Navigating the World of Secondary Data: Hands-on Experience
Global Research & Training
New Delhi
Contact us: info@grtedu.com Website: www.grtedu.com
Navigating
the World of Secondary Data: Hands-on Experience
Introduction to Secondary Data
Ø Secondary data refers to information that was
collected by someone else for a different purpose but now it will be use by
another researcher.
Ø In other words, Researcher do not collect it directly,
but he or she use it for their research
purpose.
Ø It tells about Who We Are? And How Much We Are? In
terms of gender, region, religion, and its quantity.
Examples:
Ø Data collected from government reports, surveys, or
census data.
Ø Published articles, academic journals, books, and
reports from organizations.
Ø Pre-existing datasets available on data-sharing
platforms or government websites.
Unit-Level Data vs. Aggregate Data
Unit-Level data:
Contains detailed, disaggregated
information at the establishment or unit level.
Data at the firm or household level, e.g., fixed capital, working capital, output, employment …etc. at a factory level.
Aggregate data:
Summarized data across establishments,
e.g., total employment in a region or sector.
For example, aggregate data might show the
total number of workers in the manufacturing sector in a given region, without
showing data for individual factories.
Types of data collection:
Census
Data
Data collected from every unit in a population (e.g., all households in a country).
Sample
Data
Data collected from a sample of the population, often with specialized focus (e.g., health surveys, labor force surveys).
Administrative
Data
Information
gathered through government records and databases (e.g., tax records, school
enrollments).
Some formal definitions include:
· Burns and Bush (2010): Secondary data is data that were originally collected for a different research question or objective but can be used for new analysis.
· Babbie (2013): Secondary data are Data collected by someone other than the user.
· Creswell
(2014): Secondary data are data that were collected
previously by other researchers or organizations for different research
objectives.
Types of Secondary Data
1.
Time-Series
Data:
Data
collected and recorded over a specific period at regular intervals (e.g.,
annually, quarterly, monthly), Decade.
Examples include: Annual GDP data for a country over several years, Population census over decades
2.
Cross-sectional Data:
Data
collected at a single point in time across multiple entities (population,
literacy rate, unemployment rate, etc.).
Examples include: Education levels across different regions in 2024, HDI value across Asian counties in 2024.
3.
Panel Data (Longitudinal Data)
A
combination of time series and cross-sectional data, where data is collected
for the same entities (individuals, regions, countries, etc.) over multiple
time periods.
Example
include: HDI values for
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka from 2007–2022.
|
Comparison of Types |
|||
|
Feature |
Time Series |
Cross-Sectional |
Panel Data |
|
Dimension |
Single entity, multiple times |
Multiple entities, single time |
Multiple entities, multiple times |
Importance of Secondary Data
1.
Cost-Effective:
Secondary
data is cost-saving and often freely available or comes at a low cost. It is
more affordable option, especially for researchers working with limited
budgets.
2.
Time-Saving:
Secondary
data is already available and can be used
immediately which can save substantial time.
3.
Large Scale and Comprehensive:
Secondary data often provides access to
large datasets, offering broad coverage across multiple regions, time periods,
or demographic groups.
4.
Cross-Disciplinary
Research:
Secondary data can be used across
different research disciplines.
Ethical Considerations:
1.
Data Privacy and Confidentiality:
Researchers
must ensure that privacy and confidentiality are maintained. The use of such
data should comply with ethical standards and data protection regulations
(e.g., PDPA (Personal Data Protection Act) and General Data Protection
Regulation (GDPR) etc.
2.
Acknowledging Sources and Copyright:
Using
secondary data ethically means giving proper credit to the original creators or
collectors of the data. This shows respect for their work and helps avoid
plagiarism.
- Indian Government Database
- International Database
- Private Database
- Literature Database
India offers several open data platforms
through its government websites. Thes data span multiple sectors,
including demographics, economics, health, education, and more. Key
sources include the Census of India, MoSPI (ASI, PLFS, NSS, IIP,
Economic Census…etc.), NFHS, RBI, AISHE, USISE+, NDAP
(NITI Aayog’s database), Data.Gov etc.
International
Secondary Data: Key Sources
Several international organizations and universities offer
open data platforms through its databases or portal. Thes data
span multiple sectors, including demographics, economics, social, health,
education, and more. Key sources for
international secondary data include the United Nations database, World Bank
database, International Labour Organization database, World Health Organization
database International Monetary Fund database and FAOStat databse ...etc.
Literature
Database: Key Sources
Key
literature data sources include peer-reviewed journals, books, and conference
proceedings, as well as online databases that provide comprehensive access to
scholarly material. Notable databases include Sodh Ganga (a reservoir of
theses), Sodh Gangotri (a repository of synopses), Google Scholar,
JSTOR, Science Direct, ResearchGate, and Academia.edu
etc., all of which serve as rich repositories for academic literature
across disciplines. These platforms offer diverse, reliable materials essential
for robust research.
For more details on the data sources and its links, please visit
this article.
https://grtedu.blogspot.com/2025/01/name-of-secondary-data-sources-and-its.html
Thank
You and Best Wishes
Raghavendra Yadav
Global
Research & Training, New Delhi
Email: info@grtedu.com | Web: www.grtedu.com
Connect
with us on social media:
Comments
Post a Comment