Understanding selection bias,time-lags and measurement bias in secondary data sources: Putting the Encyclopedia of Associations database in broader context |
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| Authors: | Shaun Bevan Frank R. Baumgartner Erik W. Johnson John D. McCarthy |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Mannheim Centre for European Social Research (MZES), University of Mannheim, Germany;2. Department of Political Science, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, United States;3. Department of Sociology, Washington State University, United States;4. Department of Sociology and Criminology, Pennsylvania State University, United States;1. School of Business Administration, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea;2. Department of Sociology, University of South Carolina, United States;3. Department of Organizational Behavior, Cornell University, United States;1. Department of Sociology, Georgia State University, P.O. Box 5020, Atlanta, GA 30302-5020, United States;2. Department of Sociology, St. Norbert College, 100 Grant Street, De Pere, WI 54115-2099, United States;1. Centre for International Development Issues Nijmegen, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands;2. Department of Sociology, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands;1. “Carlo F. Dondena” Research Centre for Research on Social Dynamics, Bocconi University, via G. Röntgen n. 1, 20136 Milan, Italy;2. Instituto Superior de Ciências Sociais e Políticas, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, Rua Almerindo Lessa, 1300-663 Lisboa, Portugal;3. Department of Institutional Analysis and Public Management, Bocconi University, via G. Röntgen n. 1, 20136 Milan, Italy;1. Department of Sociology, Northwestern University, 1812 Chicago Avenue, Evanston, IL 60208, United States;2. Department of Sociology, Northwestern University, United States;3. Department of Economics, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel;4. Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, United States;5. Department of Preventative Medicine, Northwestern University, United States;6. Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Medical School, United States |
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| Abstract: | Secondary data gathered for purposes other than research play an important role in the social sciences. A recent data release has made an important source of publicly available data on associational interests, the Encyclopedia of Associations (EA), readily accessible to scholars (www.policyagendas.org). In this paper we introduce these new data and systematically investigate issues of lag between events and subsequent reporting in the EA, as these have important but under-appreciated effects on time-series statistical models. We further analyze the accuracy and coverage of the database in numerous ways. Our study serves as a guide to potential users of this database, but we also reflect upon a number of issues that should concern all researchers who use secondary data such as newspaper records, IRS reports and FBI Uniform Crime Reports. |
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| Keywords: | Secondary data Measurement Associations Interest groups Social movements |
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