Quantitative data and the Irish Social Science Data Archive

1. Quantitative data and the Irish Social Science Data Archive http://www.ucd.ie/issda James McBride Director, Irish Social Science Data Archive

2. Qualitative research • Life stories • Official documents • Film / audio / photographs • Newspaper back issues • Irish Qualitative Data Archive, NUI Maynooth • http://www.iqda.ie • Digital Humanities Observatory, RIA • http://www.dho.ie • A “methodology for the study of non-naturalistic or artefactual data” (Heaton, p. 6) • Fieldnotes • Interviews • Focus Groups • Open-ended questions in surveys • Diaries

3. Quantitative research • Empirical, evidence-based research • Statistical analysis of survey and microdata • Opinion polls • Election studies • Cross-national surveys (eg. Eurobarometer) • Census of Population • Household Budget Survey • Quarterly National Household Survey

4. Secondary analysis • Use of existing data to test new ideas • Verification of existing research

5. Example • Attitudes to migration • Run your own detailed survey (primary research) • European Social Survey • c. 1,200 respondents • c. €300,000 • Use pre-existing survey (secondary analysis) • ESS Round 1 (http://ess.nsd.uib.no/) • Data (in SPSS, SAS, Stata, ASCII formats) • Bibliography of research using the data

6. Advantages • Efficient use of resources • Ready availability of high-quality data, adhering to professional standards • Data collected for one purpose can be reanalysed across a range of other subject areas • Existing data can be combined with other data to more thoroughly investigate a topic • Ability to study trends over time

7. Limitations • Data not always available • Availability of documentation

8. Availability of secondary data • Data archives • ISSDA: http://www.ucd.ie/issda • ICPSR: http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/ • CESSDA: http://www.cessda.org • Data producers • CSO (2006 Census): http://www.cso.ie • WHO: http://www.who.int/en/ • Data project websites • ESS: http://www.europeansocialsurvey.org • SHARE: http://geary.ucd.ie/share/

9. Data archives • Assist users in locating and accessing data • Acquire datasets from producers • Preserve it for future use • Main ISSDA sources of data • CSO • ESRI • Major research projects

10. issda • Founded in 2000 as a joint initiative of UCD and the ESRI, with the support of the CSO • Based at Geary Institute • Makes quantitative data available to academic and non-profit research sectors • Aims: • To ensure wider access to datasets • To encourage secondary analysis • To facilitate the wider acquisition of data analysis skills

11. Funding for issda • Funding for the data archive is provided by a grant from Cycle 4 of the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions (PRTLI) • This comes from Ireland’s EU Structural Funds Programmes 2007-2013, co-funded by the Irish Government and the European Union

12. How it works DATA SUPPLIERS (CSO, ESRI, etc) issda DATA USERS (Students, Researchers, Policymakers … )

13. Initial target: Academic researchers and third level students in social sciences in Ireland Actually: Researchers working on academic, non-profit, and consultancy projects Students: Some secondary school requests At all undergraduate and postgraduate levels Government departments/agencies Across a wide range of subject disciplines Social sciences, business/commerce, psychology, public health, engineering, agriculture, etc. International demand for Irish data –UK, USA, other EU countries Target audience

14. Official statistics data: Census Quarterly National Household Survey/Labour Force Survey EU-SILC Household Budget Survey Data from major government funded research projects: Growing Up in Ireland (GUI) Survey on Lifestyle And Nutrition Living In Ireland The Irish Longitudinal Study on Aging (2012) Irish social science and public health research projects: Irish National Election Study Irish Social and Political Attitudes Survey Irish Survey of Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy  Facilitate access to cross-national data: Eurobarometer ISSP European Values Survey European Social Survey CESSDA member catalogues ICPSR Commission for Energy regulation Smart Metering Project data Datasets

15. ICPSR –http://www.icpsr.umich.edu

16. ICPSR

17. Selection of PhD requests (i) • For use in a PhD Quantitative Research Methods assignment • Profile of mental health and well being in young people • ‘Middling’ migration in a globalising city: a study of Polish migrants in Dublin • Analysis on the well-being of children and the factors affecting well-being at school • Language change in Co. Donegal

18. Selection of PhD requests(ii) • An analysis of the evolution of the black economy in Ireland over the last 20 years, using consumer demands approaches • Examination of income equalities in the utilisation of preventive screening services under the broad umbrella of preventive health behaviour • Higher education participation in the Republic of Ireland • Analysis of low-income households

19. Accessing datasets • Major datasets shipped on CD-ROM • Internet: • Documentation available in Acrobat format via the web • A growing number of datasets available for download from the ISSDA server (accounts available on request) • http://nesstar.ucd.ie/webview • ICPSR: go to https://www.icpsr.umich.edu/rpxlogin to set up an account • http://www.ucd.ie/issda

20. Contact details • http://www.ucd.ie/issda • issda@ucd.ie • 01 716 4612 • Twitter: @issda