data analysis : kinds of data

Question 1

define qualitative data

Answer 1

data that is expressed in words and non-numerical

Question 2

what may qualitative data be converted into and why ?

Answer 2

into numerical data for analysis

Question 3

define quantitative data

Answer 3

data that can be counted, usually given as numbers

Question 4

define primary data

Answer 4

information that has been obtained first hand by the researcher for the purpose of a research project

Question 5

in psychology where would primary data typically be gathered ?

Answer 5

directly from the participants as part of an experiments , (self-report or observation)

Question 6

define secondary data

Answer 6

information that has been collected by someone else and so predates the current research project

Question 7

in psychology what would secondary data include ?

Answer 7

the work of other psychologists or government statistics

Question 8

define meta-analysis

Answer 8

a research method where the results of many studies on the same topic are combined and analyzed together

Question 9

why is meta-analysis used ?

Answer 9

this helps researchers get a clearer overall picture of the findings by looking at a large amount of data

Question 10

give an example of meta-analysis

Answer 10

if many studies have looked at the effectiveness of therapy for depression, a meta-analysis would combine their results to find out how effective therapy is overall

Question 11

what may qualitative data take the form of ?

Answer 11

written description of the thoughts,feelings and opinions of participants

Question 12

give an examples of qualiative data

Answer 12

• a transcript from an interview
• an extract from a diary
• notes recorded within a counselling session

Question 13

where might one collect qualitative data ?

Answer 13

from interviews or unstructured observation

Question 14

what do quantitative data collection techniques usually gather?

Answer 14

numerical data in the form of individual scores from participants

Question 15

give an example of quantitative data collection techniques ?

Answer 15

• number of words a person was able to recall in a memory experiment

Question 16

what is quantitative data open to do ?

Answer 16

being analysed statistically

Question 17

what can quantitative data be converted into ?

Answer 17

graphs,charts etc..

Question 18

what is the significant overlap between quantitative data and qualitative data ?

Answer 18

researchers collecting quantitative data as part of an experiment may often interview participants as a way of gaining more qualitative insight into their experience of the investigation

Question 19

what is the number of ways of doing ?

Answer 19

qualitative information can be converted into numerical data

Question 20

what is secondary data often referred as ?

Answer 20

desk research

Question 21

what does statisitical data mean?

Answer 21

to information that is collected, measured, and analyzed using numbers

Question 22

an example of statistical data

Answer 22

if you surveyed 100 people about how many hours they sleep each night, the numbers you collect (e.g., 7 hours, 8 hours, etc.) are statistical data.

Question 23

give a strength of meta-analysis ?

Answer 23

view data with much more confidence and results can be generalised across much larger populations

Question 24

a limitation of meta-analysis (3) (PPB)

Answer 24

• prone publication bias sometimes referred to as file-drawer problem
  –> researchers may not select all the relevant studies - may leave out those studies with negative and non-significant results
  –> therefore the data will be biased because it only represents some of the relevant data and incorrect conclusions are drawin

Question 25

what does qualitative data offer the researcher much more of than quantitative data ?

Answer 25

• richness of detail
  –> broader in scope –>gives the respondent more license to develop thoughts , feelings and opinions of a given subject

Question 26

what does qualitative data tend to have greater than quantitative data ?

Answer 26

external validity
–> provides the researcher with more meaningful insight into the participant’s worldview

Question 27

what is it difficult to do with qualitative data and why ?

Answer 27

analyse
–> it tends not to lend itself to being summarised statistically
–> so patterns and comparisons within and between data may be hard to identify

Question 28

what do conclusions often rely on in qualitative data and what is the problem with that ?

Answer 28

• subjective interpretations of the researcher
  –> subject to bias
  –> especially if the researcher has preconceptions about what he/she is expecting to find

Question 29

what is strength of quantitative data and this means that ?…

Answer 29

relatively simple to analyse
–> therefore comparisons between groups can be easily drawn

Question 30

what does numerical form tend to be therefore ..?

Answer 30

• more objective
  –> less open to bias

Question 31

what is quantitative data much (?) than qualitative data which means ..?

Answer 31

-narrower in scope and meaning than qualitative data
–> thus may fail to represent ‘real-life’

Question 32

what is primary data sometimes called ?

Answer 32

‘field research’

Question 33

what is the main strength of primary data ?

Answer 33

it fits the job
- authentic data obtained from the participants themselves
–> for the purpose of a particular investigation

Question 34

what can be designed in a specific way to receive specific information from participants and how ?

Answer 34

questionnaires and interviews
–> can be designed in a way that they specifically target the information that the researcher requires

Question 35

what does it require in order to produce primary data ?

Answer 35

time and effort on the part of the researcher

Question 36

what is an example of the limitation above ?

Answer 36

requires considerable planning , preparation and resources

Question 37

how is secondary data better than primary data in terms of (time and effort) ?

Answer 37

SD - can be accessed within a matter or minutes

Question 38

compared to primary data , secondary data is … ?

Answer 38

may be inexpensive and easily accessed requiring minimal effort

Question 39

when the researcher is examining secondary data ..?

Answer 39

they may find the desired information already exists and so there is no need to conduct primary data collection

Question 40

what is the limitation of secondary data ?

Answer 40

• there may be substantial variation in the quality and accuracy of secondary data
  –> information might at first appear to be valuable and promising but on further investigation may be outdated or incomplete

Question 41

what may the content of secondary data do for the researcher’s needs ?

Answer 41

quite match