Editor's note: Eric DeRosia is assistant phone center manager with Western Wats Center, Provo, Utah.

With the availability of powerful personal computers and simple to use software, many researchers who used to rely on outside companies for data processing are now considering hiring clerks for data entry and doing the number crunching themselves. If you are thinking about doing your own data processing, or if you simply want to avoid problems when others work on your projects, it may be helpful to listen to the advice of someone who has had years of experience solving marketing research data processing problems. According to Steve Woodall, coordinator of data services for Western Wats Center in Provo, Utah, many common data processing problems that can be avoided by taking a few preventative measures during the survey design process. At first glance these suggestions may seem simplistic, but their implementation will solve many real-life data processing problems. (Note: The following examples represent telephone surveys. However, the same principles apply to surveys conducted in malls, through the mail, or any other data collection technique.)Use numeric codes to denote options. When writing a questionnaire, many researchers designate respondent options with letters to be circled or empty boxed to be checked. Since almost all forms of statistical analysis require that the data be represented by numbers, this can cause accuracy problems during data entry. The mental gymnastics required for data entry clerks to convert letters or boxes to numbers can lead to many mistakes. The simplest solution to this problem is to denote each respondent option with a numeric code. (See example 1.)

Do you feel that things in the country are going in the right direction, or have things pretty seriously gotten off on the wrong track?

Right direction 1Wrong track 2

(DO NOT READ)DK/REF 3

Use a constant number...