Electronic Data Collection

Learnings from the Field

Introduction

o Electronic data collection has drastically changed the way

surveys are administered.

o Electronic data collection is used in hospitals for patient care,

clinical trials,socio-economic surveys, market research etc.

o Increasing use of electronic equipment (tablets and phones) is

currently being witnessed.

o Greater penetration and familiarity of cell phones and tablets

has also aided the use of electronic devices while surveying

human subjects.

There is a reduction in the barrier created between the respondent

and the surveyor by electronic equipment.

Surveyors also have increasing familiarity with the equipment which

helps in training.

Why Electronic Surveying?

o Easy access to data after collection.

o Eliminates issues and problems that arises during data entry.

o Various built-in options like back checks, direct streaming of

forms, GPS coordinates, audio recording, time stamps, photos

etc.

These provide multiple options for quality checks :

• Pictorial Records

• Random audio checks

• Average time taken for a survey/ section of a survey

GPS coordinates aids in listing and re visits

Greater flexibility in questionnaire and survey design

Why Electronic Surveying?

o Respondents’ answers are more accurate because of survey form

design (we can control constraints, relevance).

o No physical copies are created, only soft copies where PII data

can be easily excluded.

o Copies of data files are created at every stage – Raw Data, Pre-

Scrutiny Data and Post Scrutiny Data.

o Multiple copies of the data can be created (and should be !!!)

o Compatibility with various languages

Reality's Lessons for Field

Operations

Equipment

o Equipment is not cheap and a basic android phone costs around

Rs.5,000 ($85) and a tablet around Rs.10,000 ($165) .

o Cost should not be the only factor when buying a device. The

features of a device are very important. Think about storage

space, GPS, wi-fi connectivity and compatibility with existing

devices, easy to train surveyors with the device etc.

o While most devices have a long life, they need to be replaced.

Phones need to be replaced at least once in a 1.5 years and tablets

once in 2.5 years.

o Malfunctioning of equipment is not uncommon; it is a not an

outlier and there is a constant need to replace equipment even on

the field.

While most software save a back up version of the surveys we have

had cases where the memory card has failed.

Equipment

o Equipment belonging to different manufacturers function differently. This heterogeneity needs to be considered when building forms.

The best way to identify the most suitable device for a survey sequence is through trial and error (and patience).

If a survey has different components, uniformity of devices within a component is desirable.

o Be wary of software updates and double check if anything needs to be uploaded/ transferred prior to a software update ( it has potential to create havoc).

o Securing equipment and data is important.

There are chances of theft and ensuring data cannot be accessed by a third party is important.

Constant uploading of data to servers becomes very important here

Software

o Selection of the right software is important.

o Check the features of the software and decide which is best

suited for your survey.

Test different formats within a software and look for the one which

is most compatible in terms of ease of building of forms, access

and training personnel.

o External support is important. Check if the software provider

offers support or if you have a resource person easily accessible.

o There are many options available. For eg. ODK is a open source

and free software platform. Survey CTO is a pay and use

software which is constantly innovating to meet requirements of

various survey formats.

o Learn the software you are using. It is a very resourceful tool

when you need to troubleshoot and you will create better

questionnaires

Survey Operations

o Checking of forms before roll out is an extremely painful and

boring task but the most important. Multiple checks done by

different people using multiple devices is ideal.

Reminder : Exceptional cases exist and you will be faced with

circumstances where your device will not accept an answer.

(Notes become very important here).

You have two ways of resolving this :

• Upload a new version of the existing form or a new form.

The main issue with this is access to internet during a survey.

• A special note of the issue can be taken and included during

scrutiny while the new version of the forms can be

downloaded when internet access becomes possible.

Survey Operations

o Constantly upload and transfer data from devices to the server.

o Ensure easy identification of forms by devices, surveyors by

devices and uniquely identify each form

o If a data flow is decided, stick to it. Pilot your data flow at least

once.

o Electronic surveying does not eliminate the need to take notes.

Forms can be built to control quality to a great extent but in cases

when you work primarily with numbers and questions which are

tricky, notes are extremely useful.

Scrutiny

o Scrutiny is the next step after the raw data has been processed.

o Electronic data collection does makes scrutiny easier but does not

eliminate the need for scrutiny.

For eg. Mail merge templates create exports data into a word format

and correction can applied through electronic forms.

Tracking of scrutiny changes is also simplified.

o The need to emphasis on scrutiny is that while electronic data

collection improves quality and consistency, you cannot control

for everything and all consistency checks cannot be in built.

Scrutiny

o Surveyors are still human beings and can commit errors. Even

your best surveyors can make mistakes.

o Problems related to exceptional cases are also clarified during

scrutiny.

A survey can be extremely comprehensive but surprises are not

uncommon (For eg. An ATM Card was used as collateral).

It is not possible to postpone uploading forms since it takes time

and creative thinking to understand and figure out exceptional

cases (Notes also play a very important role here).

Things you cannot control

o Errors will pop up during surveying or back end processing. It

can either be a mail merge issue, a do-file issue or the software

might have a bug.

Frequent processing of data becomes important.

Constant interaction with your surveyors and scrutinizers is also a

good way to become aware of these issues.

Do not ignore any issue even if you think it is random or caused by

a surveyor. Always check your do files and your mail merge

templates.

Summary and Conclusion

o Electronic Data collection does make life and work easier

o At the same time, one needs to be understand that surprises

(not good ones) do occur even with electronic surveying.

o Mock runs, picking the right equipment and software, familiarity

with devices and software, contingency plans ( extra devices on

the field and good notes) can help you out to a great extent.

o Lots of patience and creative thinking is always an added bonus.