DataWork Folder

Since the DataWork folder is setup to be used throughout the impact evaluation project, it is important to set it up correctly. Setting the folder up correctly can help increase efficiency of the data work being done and also reduces the sources of errors in data work.

Inside the DataWork folder

Example of a data folder structure used during the course of an impact evaluation project.

Inside the DataWork folder there should only be folders and files that help navigating those folders. Each folder should correspond to a data source (survey-rounds, admin data, monitor data) or be a folder containing meta-data sets such as the master data set.

The most important file that help navigating all sub-folders of the DataWork is the main master do-file. This do-file calls the master do-file of each data source and meta data folder and re-run all code needed to generate all data sets and output in the DataWork folder. Another example of file that helps with the navigation of the folder could be a Word document or a PDF describing how to navigate the sub-folders. It is important that the number of files here are kept to an absolute minimum.

Survey Round

Each round of the survey should have it's own sub-folder inside the data folder. For example - Inside the main data folder, you can have sub-folders like baseline, follow up 1, follow up 2, midline, endline, etc. Each of these folders should have the folders described below.

DataSets folder

The DataSets folder inside a Survey Round folder should be further divided into multiple types of data which are explained below:

Raw Folder

This folder should contain the data sets in exactly the same state as you got them. This includes data downloaded from the internet, data received from data collection, and data received from other projects. The data in this folder should be exactly as you got it and absolutely no changes should be made to it. Even simple changes like correcting obvious mistakes, changing variable names, changing format from csv to Stata or other formats, file name changes should not be done to the data in this folder. The only exception to this is if the file name needs to be changed to be imported, then the file name changes can be done in this folder.

If there are mistakes in your raw data sets that you know of, write a dofile that corrects that mistake and then save the corrected data in the intermediate folder. This is the only way corrections can be fully documented. If corrections to the data sets are not documented, then we will not fully understand the quality of our data, and that means that we will not fully understand the quality of our research.

Intermediate Folder

Raw datasets on which simple changes has been made as mentioned above should be put in the intermediate folder.

Final folder

The Final data folder contains clean, and final constructed datasets.

DoFiles

Each survey round folder will also contain a dofile folder.

• Have a master do file that runs all other dofiles needed for this project. This is also your map to the data folder.
  • Organize all other master files in sub folders.

Output Folder

The output folder should the raw and final tables output folders inside it.

Documentation

This folder will contain the documentation for the analysis done including any duplicate reports, survey logs, etc.

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This article is part of the topic Data Management

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