Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys
Household surveys are one of the most commonly used tools for generating insight into rural communities. Despite their prevalence, few studies comprehensively evaluate the quality of data derived from farm household surveys. We critically evaluated a series of standard reported values and indicators...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
Cambridge University Press
2019
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/98925 |
| _version_ | 1855539748517445632 |
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| author | Fraval, Simon Hammond, James Wichern, Jannike Oosting, Simon J. Boer, Imke J.M. de Teufel, Nils Lannerstad, Mats Waha, Katharina Pagella, Tim Rosenstock, Todd S. Giller, Kenneth E. Herrero, Mario Harris, David Wijk, Mark T. van |
| author_browse | Boer, Imke J.M. de Fraval, Simon Giller, Kenneth E. Hammond, James Harris, David Herrero, Mario Lannerstad, Mats Oosting, Simon J. Pagella, Tim Rosenstock, Todd S. Teufel, Nils Waha, Katharina Wichern, Jannike Wijk, Mark T. van |
| author_facet | Fraval, Simon Hammond, James Wichern, Jannike Oosting, Simon J. Boer, Imke J.M. de Teufel, Nils Lannerstad, Mats Waha, Katharina Pagella, Tim Rosenstock, Todd S. Giller, Kenneth E. Herrero, Mario Harris, David Wijk, Mark T. van |
| author_sort | Fraval, Simon |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Household surveys are one of the most commonly used tools for generating insight into rural communities. Despite their prevalence, few studies comprehensively evaluate the quality of data derived from farm household surveys. We critically evaluated a series of standard reported values and indicators that are captured in multiple farm household surveys, and then quantified their credibility, consistency and, thus, their reliability. Surprisingly, even variables which might be considered ‘easy to estimate’ had instances of non-credible observations. In addition, measurements of maize yields and land owned were found to be less reliable than other stationary variables. This lack of reliability has implications for monitoring food security status, poverty status and the land productivity of households. Despite this rather bleak picture, our analysis also shows that if the same farm households are followed over time, the sample sizes needed to detect substantial changes are in the order of hundreds of surveys, and not in the thousands. Our research highlights the value of targeted and systematised household surveys and the importance of ongoing efforts to improve data quality. Improvements must be based on the foundations of robust survey design, transparency of experimental design and effective training. The quality and usability of such data can be further enhanced by improving coordination between agencies, incorporating mixed modes of data collection and continuing systematic validation programmes. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace98925 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| publisherStr | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace989252025-09-29T06:20:47Z Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys Fraval, Simon Hammond, James Wichern, Jannike Oosting, Simon J. Boer, Imke J.M. de Teufel, Nils Lannerstad, Mats Waha, Katharina Pagella, Tim Rosenstock, Todd S. Giller, Kenneth E. Herrero, Mario Harris, David Wijk, Mark T. van data households food security information farms Household surveys are one of the most commonly used tools for generating insight into rural communities. Despite their prevalence, few studies comprehensively evaluate the quality of data derived from farm household surveys. We critically evaluated a series of standard reported values and indicators that are captured in multiple farm household surveys, and then quantified their credibility, consistency and, thus, their reliability. Surprisingly, even variables which might be considered ‘easy to estimate’ had instances of non-credible observations. In addition, measurements of maize yields and land owned were found to be less reliable than other stationary variables. This lack of reliability has implications for monitoring food security status, poverty status and the land productivity of households. Despite this rather bleak picture, our analysis also shows that if the same farm households are followed over time, the sample sizes needed to detect substantial changes are in the order of hundreds of surveys, and not in the thousands. Our research highlights the value of targeted and systematised household surveys and the importance of ongoing efforts to improve data quality. Improvements must be based on the foundations of robust survey design, transparency of experimental design and effective training. The quality and usability of such data can be further enhanced by improving coordination between agencies, incorporating mixed modes of data collection and continuing systematic validation programmes. 2019-04 2019-01-02T12:47:11Z 2019-01-02T12:47:11Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/98925 en Open Access Cambridge University Press Fraval, S., Hammond, J., Wicher, J., Oosting, S.J., Boer, I.J.M de, Teufel, N., Lannerstad, M., Waha, K., Pagella, T., Rosenstock, T.S., Giller, K.E., Herrero, M., Harris, D. and Wijk, M. van. 2018. Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys. Experimental Agriculture 55(2): 230-250 |
| spellingShingle | data households food security information farms Fraval, Simon Hammond, James Wichern, Jannike Oosting, Simon J. Boer, Imke J.M. de Teufel, Nils Lannerstad, Mats Waha, Katharina Pagella, Tim Rosenstock, Todd S. Giller, Kenneth E. Herrero, Mario Harris, David Wijk, Mark T. van Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys |
| title | Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys |
| title_full | Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys |
| title_fullStr | Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys |
| title_full_unstemmed | Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys |
| title_short | Making the most of imperfect data: A critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys |
| title_sort | making the most of imperfect data a critical evaluation of standard information collected in farm household surveys |
| topic | data households food security information farms |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/98925 |
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