primary and secondary data

Question 1

What is primary data in psychological research?

Answer 1

Primary data is first-hand data collected directly by the researcher for the specific purpose of their investigation (e.g., through experiments, interviews, or questionnaires designed for the study).

Question 2

What is secondary data in psychological research?

Answer 2

Secondary data is data collected by someone else for a different purpose that the researcher then uses for their own analysis (e.g., meta-analyses, government statistics, previous studies).

Question 3

What are strengths of primary data?

Answer 3

• Data is specific and relevant to the researcher’s aims
• Researcher has control over method and quality
• Up-to-date and gathered in real time

Question 4

What are limitations of primary data?

Answer 4

• Can be time-consuming and costly to collect
• May have practical or ethical issues (e.g., informed consent)
• Requires more planning and resources

Question 5

What are strengths of secondary data?

Answer 5

• Quick and economical—already collected
• Can allow access to large samples or longitudinal trends
• Useful for replication or meta-analysis

Question 6

What are limitations of secondary data?

Answer 6

• May be outdated or irrelevant
• Uncertainty about quality or accuracy
• Not tailored to the researcher’s hypothesis

Question 7

Give an example of primary data in psychology.

Answer 7

Milgram collected primary data by observing participants’ behaviours during the obedience experiment using structured observations and direct recordings.

Question 8

Give an example of secondary data in psychology

Answer 8

Meta-analyses like those conducted by Bowlby (e.g., on maternal deprivation) often use secondary data from previous studies to draw new conclusions.

Question 9

What do examiner reports say about student answers on this topic?

Answer 9

• Students often confuse primary/secondary with qualitative/quantitative
• Top answers include definitions + examples
• Evaluations should show awareness of practical implications (e.g., cost, reliability)

Question 10

Can data be both primary and quantitative or qualitative?

Answer 10

Yes. Primary data can be quantitative (e.g., experiment scores) or qualitative (e.g., interview transcripts). The same applies to secondary data.