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.

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.