Question Sir
Distinguish primary data from secondary data. What are the merits, demerits and
limitations?
Answer URVI,
HERE IS SOME USEFUL MATERIAL.
REGARDS
LEO LINGHAM
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1.PRIMARY RESEARCH
Primary Sources
Some definitions of primary sources:
Primary sources are original materials on which other research is based
They are usually the first formal appearance of results in the print or electronic literature (for example, the first publication of the results of scientific investigations is a primary source.)
They present information in its original form, neither interpreted nor condensed nor evaluated by other writers.
They are from the time period (for example, something written close to when what it is recording happened is likely to be a primary source.)
Primary sources present original thinking, report on discoveries, or share new information.
Some examples of primary sources:
scientific journal articles reporting experimental research results
proceedings of Meetings, Conferences and Symposia.
technical reports
dissertations or theses (may also be secondary)
patents
sets of data, such as census statistics
works of literature (such as poems and fiction)
diaries
autobiographies
interviews, surveys and fieldwork
letters and correspondence
speeches
newspaper articles (may also be secondary)
government documents
photographs and works of art
original documents (such as birth certificate or trial transcripts)
Internet communications on email, listservs, and newsgroups
ALSO
means gathering information directly from the consumers
which could involve
-using questionnaire.
-using focus group [ face to face interview ]
-telephone interviews
-panel interviews
-person to person interviews
etc etc
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1.MERITS
-from the primary source.
-original information.
-current data.
-reliable.
-clearly defined.
2.DEMERITS
-time consuming.
-expensive process.
-difficult to procure, sometimes.
3.LIMITATIONS.
-due to time/ cost factors, the amount of data gathering is restricted.
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2.SECONDARY RESEARCH
Secondary Sources
Secondary sources are less easily defined than primary sources. What some define as a secondary source, others define as a tertiary source. Nor is it always easy to distinguish primary from secondary sources. A newspaper article is a primary source if it reports events, but a secondary source if it analyses and comments on those events. In science, secondary sources are those which simplify the process of finding and evaluating the primary literature. They tend to be works which repackage, reorganize, reinterpret, summarise, index or otherwise "add value" to the new information reported in the primary literature. More generally, secondary sources
Some Definitions of Secondary Sources:
describe, interpret, analyze and evaluate the primary sources
comment on and discuss the evidence provided by primary sources
are works which are one or more steps removed from the event or information they refer to, being written after the fact with the benefit of hindsight.
Some examples of secondary sources:
bibliographies (may also be tertiary)
biographical works
commentaries
dictionaries and encyclopedias (may also be tertiary)
dissertations or theses (more usually primary)
handbooks and data compilations (may also be tertiary)
history
indexing and abstracting tools used to locate primary & secondary sources (may also be tertiary)
journal articles, particularly in disciplines other than science (may also be primary)
monographs (other than fiction and autobiography)
newspaper and popular magazine articles (may also be primary)
review articles and literature reviews
textbooks (may also be tertiary)
treatises works of criticism and interpretation
ALSO
means gathering information indirectly from the published source
which could involve
-using census data.
-buying published data from bureaus
-gathering data from stock exchange
-collecting information from company annual reports.
etc etc
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1.MERITS
-from the secondary source.
-easy to source
-less time required.
-less expensive.
2.DEMERITS
-repackaged information.
-re-interpretation.
-not so reliable.
-old data and not current.
3.LIMITATIONS.
-not current data.
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