16 Secondary Data Collection – Published Sources

U. Jerinabi

The task of data collection begins after a research problem has been defined. The researcher should keep in mind the two types of data viz., primary and secondary. The primary data are those which are collected afresh and for the first time and thus happen to be original in character. The secondary data are those which have already been collected by someone else and which have already been passed through the statistical process. The methods of collecting primary and secondary data differ since primary data are to be originally collected, while in case of secondary data the nature of data collection work is merely that of compilation. The sources of collecting secondary data are published and unpublished source. This module deals with only published sources of secondary data collection.

This module will include the

Concept of secondary data
Published and published sources
Evaluation and application of published data
Advantages and disadvantages of secondary data
Published sources of secondary data collection

Objectives

After completing this module you will be able to
Know the concepts of secondary data
Understand the application and usage of published data
Acquire the knowledge of various sources of published data
Know the advantages and disadvantages of secondary data

Concept of Secondary data

Secondary data is the data collected by someone else other than the researcher himself. This data can be gathered from government records, books, trade associations, national or international institutes, statistics agencies, etc.

Secondary data is used to increase the sampling size of research studies and is also chosen for the efficiency and speed that comes with using an already existing resource. Secondary data facilitates large research projects, in which many research groups working in tandem collect secondary data. The main researcher is then allowed to focus on primary research or particular areas of interest. This division of labour helps researchers learn more in less time.

The benefit of using secondary data is that much of the preliminary work is done. The data may have already been sorted in an electronic format, published and reviewed with case studies already conducted. Secondary data can quickly become more or less public knowledge through use in the media. Due to its exposure and public examination, secondary data can carry more legitimacy than primary research data and is often used as verification of primary data. The secondary sources can be classified into two categories

Published sources

Unpublished sources

What are Published Sources

The term published is most commonly associated with text materials, either in traditional printed format or online published sources are international, national, govt., semi-Govt, private corporate bodies, trade associations, expert committee and commission reports and research reports. These reports are published on regular basis i.e., annually, quarterly, monthly, fortnightly, weekly and daily basis.

Published sources is the most important source of secondary data collection. Published data is the most reliable secondary source of information. The validity of published data is greater than unpublished data.

What are Unpublished Sources

The statistical data needn’t always be published. There are various sources of unpublished sources such as the records maintained by private firms, business enterprises, scholars, research workers etc., They may not like to release their data to any outside agency.

Evaluation of Secondary Data

Evaluation means the following four requirements must be satisfied:-

Availability- Primarily, it has to be seen that, whether the kind of data you want is available or not. If it is not available then you have to go for primary data.

Relevance– The data should meet the requirements of the problem. The two criterions to be noted are:-

a)Units of measurement should be the same and

b)Concepts used must be same and currency of data should not be outdated.

Accuracy– In order to find how accurate the data is, the following points must be considered:

a) Specification and methodology used;

b)Margin of error should be examined;

c)The dependability of the source must be seen. Finally,

Sufficiency– Adequate data should be available.

Application of published sources of Secondary Data

Secondary data represents a vast resource to sociologists. It is easy and free to use. It can include information about very large populations that would be expensive and difficult to obtain. Secondary data is available from time periods other than the present day. It is literally impossible to conduct primary research about events, attitudes, styles, or norms that are no longer present in today’s world.

To conduct meaningful secondary analysis, researchers must spend significant time in reading and learning about the origins of the data sets.

Through careful reading and learning, researchers can determine:

The purpose for which the material was collected or created
The specific methods used to collect it
The population studied and the validity of the sample captured
The credentials and credibility of the collector or creator
The limits of the data set (what information was not requested, collected, or presented)
The historic and political circumstances surrounding the creation or collection of the material.

Before using secondary data, a researcher must consider how the data are coded or categorized and how this might influence the outcomes of a secondary data analysis. One should also consider whether the data must be adapted or adjusted in some way prior to conducting analysis.

Advantages of Secondary Data

The major advantages of secondary data are

1. Secondary data analysis saves time that would otherwise be spent collecting data and provides larger and higher-quality databases that would be unfeasible for any individual researcher to collect on their own.

2. A clear benefit of using secondary data is that much of the background work needed has been already been carried out, for example: literature reviews, case studies, published texts and statistics are already used elsewhere, media promotion and personal contacts have also been utilized.

3. It is always wise to begin any research activity with a review of the secondary data.

4.Secondary data generally have a pre-established degree of validity and reliability which need not be re-examined by the researcher who is re-using such data.

5. It is economical. It saves efforts and expenses.

6. It helps to make primary data collection more specific since with the help of secondary data, we are able to make out what are the gaps and deficiencies and what additional information needs to be collected.

7. It helps to improve the understanding of the problem.

8. It provides a basis for comparison of the data that is collected by the researcher.

Disadvantages of Secondary Data

The Disadvantages of Secondary Data includes

1. Official statistics may reflect the biases of those in power – limiting what you can find out.

2. Official statistics – the way things are measured may change over time, making historical comparisons difficult (As with crime statistics, the definition of crime keeps changing.)

3.Documents may lack authenticity– parts of the document might be missing because of age, and we might not even be to verify who actually wrote the document, meaning we cannot check whether its biased or not.

Representativeness – documents may not be representative of the wider population – especially a problem with older documents. Many documents do not survive because they are not stored, and others deteriorate with age and become unusable. Other documents are deliberately withheld from researchers and the public gaze, and therefore do not become available.

Collection of Secondary Data

Secondary data means data that are already available i.e., they refer to the data which have already been collected and analysed by someone else. Secondary data may either be published data or unpublished data. Usually published data are available in;

(a) Various publications of foreign governments or of international bodies and their subsidiary organisations

(b) Various publications of central, state and local governments;

(d)Book, magazines and newspapers;

(e)Reports and publications of various associations connected with business and industry, banks, stock exchanges, etc.

(f)Reports prepared by research scholars, universities, economists, fetching different fields; and

(g)Public records and statistics, historical documents, and other sources of published information.

Data are also published on the websites such as the official website of reserve bank of India, National stock exchange, etc., Most of the data are freely available and provided in Excel worksheets. The sources of unpublished data are found in diaries, letters, unpublished biographies and autobiographies and also may be available with scholars and research workers, trade associations, labour bureaus and other public/private individuals and organisations.

Researcher must be very careful in using secondary data. Dr.A.L.Bowley very aptly observes that it is never safe to take published statistics at their face value without knowing their meaning and limitations and it is always necessary to criticise arguments that can be based on them.

Factors to be considered while collecting data from secondary sources:

Accuracy of data: One should evaluate the credibility of source of data and methods used to collect data because these factors directly influence the accuracy of data.
Time and Cost required collecting data: Some sources of data charge money in order to give access to their information, so an organization needs to evaluate this cost with the cost of collecting data by themselves (primary market research).

Published Sources:

The sources of published data are as below:

i.Official publications of Central and local governments. For example: CBS, NRB, different Ministries, etc

ii.Official publications of semi government statistical organization.

For example: Tribhuvan University, Nepal Bank Ltd., NIDC, Nepal Telecom Ltd, NEA etc.

iii.Official publication of foreign government or international bodies like the UNO, World Bank, ADB, WTO, UNESCO, etc.

iv.Reports and publications of Trade union, Chamber of Commerce, Commercial Banks, Co-operatives, Stock Exchange etc.

v.Report submitted to economists, re-search scholars, universities various educational and research institutions.and

vi.Reports of various committees and commissions appointed by the government.

vii. Newspaper and Periodicals.

The above sources are discussed in the following headings.

Published printed sources

There are varieties of published printed sources. Their credibility depends on many factors. For example, on the writer, publishing company and time and date when published. New sources are preferred and old sources should be avoided as new technology and researches brings new facts into light.

Serials

Journals, magazines, and newspapers are serial publications that are published on an ongoing basis.

Many scholarly journals in the sciences and social sciences include primary source articles where the authors report on research is undertaken. These papers may use the first person (“We observed…”). These articles usually follow a standard format with sections like “Methods,” “Results,” and “Conclusion”.

In studies on humanities, age is an important factor in determining whether an article is a primary or secondary source. A recently-published journal or newspaper article on the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case would be read as a secondary source, because the author is interpreting an historical event. An article on the case that was published in 1955 could be read as a primary source that reveals how writers were interpreting the decision immediately after it was handed down.

Serials may also include book reviews, editorials, and review articles. Review articles summarize research on a particular topic, but they do not present any new findings; therefore, they are considered secondary sources. Their bibliographies, however, can be used to identify primary sources.

Books

Books are available on various topics of research. The uses of books start before the selection of topic. After selection of topics books provide insight on how much work has already been done on the same topic and literature review. Books are secondary source but most authentic one in secondary sources.

Most books are secondary sources, where authors refer primary source materials and add their own analysis. “Lincoln at Gettysburg: the Words that Remade America” by Gary Wills is about Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. If you are researching Abraham Lincoln, this book would be a secondary source because Wills is offering his views about Lincoln and the Gettysburg Address.

Visual and Audio Materials

Visual materials such as maps, photographs, prints, graphic arts, and original art forms can provide insights into how people viewed and/or were viewed the world in which they existed. Films, videos, TV programs, and digital recordings can be primary sources. Documentaries, feature films, and TV news broadcasts can provide insights into the fantasies, biases, political attitudes, and material culture of the times in which they were created. Radio broadcast recordings, oral histories, and the recorded music of a particular era can also serve as primary source material.

Archival Material

Manuscripts and archives are primary and secondary sources, including business and personal correspondence, diaries and journals, legal and financial documents, photographs, maps, architectural drawings, objects, oral histories, computer tapes, and video and audio cassettes. Some archival materials are published and available in print or online.

Government Documents

Government documents provide evidence of activities, functions, and policies at all government levels. For research that relates to the workings of government, government documents are primary sources. These documents include hearings and debates of legislative bodies; the official text of laws, regulations and treaties; records of government expenditures and finances; and statistical compilations of economic, demographic, and scientific data.

Journals/periodicals

Journals and periodicals are becoming more important as far as data collection is concerned. The reason is that journals provide up to date information which at times books cannot provide and secondly, journals can give information on specific topic rather than general topics.

Magazines

Magazines are also effective but not very reliable. Newspaper is more reliable and in some cases information can be obtained only from newspapers as in the case of some political studies.

Newspaper Notices – Newspapers can be valuable sources of family history, providing announcements of engagements, marriages, births, deaths, and other noteworthy events. Coverage varies from paper to paper and access to newspapers varies widely. Some maintain online archives while others may only be accessible through libraries. A number of database vendors have taken on projects to archive historical newspapers, in some cases going back into the 1700s. Larger public libraries and most university libraries will have access to a variety of newspapers both current and historical.

E-publishing

Electronic publishing (also referred to as e-publishing or digital publishing or online publishing) includes the digital publication of e-book, digital magazines, and the development of digital libraries and catalogues. Electronic publishing has become common where it has been argued that peer-reviewed scientific journals are in the process of being replaced by electronic publishing. It is also becoming common to distribute books, magazines, and newspapers to consumers through tablet reading devices, a market that is growing by millions each year, generated by online vendors such as Amazon’s bookstore for Kindle, and books in the Google Play Bookstore.

Although distribution via the Internet (also known as online publishing or web publishing when in the form of a website) is nowadays strongly associated with electronic publishing, there are many non-network electronic publications such as encyclopaedias on CD and DVD, as well as technical and reference publications relied on by mobile users and others without reliable and high speed access to a network. Electronic publishing is also being used in the field of test-preparation in developed as well as in developing economies for student education; it enables content and analytics combined – for the benefit of students. Electronic publishing is increased popularly in works of fiction. The companies do not have to order printed books and have them delivered. E-publishing also make a wider range of books available, including books those customers would not find in standard book retailers, due to insufficient demand for a traditional “print run”. E-publication is enabling new authors to release books that would be unlikely to be profitable for traditional publishers.

As internet is becoming more advanced, fast and reachable to the masses; it has been seen that much of the information which are not available in printed form is available on internet. The reason is that in the past journals and books were seldom published on internet but presently almost every journal and book is available online. Some are free and some are payable

E-Journals- These are more commonly available than printed journals. Latest journals are difficult to retrieve without subscription. But if university has e-library access it can be viewed.

General websites– Generally websites do contain unreliable information so the contents should be checked for reliability before quoting them.

Weblogs- weblogs are also becoming common. They are actually diaries written by different people. These diaries are also reliable to use as personal written diaries

Conclusion

Finally, Secondary data is a research approach used to examine previously collected data. It helps to improve on interview techniques and identify strategies that may be applied to amore open style of interviewing. The published data is cheaper and quicker to collect and for accuracy. Particular attention should be paid to definitions used, measurement error, source bias, reliability and the time span of secondary data. Searches of published secondary data begin with the consultation of referral sources such as directories, handbooks, indexes and the like. With the advent of internet searches of published sources are becoming more efficient and more effective. Computer based information systems give access to four different types of database bibliographic, numeric, directories, and full-text. Before making use of published data there is a need to evaluate both the data itself and its source.

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