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Multilingual Demographic Dictionary, second unified edition, English volume

Raw data

Multilingual Demographic Dictionary, second unified edition, English vol.
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Raw data  (RAW data)


Data are usually referred to as raw data 1 or crude data 1 prior to their processing and tabulation and basic data 1 or primary data 1 after processing and tabulation. Basic data usually consist of series 2 of absolute numbers 3 which are put together in the form of statistical tables 4 . In such tables the data are generally classified with respect to certain variables 5 or variates 5 such as age, number of children, etc., or with respect to certain attributes 6 or characteristics 6 (i.e. sex, marital status, etc.). Where data are classified with respect to several variables or attributes simultaneously the tables are called cross-tabulations 7 or contingency tables 7 . Summary tables 8 give information in less detail than do individual tables 9 .

  • 1. When the data relate to individuals (110-2) as their unit of analysis they may be referred to as micro-data. Aggregate data or macro-data relate to a unit of analysis other than an individual, for example, a nation or an administrative unit within a nation. Micro-data can be derived from several sources such as a field survey (203-5) or a sample of vital registration records. A new source of micro-data is the census public use sample, which is a systematic or a random sample of census returns that is made available for analytical purposes to interested individuals.
  • 7. A table which presents the distribution of a single variable or attribute within a population is generally called a frequency table.

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