Performance-Based Evaluation: Tools and Techniques to Measure the Impact of Training

Chapter 11. How to Analyze Data Using Descriptive Statistics

The interviews with managers went well, but it wasn't clear how to analyze the data. The survey data was back; now the challenge was how to analyze it. The results from five focus groups were piled up. Making sense of it seemed very time-consuming.

This chapter is about the mechanics of analyzing the data you have obtained when (1) measuring what the current state is, (2) comparing what you learn to some standard or expectation, (3) deciding whether a gap exists that warrants action, and (4) measuring what changed as a result of some intervention. The chapter includes guidelines and tools about the statistical side of measurement; however, the information is designed to make you a smart ...