Data Collection Tasks Research Articles

A rude awakening after our fourth ‘NAP’: lessons for airway management

A rude awakening after our fourth ‘NAP’: lessons for airway management

Privacy-aware collection of aggregate spatial data

Privacy concerns can be a major barrier to collecting aggregate data from the public. Recent research proposes negative surveys that collect negative data, which is complementary to the true data. This opens a new direction for privacy-aware data collection. However, the existing approach cannot avoid certain errors when applied to many spatial data collection tasks. The errors can make the data unusable in many real scenarios. We propose Gaussian negative surveys. We modulate data collection based on Gaussian distribution. The collected data can be used to compute accurate spatial distribution of participants and can be used to accurately answer range aggregate queries. Our approach avoids the errors that can occur with the existing approach. Our experiments show that we achieve an excellent balance between privacy and accuracy.

Time and motion study to compare electronic and hybrid data collection systems during the pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza vaccination campaign

During the pandemic (H1N1) 2009 vaccination campaign, vaccine providers collected immunization data using hybrid (paper-based and electronic methods) and electronic data systems. We measured staff time in seconds spent on data collection tasks to compare system efficiencies. The sample consisted of 38 organizations across nine Canadian provinces/territories. The total mean data collection times per client were 104 s (electronic system), 143 s (hybrid system with electronic registration) and 172 s (hybrid system with paper registration). Electronic registration and record keeping were faster than paper-based methods; these findings should be used to improve data collection for future influenza seasons.

Constructing an FPMS in a medium-sized consulting company using a combination of an ERP system and Microsoft Excel

This paper reports on a study on how Integrated Information Systems (IISs) support financial project management in a medium-sized consulting company. The study applies the case study method and the Constructive Research Approach (CRA). It was found that the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system (an Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) system) primarily supports the task of data collection, while Microsoft Excel (an Online Analysis Processing (OLAP) system) can be used for reporting, budgeting and budget control. These two subsystems of the IIS are integrated with regard to ex post data stored in a common database. This allows access to real-time data throughout the IIS. However, some degree of disintegration exists as the project budgets are only stored in the spreadsheets, which presents a number of limitations with regard to reporting and analysis. The reason for using the combination of OLTP and OLAP systems is the need for flexibility and user-friendliness. Based on the findings, this paper expands the limited knowledge on how different kinds of systems support different management accounting tasks. The findings indicate that not only do OLTP systems support the management accounting of companies, but the user-friendliness and flexibility of OLAP systems also complement the OLTP systems in that respect.

Web-based image norming: How do object familiarity and visual complexity ratings compare when collected in-lab versus online?

It has been demonstrated previously that, for some experimental paradigms, Web-based research can reliably replicate lab-based results. Yet questions remain as to what types of research can be reproduced, and where differences arise when they cannot be. The present article examines the effect of research location (laboratory vs. online) on normative data collection tasks. Specifically, participants were randomly assigned to a laboratory or online condition and were asked to rate 593 photorealistic images on the basis of object familiarity (N=103) and object visual complexity (N=98). Dependent measures were compared across location conditions, including response latencies and image rating agreement. Our results suggest that norming data collected online are reliable, but an interesting interplay between task type and research location was observed. Specifically, we found that participating online (i.e., a more familiar environment) leads to systematically higher familiarity ratings than in the lab (i.e., an unfamiliar environment). These differences are not found when the alternate complexity rating task is used.

Informatics and infectious diseases: What is the connection and efficacy of information technology tools for therapy and health care epidemiology?

Increases in use of electronic medical records and availability of information technology tools have created opportunities for automation of surveillance. Automation of data collection tasks may improve the timeliness and completeness of surveillance, may allow infection control professionals to have more time for interventions, and should facilitate new areas of surveillance. Many factors must be considered in the development of an infection control data warehouse, including the needs of users, completeness and validity of data, and availability of reports. We present examples of uses of a developed data warehouse in improving efficacy of infection control.

Proposed model for performance measurement standards

The research proposes a standardised model for performance measurement within the context of the Balanced Scorecard. This model was based on the in-depth study of three successful manufacturing firms in Thailand, and contains a set of Key Performance Indicators with a specific circumstance. The data-collection task took place in 2005. The model development was based on the review frequency recorded from nine executives to three top executives from each company. There were a total of 18 common circumstances identified, and were further separated into two groups - internal and external. Based on the follow-up surveys and other verification tasks, this proposed model can possibly be considered as a standard or a baseline when initiating performance measurement effort. Its benefits and limitations are discussed and provided.

Digital geological mapping with tablet PC and PDA: A comparison

Both the hardware and software available for digital geological mapping (DGM) have advanced considerably in recent years. Mobile computers have become cheaper, lighter, faster and more power efficient. Global Positioning Systems (GPS) have become cheaper, smaller and more accurate, and software specifically designed for geological mapping has become available. These advances have now reached a stage where it is effective to replace traditional paper-based mapping techniques with those employing DGM methodologies. This paper attempts to assess and evaluate two currently available DGM systems for geological outcrop mapping: one based on a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) running ESRI “ArcPad”, and the second based on a Tablet PC running “Map IT” software. Evaluation was based on field assessment during mapping of a well-exposed coastal section of deformed Carboniferous and Permian rocks at N. Tynemouth in NE England. Prior to the field assessment, several key criteria were identified as essential attributes of an effective DGM system. These criteria were used as the basis for the assessment and evaluation process. Our findings suggest that the main concerns presented by sceptics opposed to DGM have largely been resolved. In general, DGM systems using a Tablet PC were found to be most suitable for a wide range of geological data collection tasks, including detailed outcrop mapping. In contrast, systems based on a PDA, due to small screen and limited processing power, were best suited for more basic mapping and simple data collection tasks. In addition, PDA-based systems can be particularly advantageous for mapping projects in remote regions, in situations where there is a limited power supply or where total weight of equipment is an important consideration.

Exploring The Connections Among Number Sense, Mental Computation Performance, And The Written Computation Performance Of Elementary Preservice School Teachers

The purpose of this study is to a) explore connections among number sense, mental computation performance and the written computation performance of elementary preservice school teachers; and b) explore the correlation among mental computation skills, computation skills, effect issues and number sense. The sample was composed of students in six intact entry?level mathematics sections of a course populated by preservice elementary school teachers. One hundred fifty-five participants from these six classes completed data collection tasks during the Spring 2002 semester for the study. Regression analyses were used to investigate the correlation of written computation skills, mental computation skills, and affective domain with regard to number sense. Three of these subscales of Conference Learning Mathematics, Mathematics Anxiety, Effectance Motivation of Mathematics, Mental Computation Test score, and Written Computation Test score were found to positive significantly correlate with Number Sense Test score success at the a= 0.001 level. Overall, the six independent variables considered in this study accounted for 57.1% of the variation in Number Sense Test score, with Mental Computation Test, and Written Computation Test having the strongest effects.

Lower Bounds on Data Collection Time in Sensory Networks

Data collection, i.e., the aggregation at the user location of information gathered by sensor nodes, is a fundamental function of sensory networks. Indeed, most sensor network applications rely on data collection capabilities, and consequently, an inefficient data collection process may adversely affect the performance of the network. In this paper, we study via simple discrete mathematical models, the time performance of the data collection and data distribution tasks in sensory networks. Specifically, we derive the minimum delay in collecting sensor data for networks of various topologies such as line, multiline, and tree and give corresponding optimal scheduling strategies. Furthermore, we bound the data collection time on general graph networks. Our analyses apply to networks equipped with directional or omnidirectional antennas and simple comparative results of the two systems are presented.

Measuring Service Quality: Servqual vs. Servperf Scales

Quality has come to be recognized as a strategic tool for attaining operational efficiency and improved business performance. This is true for both the goods and services sectors. However, the problem with management of service quality in service firms is that quality is not easily identifiable and measurable due to inherent characteristics of services which make them different from goods. Various definitions of the term ‘service quality’ have been proposed in the past and, based on different definitions, different scales for measuring service quality have been put forward. SERVQUAL and SERVPERF constitute two major service quality measurement scales. The consensus, however, continues to elude till date as to which one is superior. An ideal service quality scale is one that is not only psychometrically sound but is also diagnostically robust enough to provide insights to the managers for corrective actions in the event of quality shortfalls. Empirical studies evaluating validity, reliability, and methodological soundness of service quality scales clearly point to the superiority of the SERVPERF scale. The diagnostic ability of the scales, however, has not been explicitly explicated and empirically verified in the past. The present study aims at filling this void in service quality literature. It assesses the diagnostic power of the two service quality scales. Validity and methodological soundness of these scales have also been probed in the Indian context — an aspect which has so far remained neglected due to preoccupation of the past studies with service industries in the developed world. Using data collected through a survey of consumers of fast food restaurants in Delhi, the study finds the SERVPERF scale to be providing a more convergent and discriminant-valid explanation of service quality construct. However, the scale is found deficient in its diagnostic power. It is the SERVQUAL scale which outperforms the SERVPERF scale by virtue of possessing higher diagnostic power to pinpoint areas for managerial interventions in the event of service quality shortfalls. The major managerial implications of the study are: Because of its psychometric soundness and greater instrument parsimoniousness, one should employ the SERVPERF scale for assessing overall service quality of a firm. The SERVPERF scale should also be the preferred research instrument when one is interested in undertaking service quality comparisons across service industries. On the other hand, when the research objective is to identify areas relating to service quality shortfalls for possible intervention by the managers, the SERVQUAL scale needs to be preferred because of its superior diagnostic power. However, one serious problem with the SERVQUAL scale is that it entails gigantic data collection task. Employing a lengthy questionnaire, one is required to collect data about consumers' expectations as well as perceptions of a firm's performance on each of the 22 service quality scale attributes. Addition of importance weights can further add to the diagnostic power of the SERVQUAL scale, but the choice needs to be weighed against the additional task of data collection. Collecting data on importance scores relating to each of the 22 service attributes is indeed a major deterrent. However, alternative, less tedious approaches, discussed towards the end of the paper, can be employed by the researchers to obviate the data collection task.

Effects Of A Problem-Solving-Based Mathematics Course On Number Sense Of Preservice Teachers

The purpose of this study was to investigate what level of number sense was possessed by preservice elementary school teachers. The sample was composed of students in six intact entry?level mathematics sections of a course populated by preservice elementary school teachers. One hundred fifty-five participants from these six classes completed data collection tasks during the Spring 2002 semester for the study. These courses are all problem-solving-based. A problem-solving-based mathematics course was designed to utilize manipulatives, problem solving approaches, and the cooperative learning environment. Students actively participate in problem-solving mathematical exploration. Research designs using a control group could not be used for this study, as the problem?solving?based classroom is the required method by the institution to teaching this mathematics class. The six combined classes form “one-group” with pretest/posttest corresponding to the pre-post-surveys. T?tests were used to compare the paired changes in number sense across time.The participating elementary school preservice teachers’ number sense changed between the beginning and the completion of the undergraduate mathematics content course. This change was significant at a = 0.01 for issues.

Strategic planning and information use: the role of institutional leadership in the community college

Community college presidents face a daunting challenge in trying to manage and guide an organization that is, by its nature, decentralized and bureaucratic in its decision‐making processes, and at the same time they face external demands for greater accountability and internal demands for information. Although technological systems can accomplish these kinds of data collection tasks easily, the implementation of such systems is itself problematic. In many ways, implementing new information and technology systems, when done effectively, mirrors the open‐ended, cross‐functional deliberative processes of strategic planning. This paper discusses how institutional leaders at community colleges have used the implementation of strategic planning processes to break down information silos, increase collaboration among units, streamline information and work processes, and provide greater access to both academic and operational information. While this process may be time‐consuming and disorderly, it is a promising tool for bringing about organizational change.

Implementation of Automated Network-Level Crack Detection Processes in Maryland

The Maryland State Highway Administration (MDSHA) has collected cracking data on its roadways for use in its pavement management system since 1984. Through much of this history the pavement cracking survey was performed yearly by teams of inspectors riding in vans. With the reengineering of the administration over the years, this process began to present serious resource and logistical problems. During the past 3 years, the MDSHA pavement management group has developed and implemented a state-of-the-art automated network-level crack detection process that is showing promising results. This process is based upon the use of the automated road analyzer (ARAN) data collection vehicle, Wisecrax crack detection software, and an intensive quality-control (QC) and quality-assurance (QA) procedure. The data collection and data processing tasks are all performed in house with MDSHA resources. An overview of the processes developed and implemented by MDSHA to conduct these surveys is provided. Also discussed are challenges and lessons learned during the implementation process. Presentation of this information will allow others to gain insight into the strengths and weaknesses of adopting such a system and promote information sharing among pavement data collection organizations. Overall, it is concluded that automated network-level crack detection is a workable and efficient tool. However, a strict QC-QA regime must be instituted in order to achieve consistent and repeatable results.

Moving Police and Community Dialogues Forward Through Data Collection Task Forces

Although collection of information about traffic or pedestrian stops is an important part of a department's strategy to address perceptions of bias, taken by itself this data may be insufficient to resolve the controversy about racial profiling. Unfortunately, most jurisdictions have implemented data collection systems with little thought about how information will be disseminated to the public or, more important, used to create an effective policecommunity dialogue about police operations. A model of community-police task forces may be used to facilitate discussions of racial profiling data and enhance a police-community conversation about appropriate police operations. This article discusses the challenges of role definition, representation, leadership, and goals setting that face task forces devoted to understanding the problem of racial profiling.

A COMPARISON OF METHODOLOGIES FOR UNCOVERING THE STRUCTURE OF RACIAL STEREOTYPE SUBGROUPING

Our goal was to initiate a series of explorations of the techniques used to investigate person perception and stereotypes. More specifically, do different techniques uncover the same, and assumedly correct, underlying cognitive structure of the perceivers or is our current understanding of social cognition merely a reflection of our data collection and analytic techniques? We also hoped to draw some conclusions concerning White participants' perceptions of Blacks. Participants were given two tasks. One task involved sorting fourteen racial type labels and rating the sorted piles on four scales (e.g., respectable-not respectable). The second task involved generating attributes that described a randomly selected racial type. Both tasks provided data that could be used as input for multidimensional-scaling and hierarchical-clustering analyses. Further, the data from the adjective-generation task was used as input for a discriminant-function analysis. It was predicted that the different data collection and analysis tasks would produce results that emphasized the importance of evaluation in racialtype perception but that the sorting task would reveal more prejudice against Black targets. The results supported the hypotheses.

Consensus and variation between speech and language therapists in the assessment and selection of preschool children for intervention: a body of knowledge or idiosyncratic decisions?

The aim was to investigate consensus between speech and language therapists (SLT) during the initial assessment of preschool children. A multimethod design was used. The qualitative component provided SLT's own views of the process as the starting point for the study. Data were generated from semistructured interviews and focus group discussions. The interviews investigated factors considered during an initial assessment of a preschool child. The focus groups discussed the process and content of a videotaped initial assessment carried out by the author. Quantitative data was generated from six case analyses and from a card sorting exercise. In the former, SLT were asked to record important features of newly referred cases. In the latter, SLT sorted statements about preschool children according to a simple concern/not concerned decision. Data collection tasks and analysis took place successively to build a composite and triangulated picture. The main subjects were 11 SLT, experienced in childrens' work with a further six acting as a broader reference group. The results show an interacting pattern of consensus and variation. SLT agreed about the relative priority of children, categories that informed the assessment; they made similar interpretations of incoming information. There was variation in their preferred assessment methods, in the thresholds of concern and in the interventions offered. Sources of variation that were identified included individual confidence in and access to assessments, personal levels of concern and in the approach to the SLT's role, as well as the influence of workplace policies. The study concluded that, consensus and variation both exist within the context of SLT's initial assessment of preschool children, but that there are discernible patterns to the variation. While such variation may be inevitable, it is suggested that any variation should be made explicit and used to challenge and develop the shared knowledge base of the speech and language therapy profession.

Consensus and variation between speech and language therapists in the assessment and selection of preschool children for intervention: a body of knowledge or idiosyncratic decisions?

The aim was to investigate consensus between speech and language therapists (SLT) during the initial assessment of preschool children. A multimethod design was used. The qualitative component provided SLT's own views of the process as the starting point for the study. Data were generated from semistructured interviews and focus group discussions. The interviews investigated factors considered during an initial assessment of a preschool child. The focus groups discussed the process and content of a videotaped initial assessment carried out by the author. Quantitative data was generated from six case analyses and from a card sorting exercise. In the former, SLT were asked to record important features of newly referred cases. In the latter, SLT sorted statements about preschool children according to a simple concern/not concerned decision. Data collection tasks and analysis took place successively to build a composite and triangulated picture. The main subjects were 11 SLT, experienced in childrens' work with a further six acting as a broader reference group. The results show an interacting pattern of consensus and variation. SLT agreed about the relative priority of children, categories that informed the assessment; they made similar interpretations of incoming information. There was variation in their preferred assessment methods, in the thresholds of concern and in the interventions offered. Sources of variation that were identified included individual confidence in and access to assessments, personal levels of concern and in the approach to the SLT's role, as well as the influence of workplace policies. The study concluded that, consensus and variation both exist within the context of SLT's initial assessment of preschool children, but that there are discernible patterns to the variation. While such variation may be inevitable, it is suggested that any variation should be made explicit and used to challenge and develop the shared knowledge base of the speech and language therapy profession.

The message of the medium: The risks and opportunities of migrating pre-electronic government information products to the Internet

During the mid-1997 to early 1999 period, a major study was undertaken by the United States National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) for the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), at the request of the Government Printing Office (GPO), entitled “Assessment of Electronic Government Information Products.” A contractor specializing in survey research, Westat, of Rockville, MD, was engaged to assist the government in the detailed data collection, interviewing, background research, and related tasks. The contractor delivered a final report to the government on March 30, 1999. On behalf of the government, NCLIS accepted the findings and recommendations, and delivered the report to all three branches of government. A limited number of hard copies are available from NCLIS. This article highlights the study's major findings, conclusions, and recommendations, their significance, and speculates on possible future actions the government could take. The major conclusion of the study was that there is a need to pinpoint overall responsibility for public information dissemination and electronic publishing at the top agency level. Presently authorities and responsibilities are unclear, uncoordinated, fragmented, and overlapping among many different agency line and staff units.

Using while moving

“Using while moving” is the basic ability fieldwork users require of a mobile computer system. These users come from a wide range of backgrounds but have in common an extremely mobile and dynamic workplace. We identify four specific characteristics of this class of users: dynamic user configuration, limited attention capacity, high-speed interaction, and context dependency. A prototype is then presented that was designed to assist fieldworkers in data collection tasks and to explore the HCI design issues involved. The prototype was used in an extensive field trial by a group of ecologists observing giraffe behavior in Kenya. Following this trial, improvements were made to the prototype interface which in turn was tested in a subsequent field trial with another group of ecologists. From this experience, we have formulated our resulting ideas about interface design for fieldworkers into two general principles: Minimal Attention User Interfaces (MAUIs) and context awareness. The MAUI seeks to minimize the attention, though not necessarily the number of interactions, required from the user in operating a device. Context awareness enables the mobile device to provide assistance based on a knowledge of its environment.