Archiving Qualitative Data

Qualitative data archiving is the long-term preservation of qualitative data in a format that can be accessed by researchers, now and in the future. The key to ensuring long-term accessibility lies in the strategies for data processing, the creation of informative documentation, and in the physical and technical procedures for storage, preservation, security, and access (see data archives).

QUALITATIVE DATA are data collected using qualitative research methodology and techniques across the range of social science disciplines. Qualitative research often encompasses a diversity of methods and tools rather than a single one, and the types of data collected depend on the aim of the study, the nature of the sample, and the discipline. As a result, data types extend to IN-DEPTH or UNSTRUCTURED INTERVIEWS, SEMI-STRUCTUREDINTERVIEWS, FIELDNOTES, unstructured DIARIES, observations, personal documents, and photographs. Qualitative research often involves producing large amounts of raw data, although the methods typically employ small sample sizes. Finally, these data may be created in a number of different formats: digital, paper (typed and handwritten), and audiovisual.

Until 1994, no procedures existed for the systematic archiving and dissemination of qualitative data, although the oral history community had a professional interest in preserving tape recordings gathered from oral history interviewing projects. Many of these tape recordings may be found at the British Library National Sound Archive in London.

In 1994, the first qualitative data-archiving project on a national scale was established in the United [Page 22]Kingdom, with support from the Economic and Social Research Council. The Qualidata Centre established procedures for sorting, describing, processing both raw data and accompanying documentation (meta-data), and establishing appropriate mechanisms for access.

The way data sets are processed can be split into three main activities: checking and anonymizing, converting the data set, and generating meta-data. Checking the data set consists of carrying out activities such as establishing the completeness and quality of data, as well as the relationships between data items (e.g., interviews, field notes, and recordings). Good-quality transcription is essential when archiving interviews without audio recordings, as is ensuring that the content of the data meets any prior consent agreements with participants. CONFIDENTIALITY and copyright are two key issues that arise in the archiving and dissemination of qualitative data. Converting data consists of transferring data to a format suitable for both preservation and dissemination. This may include digitization of paper resources.

The third main processing activity, generating metadata (data about data), refers to the contextual information generated during processing, such as the creation of a “data list” of interview details, and ensuring that speaker and interviewer tags and questions or topic guide headers are added to raw text. A key function of meta-data is to enable users to locate transcripts or specific items in a data collection most relevant to their research. User guides are also created that bring together key documentation such as topic guides, personal research diaries, end of award reports, and publications. This type of information, collated by principal investigators at the fieldwork and analysis stage, is clearly of great benefit for future archiving.

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