ESDS Qualidata is a specialist service of the

Economic and Social Data Service The Economic and Social Data Service (ESDS) is a national data archiving and dissemination service that was founded in January 2003. It is funded jointly by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and Jisc. In July 2012, the ESRC announce ...

(ESDS), led by the

UK Data Archive The UK Data Archive is a national centre of expertise in data archiving in the United Kingdom (UK). It houses the largest collection of social sciences and population digital data in the UK. It is certified under CoreTrustSeal as a trusted ...

at the

University of Essex The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, Essex is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. Essex's shield consists of the an ...

, jointly funded by the

Joint Information Systems Committee Jisc is a United Kingdom not-for-profit company that provides network and IT services and digital resources in support of further and higher education institutions and research as well as not-for-profits and the public sector. History T ...

(JISC) and the

Economic and Social Research Council The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), formerly the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). UKRI is a non-departmental public body (NDPB) funded by the UK government. ESRC provides fundi ...

(ESRC). The service provides access to a wide range of

qualitative data Qualitative properties are properties that are observed and can generally not be measured with a numerical result. They are contrasted to quantitative properties which have numerical characteristics. Some engineering and scientific properties are ...

from the social sciences as well as user-support, promoting the increased use of secondary analysis in social research and related learning and teaching resources. In July 2012, the ESRC announced it will become a partner in the UK Data Service, to be established as of October 1, 2012.

Data

The data acquired by ESDS Qualidata are part of contemporary qualitative research across a wide range of social science disciplines and are derived from a varied spectrum of methodological approaches, such as: in-depth, semi-structured and

structured interview A structured interview (also known as a standardized interview or a researcher-administered survey) is a quantitative research method commonly employed in survey research. The aim of this approach is to ensure that each interview is presented with ...

focus groups A focus group is a group interview involving a small number of demographically similar people or participants who have other common traits/experiences. Their reactions to specific researcher/evaluator-posed questions are studied. Focus groups are ...

fieldnotes Fieldnotes refer to qualitative notes recorded by scientists or researchers in the course of field research, during or after their observation of a specific organism or phenomenon they are studying. The notes are intended to be read as evidence t ...

observations Observation is the active acquisition of information from a primary source. In living beings, observation employs the senses. In science, observation can also involve the perception and recording of data via the use of scientific instruments. The ...

, personal documents, photographs and audio. The majority of acquired data can be searched and downloaded through a
online catalogue
The selection of data considers each study’s relative importance, the particular format, the degree of usability and condition of the materials on offer, the re-use potential and issues of

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...

and

confidentiality Confidentiality involves a set of rules or a promise usually executed through confidentiality agreements that limits the access or places restrictions on certain types of information. Legal confidentiality By law, lawyers are often required ...

. The service also provides access to some of the classic studies of British society including: * ''Family Life of Old People'' (1955), ''The Last Refuge'' (1959) and ''Poverty in the UK'' (1979) by Peter Townsend * ''The Edwardians'' (1975) by Paul Thompson * Stanley Cohen's ''Folk Devils and Moral Panics'' (1967) * The ''Affluent Worker'' (1962) by

John H. Goldthorpe John Harry Goldthorpe (born 27 May 1935) is a British sociologist. He is an emeritus Fellow of Nuffield College, Oxford. His main research interests are in the fields of social stratification and mobility, and comparative macro-sociology. He ...

et al. Access to the data is reliant upon th
UK Access Management Federation for Education and Research
(supported by the

Shibboleth (Internet2) Shibboleth is a single sign-on log-in system for computer networks and the Internet. It allows people to sign in using just one identity to various systems run by federations of different organizations or institutions. The federations are often un ...

software) and is free of charge.

References

{{Reflist * Cohen, S. (1971

002 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to: Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *''002 Operazione Luna'', *1965 Italian film *Zero Two, a ''Darling in the Franxx'' character Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1996 ...

''Folk Devils and Moral Panics : the creation of the mods and rockers'', Oxford: Basil Blackwell. * Goldthorpe, J. H., et al. (1969) ''The affluent worker in the class structure'', London: Cambridge University Press * Thompson, P.R. (1975

992 Year 992 ( CMXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Worldwide * Winter – A superflare from the sun causes an Aurora Borealis, with visibility as fa ...

''The Edwardians: the remaking of British society'', 2nd ed. London: Routledge. * Townsend, P. (1957) ''The family life of old people'', London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. * Townsend, P. (1962) ''The last refuge: a survey of residential institutions and homes for the aged in England and Wales'', London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. * Townsend, P. (1979) ''Poverty in the United Kingdom: a Survey of Household Resources and Standards of Living'', London: Penguin Books and Allen Lane.

External links

ESDSUK Data Archive
Jisc Online databases Science and technology in Essex