• WHAT is the nature of the data you have collected?

Before you can start thinking about the details of your presentation, you must take a step back and make sure you really understand the data you have in front of you. Examining the nature and content of your data carefully is a critical first step. This may sound obvious, but there are many different ways to look at data, and the kinds of data you have available to you will affect your presentation choices.

Quantitative and Qualitative Data
First, determine the general type of data you have collected: Is it quantitative, qualitative, or a combination of both?

Generally speaking, quantitative approaches to data collection deal with numbers and answer the questions who, what, where, and how much. These approaches are useful for describing concrete phenomena and for statistically analyzing your results (e.g., calculating the percentage decrease of cigarette use among 8th grade students). Some examples of quantitative data include test scores, attendance rates, drop-out rates, and survey rating scales.

Example: Disciplinary reports reveal a 10 percent decrease in
incidents of physical fighting on school premises.

Qualitative approaches deal with words (stories) and answer the questions why and how. Qualitative data are reported in narrative form. Examples include written descriptions of program activities, testimonials of program effects, comments about how a program was or was not helpful, stories, case studies, analyses of existing files, focus groups, key informant interviews, and observations.

Example: A participant in the Peers Making Peace program states, “I
have learned a lot about negotiation and mediation in this program,
and I've actually managed to help some students resolve their
conflicts peacefully here at school. It's a really good feeling!”

Ideally, both your needs assessment and evaluation will include a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches to data collection.

Sub-Population, Comparative, and Trend Data
An examination of the nature of your data should also extend to specific aspects of the data. You not only want to ask, “Where are we now?” but also “Are there any important differences among us?”, “How do we compare to others?”, and “How have we changed over time?”

Are there any important differences among us?
This question refers to sub-population data, which can reveal differences among specific groups within your target population. Sub-populations are typically defined by categories such as gender, race/ethnicity, disability, age, or grade level. When reviewing your data, it’s helpful to disaggregate the data based on sub-populations, so you can readily detect any differences in responses.

How do we compare to others?
Comparing your data to other, existing data provides a context for understanding your assessment or evaluation results. For example, survey data from your high school may seem, at a glance, to reveal high smoking rates among 9th graders. However, a comparison of these data to statewide data might actually show that your school’s smoking rates are much lower than the statewide average.

To be useful, comparison data must be chosen carefully. Resist the temptation to compare your data to “the people next door.” Instead, use a set of data that closely represents an average that includes your population. Think about it this way: If you wanted to figure out if your salary was competitive, you wouldn’t compare what you make with what your neighbor makes. Your neighbor might have a different job, work in a different field, or have more or less experience or education. It would make more sense to compare your salary to the average salary of other people in the same type of job as you, who live in the same location as you, who share some of your characteristics.

How have we changed over time?
A final way to analyze your data is to compare it to similar data collected in the past. Think of it this way: Conducting a survey at one point in time provides you with a “snapshot.” By conducting the same survey at various points over time, you end up with an “album” that allows you to examine changes that may have taken place over time, or trends. Returning to the example above: Smoking rates among your schools’ 9th graders may seem pretty high, but a comparison of current data to past data may reveal that smoking rates have actually decreased over the past five years.

Once you have a good handle on the data you have collected, you can begin to think about why you want to present the data, and to whom. These topics will be the focus of tomorrow’s presentation.

You have completed today’s presentation.
Please proceed to Activity 1: Introductions and Reflections.

References

CSAP's Central Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies. Approaches to Prevention Evaluation. Available online at http://captus.samhsa.gov/central/services/centralcapttrainingoverview.cfm.

Cummins, M. (2002). What Now? Effective and Useful Data Presentation. Newton, MA: CSAP's Northeast Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies.

Wandersman, A., Imm, P., Chinman, M., and Kaftarian, S. Getting to Outcomes: Methods and Tools for Planning, Self-Evaluation, and Accountability. Volume 1 available online at www.stanford.edu-~davidf-GTO_Volume_I.pdf. Volume 2 available online at www.stanford.edu-~davidf-GTO_Volume_II.pdf.