Collecting and Using Archival Data WHAT IS ARCHIVAL

Collecting and Using Archival Data

WHAT IS ARCHIVAL DATA? • Archival data is data that already exists in someone else’s files as a result of administrative procedures or past studies or evaluations.

Sources of Archival Data: · Public records · Think tanks · Health and human service organizations · Schools and education departments · Academic and similar institutions · Business and industry

Possible types of data available: · Demographics · Behavior characteristics · Health characteristics · Attitudes – racial, political, social, etc. · Knowledge and awareness in certain areas · Environmental conditions or factors affecting the population and/or your work

Why collect and use archival data? • It’s easier and less time-consuming than collecting all the data yourself. • Archival data may have already been processed by people with more statistical expertise than you, making it easier to use in analysis. • Even with raw data, the basic organization and preparation (transcription of interviews, entry of numbers into a spreadsheet or specific software, etc. ) may have already been done, again saving time and resources. • It’s quite possible that you can find more information than you’d be able to gather if you did it yourself.

• Archival data could touch on important areas you might not have thought of, or identify patterns or relationships you wouldn’t have looked for. • It may eliminate the need to correct for such problems as lack of inter-rater reliability or observer bias. • Archival data allows the possibility of looking at the effects of your work over time. • Archival data can make it possible for small organizations with limited resources to nonetheless conduct thorough evaluation studies.

When should you collect and use archival data? • When it’s available. • When it’s relevant. • When you don’t have the time and/or resources to collect the data yourself. • When it can truly inform your evaluation.

How do you collect and use archival data? 1. Determine what information you’re looking for and why. • Data on past participants. • General information on the population and/or the community you’re working with. • Specific information on appropriate characteristics of the population you’re working with. • Cultural information. • Data on a similar group that can be used as a control or comparison. • Results of previous studies.

2. Determine who is likely to have collected that information. • Government departments and agencies, the census, and other entities whose data is likely to be available in public records. • Research organizations. • Academia. • News media. • Foundations and other private funders. • Hospitals and other health care providers. • Mental health providers. • Human service and other community-based organizations. • Advocates and watchdog organizations. • Community activists. • Community economic development organizations. • Businesses and corporations.

3. Decide where you should look for archival data. • Your own archives • The Internet • The original source • Libraries

4. Decide how you plan to use the data once you have it. • To better understand the context of your evaluation. • To identify areas to address. • To establish a baseline against which to measure your results. • To identify already-existing trends that may affect the results of your evaluation study. • To establish a standard of comparison against which to measure your efforts. • To act as a control group. • To provide data for a longitudinal study.