Social Research Glossary A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Home
Citation reference: Harvey, L., 2012-24, Social Research Glossary, Quality Research International, http://www.qualityresearchinternational.com/socialresearch/
This is a dynamic glossary and the author would welcome any e-mail suggestions for additions or amendments.
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Secondary data
Secondary data (sometimes referred to as unobtrusive data) is data not directly collected by the researcher but is initially collected or produced for other purposes.
Secondary data can be any data ranging from the government census to betting slips. Seondary data, unlike primary data, is not directly collected by the researcher.
There is no worry with this information that the respondent is influenced by the researcher, (although the respondent may have been affected by the collection procedure or the implications for him/herself, e.g. tax returns).
However, the researcher has no control over the data collection nor the criteria for measurement.
Secondary data tends to be indicative rather than precise.
Representativeness can be a problem.
A secondary data research project involves the gathering and/or use of existing data for purposes other than those for which they were originally collected. These secondary data may be obtained from many sources, including literature, industry surveys, compilations from computerized databases and information systems, and computerized or mathematical models of environmental processes.
Management Study Guide (2008–13) states:
Secondary data is the data that have been already collected by and readily available from other sources. Such data are cheaper and more quickly obtainable than the primary data and also may be available when primary data can not be obtained at all.
See also
Researching the Real World Section 1.4.6.1
Management Study Guide, 2008–13, 'Secondary data' available at http://www.managementstudyguide.com/secondary_data.htm, accessed 14 April 2013, still available 14 June 2019.
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