Subject guides: Data & Statistics guide at the University of Manchester: Understanding data

What is data?

Data is information that can be analyzed and used to answer research questions or validate and evidence conclusions. It can come in many formats depending on the subject matter, how it's stored and where it came from. It is important to remember not all data is digital and may include physical items such as geological samples or medical specimens.

Other sources of data

Business Data Service
The Business Data Service sources and maintains an extensive range of specialist databases.
Digital Methods Initiative: List of tools
List of convenient tools, instructions and use cases for various digital methods. Examples include a Dorling (bubble) map generator and a webpage language detector.
methods@manchester
An initiative funded by the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Manchester. The website is an excellent resource for information on social statistics, providing descriptions of the key methods such as Survey & Statistical Methods and the relevant supporting resources.

Research data explained

This resource introduces you to what research data is, how it is defined, and how it differs from other types of information.

Turning data into statistics

Do you need to analyse a set of data and produce some statistics? You do not need to be an expert to produce a statistical report. These resources will give you a basic introduction to statistics and introduce you to producing reports in SPSS.