Pixabay image by Yuri_B
Getting Started
This research guide is targeted at students in the field of Statistics, though may be useful to others as well. By navigating the tabs along to the left of the guide you can find resources for:
tools for managing your research citations
links to course guides
link to Willamette biology theses
requesting articles through interlibrary loan (ILL)
Common Sources of Published Statistics
Government Agencies
Government agency tend make their data publicly available. In fact, federal law require publicly funded research (via tax dollars) and the data generated by the research to be made publicly available. Government statistics tend to focus on who is currently using government services and resources as well as forecast future usage and demand. Government-based statistics are also more likely to look at broad macro-economic indicators.
One exception for business are the " publicly traded corporations" which are under a combination of mandates by government agencies and stock exchanges to disseminate specific types of business information to existing and potential shareholders. This type of corporate information is typically found in Annual Reports to Shareholders, and also in SEC Forms #10-K. More details are covered in our guide for Corporate Annual Reports to Shareholders and 10-K Reports.
For Profit Corporations
Statistics compiled by private corporations do not typically make their data freely available. They may share internally generated statistics for a price. They may release carefully selected excerpts of their internal data in controlled situations to generate interest in their their data, and will sell select access for high prices.
If a for-profit company or industry association is offering large datasets separate from "shareholder reports" or "SEC reports," then you should be suspicious that they might have biases built into them.
Trade Associations, Professional Societies, Lobbying Organizations
Trade associations, professional societies, lobbying organizations, and private think tanks are more likely to commission surveys about prospective use of new technologies, emerging services, or try to anticipate potential changes in usage and demand. These private sources of statistics are more likely to contain forecasts of future usage and demand.
Keep in mind that these groups tend to have strong underlying biases which may not be evident from the data they offer. These intermediate level organizations may not distribute statistical reports if their findings lead to a degraded image or profits of their underlying professional members or corporate supporters.
Biases
Judge each statistical report, author, and publisher on its own merit before jumping to any conclusions about the level of potential or inherent bias. Always consider why information is made available, and whether the authors/sponsors might have an interest in providing the info. Technically, no author or publisher is totally immune to bias. Most arms of the U.S. Government's agencies have traditionally been considered relatively low on biases, and rated relatively high in terms of accuracy & reliability of their statistical information.
Also, many statistics do not show the author's names or may listed them bottom of charts, graphs, tables, etc. Be careful to properly cite statistics and documents; do this is for your own protection.
The Web holds a wide variety of information and misinformation, ranging from popular press coverage and advertisements to scholarly communications and grey literature. Be careful when using information from web sites, because it changes often which makes it hard to cite in a paper. The print equivalent is often preferred to electronic sources when citing because the print version is more reliable (it won't disappear as easily).
Always evaluate a web site before using it for research purposes.
Some criteria for evaluating web sites include (click here for more info):
You can always ask a librarian or your professor for an opinion about a specific site.
