Data Collection (AQA GCSE Geography)

Data Collection

• Data which records quantities is quantitative data

• Examples of quantitative data are:

  • Numerical data collected in questionnaires

  • Traffic counts

  • Environmental quality surveys

  • River data: velocity, discharge

  • Weather data

• Data which records descriptive information is qualitative data

• Examples of qualitative data:

  • Field sketches and photographs

  • Non-numeric questionnaire data

  • Interview answers

Questionnaires and interviews

• When collecting data via questionnaires or interviews a number of questioning types can be used:

  • Closed questions where answers are limited to single words, numbers or a list of options

  • Statements which use a scale to gauge people's views. For example, strongly agree/agree 

  • Open questions where the respondent can give any answer

• Questionnaires can be used to gather a large sample of data

• Interviews are more in-depth and tend to be used to gather a smaller data sample

Environmental quality surveys

• These are used to collect data about the environmental quality of different sites

• They use the judgement of the person conducting the survey to assess environmental quality against a range of indicators

  • Using a sliding scale (1 -5) or bipolar scale (-3 to 3)

  • Usually, the lower the score the more negative the assessment of the environmental quality

• They are subjective because they are based on the opinion of the person completing them

• This can be reduced by:

  • Completing in small groups to reach a consensus regarding the score

  • Using the mode of EQS completed by a number of students

• They produce quantitative data

Sampling Methods

Purpose of Sampling

• It gives an overview of the whole feature/population to be sampled

• There is not enough time/equipment/access to measure the whole area being examined

• Sampling provides a representative and statistically valid sample of the whole

Types of Sampling

• There are three types of sampling to consider

  • Random

  • Systematic

  • Stratified

• Random sampling

  • A grid is drawn/placed over the area to be studied

  • The squares which include part of the study area are numbered

  • The numbers are entered into a random number generator 

  • The samples should be collected as near as possible to the points given

• Systematic sampling

  • The samples are selected at regular intervals for example every 500 meters or every tenth person

• Stratified sampling

  • Used when the study area includes significantly different parts known as subsets 

  • Is based on the idea that the sample represents the whole population 

  • If a questionnaire is being used to collect data and the population of the study area has 10% of people over 65, then the sample should include 10% of people over 65

• All sampling methods have advantages and disadvantages