What is the difference between primary and secondary sources?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The main distinction between data sources is whether it is from a primary source or a secondary source. Evaluators themselves conduct primary data collection activities for the purposes of that specific evaluation. These activities usually consist of observations, interviews, focus groups, surveys, or direct assessments. The source for each usually includes the type of respondent, for example, program participants or caseworkers, or the locus of the data collection, for example, direct observations during delivery of services, and the method used for data collection from the list above. A single source and data collection method can, of course, provide numerous key measures. Often, several of these data collection activities are bundled into “site visit” activities, sometimes referred to as protocols, to achieve the greatest efficiency possible, minimize travel, and reduce the burden on respondents. For evaluations where on-site data collection is required, key measures should be listed under each specific data source, which includes the type of respondent and the data collection activity. For example, a data source could be corrections officer focus groups or superintendent interviews. The practice of listing each key measure with their data source helps ensure that data for all key measures are being collected. Secondary data activities are those that begin by acquiring data from another source that was originally collected for purposes other than the evaluation at hand. Administrative databases are becoming very valuable secondary data sources in many evaluations. When data are actually being used for programmatic purposes, such as making payments for delivery of services or as a basis for deciding whether potential clients are assigned to treatment, the data are highly likely to be accurate and unlikely to be missing.