USING SECONDARY DATA IN EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH © LOUIS COHEN, LAWRENCE MANION AND KEITH MORRISON

STRUCTURE OF THE CHAPTER Defining secondary data Advantages of using secondary data Challenges in using secondary data Ethical issues in using secondary data Examples of secondary data analysis Working with secondary data

SECONDARY DATA AND ITS ANALYSIS . . . work on data that were originally collected for a different purpose or use pre-existing data, sometimes from the same researcher but usually collected by someone else, for answering new or additional research questions. pursue a research interest that differs from that of the original research. addresses new or additional purposes. re‑analyse existing data from a new angle or with new analytical tools. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

HEATON’S (2008) FIVE TYPES OF SECONDARY ANALYSIS OF QUALITATIVE DATA Supplementary analysis in-depth analysis and additional subset/sub-sample analysis of an issue or aspect of the data that only emerged from, or which was only partially addressed in, the original research Supra analysis: where the secondary study has the aims and areas of focus that transcend those of the original study Re-analysis: to validate and confirm findings of the original study; Amplified analysis to conduct comparative or combed analysis of two or more qualitative data sets Assorted analysis to use existing data with new primary data in the same study © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

ADVANTAGES OF USING SECONDARY DATA The scale, scope and amount of the data are usually much larger and more representative than a single researcher could gather. The large scale and scope of data can be analysed at a level of complexity not available to smaller-scale research. Large-scale data may be more robust than small-scale data, with greater validity. The quality of the data might be higher and more rigorous than those collected by individuals. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

ADVANTAGES OF USING SECONDARY DATA The data have already been collected, thereby no problems of access, time and money. The research is unobtrusive and can respect ethical issues of privacy, confidentiality, anonymity, non-traceability and leaving people alone. Data may exist on sensitive topics and from ‘hard-to-reach’ people. Many of the data types are at the individual level, enabling detailed analysis over time and contexts. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

CHALLENGES IN USING SECONDARY DATA Data were collected for purposes, interests and to answer research questions and in contexts that differ substantially from those of the present researcher, and this may bias the present research. The data may not be a sufficiently close fit to the conceptual framework, purposes, sampling or data types sought for the present research. The definitions used in the original data may be a poor fit to the present research and may change over time. There may be limited or no evidence on how the original data were collected, from whom and by whom, and with what response rates. Knowledge of the original research design, instruments and methods for the data collection may be unavailable. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

CHALLENGES IN USING SECONDARY DATA There may be limited accompanying information on the original studies. There may be restrictions on how the data may be accessed, used and shared. There may be problems of informed consent and confidentiality. Secondary data may not be neutral, but may emanate from governments, associations and institutions, i.e. those with power and with a particular agenda at the time, e.g. political, ideological. They may be imperfect representations of the real situation. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

CHALLENGES IN USING SECONDARY DATA They may not be very detailed or rich. They may be out-of-date and ill-suited to the present situation. They are socio-cultural, temporal, spatial constructions. The data may be ambiguous and contain errors (which might be impossible to know). The data may have been saved selectively, i.e. some data may be excluded from the original study. Some constructs or composite factors may be defined operationally by a limited range of variables. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

ETHICS IN USING SECONDARY DATA When researchers seek the consent of participants, in effect they are asking them to consent to something which is uncertain, as the future and the future use are uncertain, i.e. informed consent is not really being fully informed. Researchers must consider: The original informed consent, confidentiality, anonymity, non-traceability, data protection; The avoidance of harm (including stigmatization, prejudice, misrepresentation or marginalization); Ownership of data (whether it is acceptable to have shared, common ownership, not least if the intentions of the later usage contradict those of the original use); Abuse of data; Do no harm. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

IN WORKING WITH SECONDARY DATA, CONSIDER ... The original purposes, conceptual and theoretical structure of the data. The inclusion and exclusion of variables and indicators in the original research that might be important for the present researcher. The relevance and suitability of the data for the researcher’s present purposes. The definitions of terms being used in the original and present research. The type and quality of the original data. Who collected the data. Who gave the original data and how trustworthy are the original data. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

IN WORKING WITH SECONDARY DATA, CONSIDER ... What was the sampling strategy in the original research, and how it fits the present researcher’s purposes. What were the response rates and attrition rates, and which groups were over‑represented, under‑represented or absent, i.e. sampling bias and population characteristics. What questions and kinds of questions were asked and how they were asked. What response categories and scales were used. The date of publication of the original data. The intended audience of the original data. The intended and actual coverage of the topic or issue. How factually correct were the original data. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

IN WORKING WITH SECONDARY DATA, CONSIDER ... The socio-temporal/political/ideological contexts of the original data, and how well these match the present researcher’s contexts, situation and purposes. What and how much missing data were there in the original dataset. The format of the data archive. How were the original data analysed and grouped. What was the unit and scale of data collection used (e.g. individual, organizational, local, regional, national etc.). How were the data summarized, presented, categorized and grouped in the original data set, how was this reached, and how compatible are they to the present researcher’s categories and purposes. What ethical issues need to be addressed in using secondary data. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

STEPS IN WORKING WITH SECONDARY DATA Identify your own research purposes and research questions. Search and select possible secondary datasets and data for suitability for your own research. Step 2 Familiarize yourself as much as possible with the original research and data. Step 3 Assess and evaluate the data to see if they are amendable to secondary analysis and suitable for your present research. Step 4 Check if there are restrictions (and copyright) on how the data may be used, analyzed, disseminated, shared, and published. Step 5 Check that ethical issues have been addressed. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors

STEPS IN WORKING WITH SECONDARY DATA Check the fit and congruence between the original study and your own study. Step 7 Prepare your data: reformat and select the data if necessary to fit your purposes. Step 8 Analyze the data to address your research purposes and research questions. Step 9 Decide how you will report the secondary analysis and its findings. © 2018 Louis Cohen, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison; individual chapters, the contributors