Quantitative Research: Data & Statistics

Note: You can search for statistics and data via special search options in databases such as APA PsycInfo and MedLINE.

What is Secondary data?

Secondary data is information not originally collected by the current researcher.

Notes about Open Access Data Sets/Open Born Datasets

Open data is openly accessible, exploitable, editable, and shared by anyone for any purpose.

Statista is an example of an open-born data collection.

Other examples include: AWS Open Data Registry, Data.gov, European Data Portal, Figshare, Github, Google Dataset Search, Kaggle, Microsoft Azure Open Datasets OpenDatasoft, Open Dataset, Quandel, Stanford Large Network Dataset Collection, UCI Machine Learning Repository, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Bank Open Data, Zenodo

You as the researcher must evaluate the quality of data for your study. As a part of the IRB approval process, you must determine if the data you want to use is ethical. Consider the list of factors below. You should consult your dissertation chair, your methodologist, or the IRB office with any questions.

What factors should I consider when evaluating open-access data?

• Audience: Is the audience specialized or general? Is it appropriate for your study?
• Bias: Because third parties often curate open-born datasets, their representativeness may be limited.
• Credentials: Attempt to ascertain the credentials of the authors/source of the information.
• Confidentiality: Determine that information gathered from or about research participants in the course of a study is private and should only be revealed to third parties with the explicit consent of the individuals from whom the information was obtained.
• Data Collection: How was the data collected?
• Data Interoperability: What type of data and quality of data? Aggregate data or disaggregate?  
• Timeliness: When was the data published?
• Transparency: Determine if all relevant information, such as methodology and financial interests, are readily disclosed and communicated.
• Verification: Can the numbers be verified? Do other sources provide similar numbers?

Common Challenges with Open Access/Open Born Datasets

1. Appropriateness (Appropriate use of data)
2. Bias and representativeness
3. Confidentiality of data (data privacy and security)
4. Data interoperability
5. Data ownership and attribution
6. Lack of Transparency
7. Quality Control (You must ensure it meets ethical standards)

Ultimately, as the researcher, you must be able to discuss how the dataset was created and determine if the data was curated ethically. In addition, you must identify limitations, biases, privacy concerns, and questions/assumptions of the data collectors.

You are encouraged to reach out to the dataset creator for information.

• Dataset Search
  Dataset Search is a search engine for datasets. Using a simple keyword search, users can discover datasets hosted in thousands of repositories across the Web.
• The Dataverse Project

  Dataverse is an open source web application to share, preserve, cite, explore, and analyze research data. It facilitates making data available to others, and allows you to replicate others' work more easily. Researchers, journals, data authors, publishers, data distributors, and affiliated institutions all receive academic credit and web visibility.

• GSS Data Explorer | NORC at the University of Chicago

  Since 1972, the General Social Survey (GSS) has been monitoring societal change and studying the growing complexity of American society. GSS Data Explorer, from NORC at the University of Chicago, makes it easier than ever to use the data collected by the GSS.

• Harvard Dataverse

  The Harvard Dataverse Network within the Institute for Quantitative Social Science (IQSS) at Harvard, hosts a large collection of social science research and data.

• ICPSR

  Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research provides more than 500,000 digital files containing social science research data.

• IPUMS was Created by historians for historians to encourage the use of Census microdata. US Census, American Community Surveys (ACS), Current Population Surveys (CPS), Demographic and Health (DHS), International Censuses and other microdata

• MIDUS | Midlife in the United States

  A national longitudinal study of health and well-being. (The University of Wisconsin - Madison, Institute on Aging) Includes MIDUS 1, 2, 3 and Refresher.

• Purdue University Research Repository (PURR)

  Explore the open data behind Purdue's world-class research. PURR publishes and archives digital datasets" from their researchers and includes "all kinds of open data from images and videos to spreadsheets and source code."