Data Collection

In Statistics, data collection is a process of gathering information from all the relevant
sources to find a solution to the research problem. It helps to evaluate the outcome of
the problem. The data collection methods allow a person to conclude an answer to the
relevant question. Most of the organizations use data collection methods to make
assumptions about future probabilities and trends. Once the data is collected, it is
necessary to undergo the data organization process.

The main sources of the data collections methods are “Data”. Data can be classified
into two types, namely primary data and secondary data. The primary importance of
data collection in any research or business process is that it helps to determine many
important things about the company, particularly the performance. So, the data
collection process plays an important role in all the streams. Depending on the type of
data, the data collection method is divided into two categories namely,

 Primary Data Collection methods

 Secondary Data Collection methods

Primary Data Collection Methods

Primary data or raw data is a type of information that is obtained directly from the first-
hand source through experiments, surveys or observations. The primary data collection
method is further classified into two types. They are

 Quantitative Data Collection Methods

 Qualitative Data Collection Methods

Let us discuss the different methods performed to collect the data under these two data
collection methods.

Quantitative Data Collection Methods

It is based on mathematical calculations using various formats like close-ended

questions, correlation and regression methods, mean, median or mode measures. This
method is cheaper than qualitative data collection methods and it can be applied in a
short duration of time.
Qualitative Data Collection Methods

It does not involve any mathematical calculations. This method is closely associated
with elements that are not quantifiable. This qualitative data collection method includes
interviews, questionnaires, observations, case studies, etc. There are several methods
to collect this type of data. They are

Observation Method

Observation method is used when the study relates to behavioural science. This method
is planned systematically. It is subject to many controls and checks. The different types
of observations are:

 Structured and unstructured observation

 Controlled and uncontrolled observation
 Participant, non-participant and disguised observation

Interview Method

The method of collecting data in terms of verbal responses. It is achieved in two ways,
such as

 Personal Interview – In this method, a person known as an interviewer is required

to ask questions face to face to the other person. The personal interview can be
structured or unstructured, direct investigation, focused conversation, etc.
 Telephonic Interview – In this method, an interviewer obtains information by
contacting people on the telephone to ask the questions or views, verbally.

Questionnaire Method

In this method, the set of questions are mailed to the respondent. They should read,
reply and subsequently return the questionnaire. The questions are printed in the
definite order on the form. A good survey should have the following features:

 Short and simple

 Should follow a logical sequence
 Provide adequate space for answers
 Avoid technical terms
 Should have good physical appearance such as colour, quality of the paper to
attract the attention of the respondent

Schedules
This method is similar to the questionnaire method with a slight difference. The
enumerations are specially appointed for the purpose of filling the schedules. It explains
the aims and objects of the investigation and may remove misunderstandings, if any
have come up. Enumerators should be trained to perform their job with hard work and
patience.

Secondary Data Collection Methods

Secondary data is data collected by someone other than the actual user. It means that
the information is already available, and someone analyses it. The secondary data
includes magazines, newspapers, books, journals, etc. It may be either published data
or unpublished data.

Published data are available in various resources including

 Government publications
 Public records
 Historical and statistical documents
 Business documents
 Technical and trade journals

Unpublished data includes

 Diaries
 Letters
 Unpublished biographies, etc.

Presentat1ion of Data
Presentation of data is of utter importance nowadays. Afterall everything that’s
pleasing to our eyes never fails to grab our attention. Presentation of data refers to an
exhibition or putting up data in an attractive and useful manner such that it can be
easily interpreted. The three main forms of presentation of data are:

1. Textual presentation

2. Data tables

3. Diagrammatic presentation
Textual Presentation
The discussion about the presentation of data starts off with it’s most raw and vague
form which is the textual presentation. In such form of presentation, data is simply
mentioned as mere text, that is generally in a paragraph. This is commonly used when
the data is not very large.

This kind of representation is useful when we are looking to supplement

qualitative statements with some data. For this purpose, the data should not be
voluminously represented in tables or diagrams. It just has to be a statement that serves
as a fitting evidence to our qualitative evidence and helps the reader to get an idea of
the scale of a phenomenon.

For example, “the 2002 earthquake proved to be a mass murderer of humans. As many
as 10,000 citizens have been reported dead”. The textual representation of data simply
requires some intensive reading. This is because the quantitative statement just serves
as an evidence of the qualitative statements and one has to go through the entire text
before concluding anything.

Further, if the data under consideration is large then the text matter increases
substantially. As a result, the reading process becomes more intensive, time-consuming
and cumbersome.
Data Tables or Tabular Presentation
A table facilitates representation of even large amounts of data in an attractive, easy to
read and organized manner. The data is organized in rows and columns. This is one of
the most widely used forms of presentation of data since data tables are easy to
construct and read.

Components of Data Tables

 Table Number: Each table should have a specific table number for ease of
access and locating. This number can be readily mentioned anywhere
which serves as a reference and leads us directly to the data mentioned in
that particular table.

 Title: A table must contain a title that clearly tells the readers about the
data it contains, time period of study, place of study and the nature
of classification of data.

 Headnotes: A headnote further aids in the purpose of a title and displays

more information about the table. Generally, headnotes present the units
of data in brackets at the end of a table title.

 Stubs: These are titles of the rows in a table. Thus a stub display
information about the data contained in a particular row.

 Caption: A caption is the title of a column in the data table. In fact, it is a

counterpart if a stub and indicates the information contained in a column.

 Body or field: The body of a table is the content of a table in its entirety.
Each item in a body is known as a ‘cell’.

 Footnotes: Footnotes are rarely used. In effect, they supplement the title
of a table if required.

 Source: When using data obtained from a secondary source,

this source has to be mentioned below the footnote.
Construction of Data Tables

There are many ways for construction of a good table. However, some basic ideas are:

 The title should be in accordance with the objective of study: The title of
a table should provide a quick insight into the table.
  Comparison: If there might arise a need to compare any two rows or
columns then these might be kept close to each other.

 Alternative location of stubs: If the rows in a data table are lengthy, then
the stubs can be placed on the right-hand side of the table.

 Headings: Headings should be written in a singular form. For example,

‘good’ must be used instead of ‘goods’.

 Footnote: A footnote should be given only if needed.

 Size of columns: Size of columns must be uniform and symmetrical.

 Use of abbreviations: Headings and sub-headings should be free of

abbreviations.

 Units: There should be a clear specification of units above the columns.

The Advantages of Tabular Presentation
 Ease of representation: A large amount of data can be easily confined in a
data table. Evidently, it is the simplest form of data presentation.

 Ease of analysis: Data tables are frequently used for statistical analysis like
calculation of central tendency, dispersion etc.

 Helps in comparison: In a data table, the rows and columns which are
required to be compared can be placed next to each other. To point out,
this facilitates comparison as it becomes easy to compare each value.

 Economical: Construction of a data table is fairly easy and presents the

data in a manner which is really easy on the eyes of a reader. Moreover, it
saves time as well as space.
Classification of Data and Tabular Presentation
Qualitative Classification

In this classification, data in a table is classified on the basis of qualitative attributes. In

other words, if the data contained attributes that cannot be quantified like rural-urban,
boys-girls etc. it can be identified as a qualitative classification of data.

Sex Urban Rural

 Boys 200 390

Girls 167 100

Quantitative Classification

In quantitative classification, data is classified on basis of quantitative attributes.

Marks No. of Students

0-50 29

51-100 64

Temporal Classification

Here data is classified according to time. Thus when data is mentioned with respect to
different time frames, we term such a classification as temporal.

Year Sales

2016 10,000

2017 12,500
Spatial Classification

When data is classified according to a location, it becomes a spatial classification.

Country No. of Teachers

India 139,000

Russia 43,000

Diagrammatic Representation of Data

Suppose you are interested to compare the marks of your mates in a test. How can you
make the comparison interesting? It can be done by the diagrammatic representations
of data. You can use a bar diagram, histograms, pie-charts etc for this. You will be
able to answer questions like –

How will you find out the number of students in the various categories of marks in a
certain test? What can you say about the marks obtained by the maximum students?
Also, how can you compare the marks of your classmates in five other tests? Is it
possible for you to remember the marks of each and every student in all subjects? No!
Also, you don’t have the time to compare the marks of every student. Merely noting
down the marks and doing comparisons is not interesting at all. Let us study them in
detail.
Bar Diagram
This is one of the simplest techniques to do the comparison for a given set of data. A
bar graph is a graphical representation of the data in the form of rectangular bars or
columns of equal width. It is the simplest one and easily understandable among the
graphs by a group of people.

Properties of a Bar Diagram

 Each bar or column in a bar graph is of equal width.

 All bars have a common base.

 The height of the bar corresponds to the value of the data.

 The distance between each bar is the same.

Line Graph
A line graph is a type of chart or graph which shows information when a series of data
is joined by a line. It shows the changes in the data over a period of time. In a simple
line graph, we plot each pair of values of (x, y). Here, the x-axis denotes the various
time point (t), and the y-axis denotes the observation based on the time.

Properties of a Line Graph

 It consists of Vertical and Horizontal scales. These scales may or may not be
uniform.

 Data point corresponds to the change over a period of time.

 The line joining these data points shows the trend of change.
Bar Diagrams
As the name suggests, when data is presented in form of bars or rectangles, it is termed
to be a bar diagram.

Features of a Bar
 The rectangular box in a bar diagram is known as a bar. It represents the
value of a variable.

 These bars can be either vertically or horizontally arranged.

 Bars are equidistant from each other.

 Each bar originates from a common baseline or a common axis.

 The width of bars remain same but the height changes, according to the
value of a variable, to denote the difference between their values.

 Unless they are in a specific order, the convention is that bars can be
arranged in an ascending or descending order.

Types of Bar Diagrams

Simple Bar Diagram

These are the most basic type of bar diagrams. A simple bar diagram represents only a
single set of numerical data. Generally, simple bar diagrams are used to represent time
series data for a single entity.

Generally, the Y-axis contains markings which represent the range of the value of
variable whereas the X-axis contains divisions for entities like years, time
periods, areas etc.
Multiple Bar Diagram

Unlike single bar diagram, a multiple bar diagram can represent two or more sets of
numerical data on the same bar diagram. Generally, these are constructed to facilitate
comparison between two entities like average height and average weight, birth rates
and death rates etc.

Separate sets of numerical data are differentiated with the help of colour variation. By
the same token of simple bar diagrams, multiple bar diagrams also have divisions on
Y-axis and X-axis that represent different values of the variable and entities like year,
areas etc. respectively. Note that each division on X-axis has two or more bar diagrams
each according to the specified number of bars.

Sub-divided or Differential Bar Diagrams

Sub-divided bar diagrams are useful when we need to represent the total values and
the contribution of various sections of the total simultaneously. The different sections
are shaded with different colours in the same bar.

For example, such a bar diagram can be used to represent the varying levels
of employment over the years in India and each bar can be divided into two sectors, the
urban and rural. Again, here the Y-axis and X-axis represent same values as in simple
and multiple bar diagrams.

Percentage Bar Diagrams

This is derived further from the subdivided bar diagrams. In this, each bar has the same
height that represents 100 percent of the Y-axis in totality. Further, each bar is divided
into sections based on percentages calculated according to the contribution of these
sections.

Percentage bar diagrams are used when the values are really high. This is because
using subdivided bar diagrams in such cases would not be easy and appropriate.

Deviation Bar Diagrams

Lastly, the deviation bar diagrams are most interesting of the lot. In such a type of bar
diagram, there are both negative and positive values on the y-axis. The deviation bar
diagrams are used to compare the net deviation of related variables with respect to time
and location.

For example, it can be used to represent a bar diagram for savings (represented by
positive deviations) and deficit (represented by negative deviations) over years.
Pie or Circular Diagrams
In addition to bar diagrams, pie diagrams are also widely used to pictorially represent
data. In this, a circle is divided into various segments which are decided on the basis of
percentages. Which means the circle is divided into sectors depending on various
percentages.

These sectors are differentiated with the help of colours. Pie diagrams have an edge
over bar diagrams because they can easily provide an overview and provides a better
sense of contributions of each part. The steps for construction of a pie diagram are:

The first step involves finding out respective percentages. This is done by a simple
mathematical formula to find out percentages which is –

{(Parts for the respective sector)/total parts) ×100}.

For example, if in a class of 1oo students, 30 are obese, 20 are fat and 50 are slim then
the percentages will be as follows:

(30/100)×100= 30%

(20/100)×100= 20%

(50/100)×100= 50%
2] A circle comprises 360 degrees. The angles that each sector will span across is
decided by the given formula: (Percentage value/100)×360°

3] Finally, just plot these values according to their respective angles on a circle and
give appropriate markings to complete the pie chart.