Qualitative data

Qualitative data is a categorical measurement expressed not in terms

of numbers, but rather by means of a natural language description. In
statistics, it is often used interchangeably with "categorical" data.
For example: favorite color = "blue"
height = "tall"
lthough we may have categories, the categories may have a
structure to them. !hen there is not a natural ordering of the
categories, we call these nominal categories. "xamples might be
gender, race, religion, or sport.
!hen the categories may be ordered, these are called ordinal
variables. #ategorical variables that $udge si%e &small, medium, large,
etc.' are ordinal variables. ttitudes &strongly disagree, disagree,
neutral, agree, strongly agree' are also ordinal variables, however we
may not (now which value is the best or worst of these issues. )ote
that the distance between these categories is not something we can
measure.
Quantitative data
Quantitative data is a numerical measurement expressed not by means
of a natural language description, but rather in terms of numbers.
*owever, not all numbers are continuous and measurable. For example,
the social security number is a number, but not something that one can
add or subtract.
For example: favorite color = "+,- nm"
height = "../ m"
Quantitative data always are associated with a scale measure.
0robably the most common scale type is the ratio1scale. 2bservations
of this type are on a scale that has a meaningful %ero value but also
have an e3uidistant measure &i.e., the difference between .- and 4- is
the same as the difference between .-- and ..-'. For example, a .-
year1old girl is twice as old as a , year1old girl. 5ince you can
measure %ero years, time is a ratio1scale variable. 6oney is another
common ratio1scale 3uantitative measure. 2bservations that you count
are usually ratio1scale &e.g., number of widgets'. .. more general
3uantitative measure is the interval scale. Interval scales also have a
e3uidistant measure. *owever, the doubling principle brea(s down in
this scale. temperature of ,- degrees #elsius is not "half as hot" as
a temperature of .--, but a difference of .- degrees indicates the
same difference in temperature anywhere along the scale. 7he 8elvin
temperature scale, however, constitutes a ratio scale because on the
8elvin scale %ero indicates absolute %ero in temperature, the complete
absence of heat. 5o one can say, for example, that 4-- 8elvin is
twice as hot as .-- 8elvin.
0rimary and 5econdary 9ata
9ata can be classified as either primary or secondary.
0rimary 9ata
0rimary data means original data that has been collected specially for
the purpose in mind. It means someone collected the data from the
original source first hand. 9ata collected this way is called primary
data.
7he people who gather primary data may be an authori%ed
organi%ation, investigator, enumerator or they may be $ust someone
with a clipboard. 7hese people are acting as a witness so primary
data is only considered as reliable as the people who gathered it.
:esearch where one gathers this (ind of data is referred to as field
research.
For example: your own 3uestionnaire.
5econdary 9ata
5econdary data is data that has been collected for another purpose.
!hen we use 5tatistical 6ethod with 0rimary 9ata from another
purpose for our purpose we refer to it as 5econdary 9ata. It means
that one purpose;s 0rimary 9ata is another purpose;s 5econdary 9ata.
5econdary data is data that is being reused. <sually in a different
context.
:esearch where one gathers this (ind of data is referred to as des(
research.
For example: data from a boo(.
!hy #lassify 9ata 7his !ay=
8nowing how the data was collected allows critics of a study to
search for bias in how it was conducted. good study will welcome
such scrutiny. "ach type has its own wea(nesses and strengths.
0rimary 9ata is gathered by people who can focus directly on the
purpose in mind. 7his helps ensure that 3uestions are meaningful to the
purpose but can introduce bias in those same 3uestions. 5econdary
9ata doesn;t have the privilege of this focus but is only susceptible to
bias introduced in the choice of what data to reuse. 5tated another
way, those who gather 5econdary 9ata get to pic( the 3uestions.
7hose who gather 0rimary 9ata get to write the 3uestions.
6"7*295 2F #2>>"#7I6? 97
7he main portion of 5tatistics is the display of summari%ed data. 9ata
is initially collected from a given source, whether they are
experiments, surveys, or observation, and is presented in one of four
methods:
7extular 6ethod
7he reader ac3uires information through reading the gathered data.
7abular 6ethod
0rovides a more precise, systematic and orderly presentation of
data in rows or columns.
5emi1tabular 6ethod
<ses both textual and tabular methods.
?raphical 6ethod
7he utili%ation of graphs is most effective method of visually
presenting statistical results or findings.
"xperiments
5cientists try to identify cause1and1effect relationships because this
(ind of (nowledge is especially powerful, for example, drug cures
disease @. Aarious methods exist for detecting cause1and1effect
relationships. n experiment is a method that most clearly shows
cause1and1effect because it isolates and manipulates a single
variable, in order to clearly show its effect. "xperiments almost
always have two distinct variables: First, an independent variable &IA'
is manipulated by an experimenter to exist in at least two levels
&usually "none" and "some"'. 7hen the experimenter measures the
second variable, the dependent variable &9A'.
simple example:
5uppose the experimental hypothesis that concerns the scientist is
that reading a !i(i will enhance (nowledge. )otice that the hypothesis
is really an attempt to state a causal relationship li(e, "if you read a
!i(i, then you will have enhanced (nowledge." 7he antecedent condition
&reading a !i(i' causes the conse3uent condition &enhanced (nowledge'.
ntecedent conditions are always IAs and conse3uent conditions are
always 9As in experiments. 5o the experimenter would produce two
levels of !i(i reading &none and some, for example' and record
(nowledge. If the sub$ects who got no !i(i exposure had less
(nowledge than those who were exposed to !i(is, it follows that the
difference is caused by the IA.
5o, the reason scientists utili%e experiments is that it is the only way
to determine causal relationships between variables. "xperiments tend
to be artificial because they try to ma(e both groups identical with
the single exception of the levels of the independent variable.
5ample 5urveys
5ample surveys involve the selection and study of a sample of items
from a population. sample is $ust a set of members chosen from a
population, but not the whole population. survey of a whole
population is called a census.
sample from a population may not give accurate results but it helps
in decision ma(ing.
"xamples
"xamples of sample surveys:
0honing the fifth person on every page of the local phoneboo(
and as(ing them how long they have lived in the area. &5ystematic
5ample'
9ropping a 3uad. in five different places on a field and counting
the number of wild flowers inside the 3uad. &#luster 5ample'
5electing sub1populations in proportion to their incidence in the
overall population. For instance, a researcher may have reason to
select a sample consisting B-C females and D-C males in a
population with those same gender proportions. &5tratified 5ample'
5electing several cities in a country, several neighbourhoods in
those cities and several streets in those neighbourhoods to recruit
participants for a survey &6ulti1stage sample'
7he term random sample is used for a sample in which every item in
the population is e3ually li(ely to be selected.
@ias
!hile sampling is a more cost effective method of determining a result,
small samples or samples that depend on a certain selection method will
result in a bias within the results.
7he following are common sources of bias:
5ampling bias or statistical bias, where some individuals are more
li(ely to be selected than others &such as if you give e3ual chance
of cities being selected rather than weighting them by si%e'
5ystemic bias, where external influences try to affect the
outcome &e.g. funding organi%ations wanting to have a specific
result'
2bservational 5tudies
7he most primitive method of understanding the laws of nature utili%es
observational studies. @asically, a researcher goes out into the world
and loo(s for variables that are associated with one another. )otice
that, unli(e experiments, observational research had no Independent
Aariables 111 nothing is manipulated by the experimenter. :ather,
observations &also called correlations, after the statistical techni3ues
used to analy%e the data' have the e3uivalent of two 9ependent
Aariables.
5ome of the foundations of modern scientific thought are based on
observational research. #harles 9arwin, for example, based his
explanation of evolution entirely on observations he made. #ase
studies, where individuals are observed and 3uestioned to determine
possible causes of problems, are a form of observational research
that continues to be popular today. In fact, every time you see a
physician he or she is performing observational science.
7here is a problem in observational science though 111 it cannot
ever identify causal relationships because even though two variables
are related both might be caused by a third, unseen, variable. 5ince
the underlying laws of nature are assumed to be causal laws,
observational findings are generally regarded as less compelling than
experimental findings.
7he (ey way to identify experimental studies is that they involve an
intervention such as the administration of a drug to one group of
patients and a placebo to another group. 2bservational studies only
collect data and ma(e comparisons.
6edicine is an intensively studied discipline, and not all phenomenon can
be studies by experimentation due to obvious ethical or logistical
restrictions. 7ypes of studies include:
#ase series: 7hese are purely observational, consisting of
reports of a series of similar medical cases. For example, a series
of patients might be reported to suffer from bone abnormalities as
well as immunodeficiencies. 7his association may not be significant,
occurring purely by chance. 2n the other hand, the association may
point to a mutation in common pathway affecting both the s(eletal
system and the immune system.
#ase1#ontrol: 7his involves an observation of a disease state,
compared to normal healthy controls. For example, patients with
lung cancer could be compared with their otherwise healthy
neighbors. <sing neighbors limits bias introduced by demographic
variation. 7he cancer patients and their neighbors &the control'
might be as(ed about their exposure history &did they wor( in an
industrial setting', or other ris( factors such as smo(ing. nother
example of a case1control study is the testing of a diagnostic
procedure against the gold standard. 7he gold standard represents
the control, while the new diagnostic procedure is the "case." 7his
might seem to 3ualify as an "intervention" and thus an experiment.
#ross1sectional: Involves many variables collected all at the
same time. <sed in epidemiology to estimate prevalence, or conduct
other surveys.
#ohort: group of sub$ects followed over time, prospectively.
Framingham study is classic example. @y observing exposure and
then trac(ing outcomes, cause and effect can be better isolated.
*owever this type of study cannot conclusively isolate a cause and
effect relationship.
*istoric #ohort: 7his is the same as a cohort except that
researchers use an historic medical record to trac( patients and
outcomes.