Desirable Characteristics of Data:

The results of a needs assessment or community assessment are only as good as the data that are used to gain the results. Therefore, it is of vital importance that planners and evaluators make sure that the data they collect are:

  • Reliable
  • Valid
  • Unbiased
  • Culturally Appropriate
Reliability:
  • Consistency in the measurement process
  • Gives the same (or nearly the same) result every time
Validity:
  • Measuring instrument measures what it is intended to measure
  • Measuring instrument correctly measures the concepts under investigation
Unbiased:
  • Decreasing the distortion of data based on the manner in which it was collected

    Steps to take to limit bias:

  1. If data are being collected via observation, observation should be as unobtrusive as possible.
  2. If sensitive questions are being asked, then those collecting such data need to ensure that the data are being collected in a confidential way.
  3. Consider collecting data via anonymous means.
  4. Do not select a bias sample from the target population.
  • No matter how data are collected, the reduction of bias techniques will increase the accuracy of the results.
Culturally Appropriate:
  • People from different cultures are likely to possess different values, beliefs, traditions, and perceptions that affect nearly all activities of individuals, including their health-related behavior and responding to questions related to health.

  • Culture influences program participants' ability to understand, internalize, and exercise positive health practices that will enhance the quality of life.
    When collecting data from diverse populations, evaluators need to respond appropriately to cultural differences.

 

The following are examples race and ethnic differences in health risk and data collection:

Race/Ethnic Differences In Health Risk

While Minnesota continues to rank as one of the healthiest states in the nation, those high marks start to plummet when the data are examines more closely. American Indians, populations of color, and foreign-born populations simply do not enjoy the same level of health as other Minnesotans.

  • Infant mortality rates in the African American and American Indian populations are two to four times higher than for the white population.
  • Rate of diabetes for American Indians in Minnesota is 600% higher than whites.
  • African American males between 15 and 25 are 25 times more likely to die as a result of firearms than whites of the same age.
  • Adults from populations of color are more likely to be under immunized than their white counterparts.
  • Foreign-born individuals with TB in Minnesota are twice as likely as U.S.-born cases to have drug-resistant TB.
  • Compared with their white and Asian peers, African American, American Indian, and Hispanic 9th graders are more than twice as likely to report having had sexual intercourse at least three times.
  • Among 15-17 year olds, pregnancy rates among populations of color are approximately 3-7 times higher than the comparable rate for whites. The gap is narrower among 18-19 year olds, although a very sizeable gap remains.
  • On the 1998 Minnesota Student Survey, almost half of 9th grade Hispanics (49 percent) and American Indians (45 percent) said they drank alcohol in the past month, compared with 37 percent of whites, 33 percent of African Americans, and 24 percent of Asians.
  • Among adults, whites have the highest rate of current alcohol use (62 percent), followed by Hispanics (41 percent) and African Americans (43 percent). American Indians and Hispanics have the highest rates of binge drinking (28 percent and 21 percent, respectively)
  • The overall mortality rate for American Indians, African Americans and Hispanics is consistently high-up to 3.5 times higher than for white Minnesotans.
  • If all racial groups in Minnesota had the same infant mortality rate as African Americans in Minnesota, an additional 3,356 babies-mostly white children-would have died during the years 1994-1998.
  • Among adults, the suicide rate is substantially higher among American Indians than any other racial/ethnic group.

In order to assure health for all Minnesotans, it is essential that we work to close these and other health gaps and assure that all Minnesotans experience healthy parity.

Community Health Promotion Guide Main Page



See also > Center for Health Promotion > Health Promotion and Chronic Disease