METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION IN RESEARCH

Introduction

In the last unit, you studied terms like facts, theories, hypothesis, Law etc. You have seen that
you use data to test hypotheses. In a typical research situation, you are expected to collect data from the field. This implies that you collect information from people who are called subjects or respondents. You can use the information to test your hypotheses as tentative answers to the problems or questions of your study.

In this unit, we shall look at data collection in research, from where we move on to the various techniques for data collection.

OBJECTIVES

At the end of this unit, you should be able to:-

•  Explain the term data in research 
• Explain the types of data 
• Describe the questionnaire 
• List the characteristics of a questionnaire 
• Construct a typical research questionnaire 

DATA COLLECTION IN RESEARCH

Data can be regarded as information. It can be given out or taken for the purpose of making interferences in research. In this case, it may include numerical or statistical results or figures  such as percentages. It may also include verbal materials like newspaper accounts, scholastic
essay etc. we can therefore say that any collection of verbal or numerical information from which inferences or conclusions can be drawn or analyzed is regarded as data. It means that data can be quantitative or qualitative.

Any information which comes in numbers, figures, measures or quantities is said to be quantitative. Where as any information which comes as a verbal description of attribute or characteristics is regarded as qualitative. So when you have evidences obtained from other research studies, observations made from the field and laboratory settings, information extracted from records and documents, score collected from tests of various types etc; you say you have data.

Remember that you go to the field to collect data for the purpose of using the data carefully  collected from your subject, to test your hypotheses in order to draw your inferences and conclusions. These inferences and conclusions are about rejecting the hypotheses or supporting them as away of providing answers to your problem of study.

 Therefore, the data you collect and the tools which you use for collecting them must be relevant to your hypotheses and research design. According to Tolbert (1967) all data gathering devices should be closely related to the design of the study. You can conveniently describe data collection then, as a
research activity involving the process of gathering relevant information with reference to the stated hypotheses, variables and design.