the wording of the interview may not be permitted. e.g How do management and non-management employees interact in the office? How do you know when you have done an excellent job?

3. Semi-structured interview Interviewers are generally required to ask a certain number of specific questions but additional probing questions are allowed or even encouraged.

3. Observation method Gathering data through visual observations. Can be psychomotor skills, habits, non-verbal communication. 1. Structured vs. Unstructured Observations a. Structured Carried out when the researcher has prior knowledge about the phenomenon of interest. E.g Uses a checklist. b. Unstructured Researcher attempts to describe events or behaviors as they occur, with no preconceived idea of what will be seen. 2. Event sampling vs. Time sampling a. Event Observation of an entire event. Eg. Bed making techniques of student nurses. b. Time Observation of events or behaviors during specified times. Eg. Appetite of patients during scheduled meals. 3. Relationship between observer and subjects a. Non-participant observer-overt Observer openly identifies himself and provides subjects with information about the types of data that will be collected. b. Non-participant observer-covert Generally not ethical. Observer does not let participant know of his activity. Eg. Public behavior (can be ethical) c. Participant observer-overt Involved with the subjects openly and subjects know that they are being observed by the same. Eg. Immersion with families while observing their day-today lifestyle. d. Participant observer-covert Plant, Spy Observer interacts with the subjects and observes their behavior without their knowledge. Rarely ethical. 4. Physiological Measures Involve in the collection of physical data from the subjects.

Generally more objective and accurate than many of the other data collection methods. 5. Attitude scales Self-report, data collection instruments that ask respondents to report their attitudes or feelings on a continuum. 1. Likert Scale Uses five or seven responses for each item ranging from Strongly Agree (5) to strongly disagree (1). Negatively worded questions are rated scored reverse. 2. Semantic Differential Scales Asks subjects to indicate their position or attitude about some concept along a continuum between two adjectives. 6. Psychological Tests 1. Personality Inventories Self-report measures used to assess the differences in personality traits, needs, or values of people. 2. Projective Techniques Subject is presented with an ambiguous stimuli, subject describes what the stimuli appear to represent. Eg. Rorschach Inkblot Test. 7. Delphi Technique Uses several rounds of questions to seek a consensus on a particular topic from a group of experts. To obtain group consensus without a face-to-face meeting. 8. Visual Analogue Scale 9. Preexisting Data Use of existing information that has not been collected for research purposes. Eg. Patients chart 10. Focus Groups bring together respondents with common characteristics