Stay ConnectedNeeds Assessment, 2nd ed.
Needs Assessment: A Systematic Approach to Data Collection provides guidance for collecting citizen input, primarily in recreation services.
This book offers key objectives in citizen data collection, and methods of collecting input. It also discusses focus group meetings, questionnaires, and data collection. Further, it offers information about data analysis and data utilization, as well as study management, outsourcing, and special applications.
In addition to experience in higher education, the author has worked with nearly 170 recreation agencies across the United States in his almost 25 years of doing recreation research and is the owner of the recreation research company Management Learning Laboratories.
For the recreation practitioner, this book shows the best practices of collecting citizen data. It also allows the recreation professional to recognize the unscientific attempts at citizen data collection and be wary of information generated by less reliable methods.
Chapter 1: Citizen Input as the Voice of the People
Chapter 2: Key Objectives in Citizen Data Collection
Chapter 3: Methods of Collecting Input
Chapter 4: Talking to the Community
Chapter 5: Asking Questions
Chapter 6: Collecting Data
Chapter 7: Where the Data Come From
Chapter 8: Analysis of Quantitative Data
Chapter 9: Analysis of Narrative Data
Chapter 10: Data Utilization
Chapter 11: Managing a Study
Chapter 12: Outsourcing
Chapter 13: Special Applications
Appendix A: Questionnaire – Adult
Appendix B: Questionnaire – Youth
Appendix C: Cover Letter
Appendix D: Maps
Appendix E: Outgoing Envelope
Appendix F: Reminder Postcard
Appendix G: Web-Based Questionnaire
Appendix H: Invitation E-Mail
Appendix I: Executive Summary
Appendix J: Action Plan
Appendix K: Presentation Slides
Appendix L: CompuRec