Common Data Sources
Data used in evaluation generally originate from three sources: people, documents, and observation. Whether or not you need to collect new data or can use existing data will depend on your evaluation.
The people involved in a program are a common source of data, although data may be collected from other stakeholders as well. Examples of people who could provide useful information include:
- Clients—program participants and/or nonparticipants
- Program staff, managers, administrators
- Funders
- Staff of other agencies
- Representatives of advocacy groups
- Community leaders
- Elected officials, legislators, policymakers
- Local and state health officials
- General public
- Critics or skeptics
Documents of various types can also serve as a good source of data. This can range from published medical literature to documents produced specifically for a program's evaluation. Examples of documents that could serve as data sources include grant proposals, meeting minutes, publicity materials, previous evaluation reports, medical records, and so on. For more examples, see Document Review section.
Finally, observation is useful for collecting descriptive data, such as physical characteristics like a program's setting or key environmental features, or how things work in practice like personal interactions, program activities, and behaviors. Examples of ways to use observation in primary data collection include observing people's behavior in meetings, job performance, various elements of an environment like the quantity and placement of "healthy" vs. "unhealthy" foods in a supermarket, and so on.
Adapted from: US Department of Health and Human Services. Physical Activity Evaluation Handbook. Atlanta, GA:
US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2002.
Identify Data Sources
