Introduction
Information of low quality is among the most pressing issues for consumers, especially one shared by autonomous sources. This is true for all varieties of individuals who enjoy internet services. They can range from casual to decision-makers in major organizations. Several characteristics indicate high quality in a piece of information, including completeness, accuracy, uniqueness, consistency, and timeliness (Tennant & Ross-Hellauer, 2020). High quality is required for the purpose of usefulness and accuracy. Information stored in a database is assumed to be precise, has no errors, and is accessed because it is seen as dependable. Problems arising when it comes to the design of the database are common, but it is recommended that one must not let anything in their control, such as the accuracy of data, be affected.
Database design that is reliable and accurate will assist in accomplishing the creation of new business ideas and the promotion of goals. The need for means to stop the production of low-quality work is evident, and several techniques are suggested to help improve the quality of data. However, many of the approaches do not have strategies on how to evaluate the quality scores. The evaluation is considered complex for various reasons, including information quality standards are usually of biased nature and, thus, cannot be assessed immediately. The sources often are self-directed as well as fail to publish valuable quality metadata. The extensive amount of data to be evaluated hinders the evaluation of the whole set of information. Therefore, the methods are usually required, which decreases the accuracy of the scores being assessed. This paper looks at peer-review, AIMQ, and [BMY99] techniques, their importance, and how to determine whether a piece of work has been evaluated by any of them.
Peer-review
Peer review refers to an assessment of a piece of work by one or more individuals with similar competencies as the work producers. The technique functions as self-regulation by capable members in the same profession within a relevant area (Tennant & Ross-Hellauer, 2020). This technique is utilized to improve performance, maintain quality standards, plus offer credibility. For instance, peer review is usually used to establish whether an academic paper is suitable for publication in academia. The technique can be grouped by the kind of activity and the area or profession in which it happens, such as medical peer review. It can also be utilized to teach and help scholars enhance their writing capabilities.
Importance of Peer-Review
Findings and discoveries, especially in science, have implications for people. Thus, this is the main reason why the findings have to go through a procedure of quality control called peer review before publishing. Peer review helps in checking for the validity of the findings and claims made on a piece of work that involves research in a particular field (Tennant & Ross-Hellauer, 2020). For instance, after the COVID-19 disease emerged in 2019, many authors tried to publish different kinds of information on the topic, such as the cause or the source of the coronavirus. Through peer review, most of their work failed to be published as they were discovered to put out information about the topic without much research.
How to Determine Whether Information Is Peer-Reviewed
When a piece of work is handed to a scientific journal, it initially goes through a preliminary check called desk review. The editor determines whether the manuscript deserves peer-review or immediate rejection. The following step is selecting specialists in the same profession who can impartially assess the work. Ideally, it is evaluated by more than one expert (Tennant & Ross-Hellauer, 2020). If a piece of work has been evaluated and approved by various people and indicated, then it is peer-reviewed. Work cannot be viewed as peer-reviewed if it has not undergone the above process. Thus, peer-reviewed works are those scrutinized by individuals in the same field of expertise.
It is essential that only people in the same field asses and scrutinize a piece of work as they are capable of determining whether the results and findings are authentic. Some individuals who desire success in their respective fields use the wrong ways to achieve that (Tennant & Ross-Hellauer, 2020). For instance, some will produce information that is similar to conspiracies without enough proof to validate their claims. Peer review blocks most of such works from being published and, thus, protects the integrity of the profession.
AIMQ
Importance of AIMQ
This assessment technique helps organizations to check for the status of the information quality and monitor improvements over time. Organizations value information as it is an essential part of their operations (Magdalena, 2018). Without high quality, then, an organization can fail to maintain competitiveness in the market. For instance, a company such as Walmart is in the retail business. If the information it gets about logistics, such as inbound and outbound logistics, is inaccurate, it could lead to losses as distribution costs may rise.
Additionally, AIMQ helps organizations maintain relevance in the industry. The technique helps to check for the timeliness, another aspect of high-quality information (Magdalena, 2018). Outdated information about market analysis in 2020 cannot be of assistance to any organization trying to determine the market in 2022. Organizations that use updates are the only ones that thrive because they apply methods to deal with issues that are current. Applying methods suitable for matters that occurred years ago can result in loss of funds and no positive results.
How to Determine Information is AIMQ-Reviewed
To conclude that a piece of work has been reviewed using the AIMQ assessment technique, one needs to check if it has undergone certain steps. For instance, AIMQ has three parts, the first part being the Product-Service-Performance approach which breaks down a determined collection of information quality categories into various classes. From this approach, a questionnaire is developed and makes up the second part according to (Magdalena, 2018). It consists of sixty-five assessment items, space for comments, and some demographic questions. The questionnaire is sent to various firms plus requires responses from every respondent within a firm.
The individuals are required to direct their responses on a particular information set, which is essential to the firm. The other part of this assessment technique includes two analysis methods, as suggested by (Magdalena, 2018). One method compares the reactions of various stakeholders’ responses to an information-producing system, while another compares questionnaire findings of an organization to that of a better organization. Therefore, if a piece of work has undergone the above procedures, then it is AIMQ-reviewed.
[BMY99]
Importance of [BMY99]
[BMY99] is a methodology applied to determine the quality of information within an organization. This technique is helpful since it helps to check for the accuracy and consistency of information in organizations. Accurate data allows companies to solve problems quickly without spending much, as suggested by (Koumarelas et al., 2020). A company investing in inefficient data resource since it is inaccurate is bound to lose money in the process. However, the one applying the right data resource to a problem will save a lot of funds that can be used to invest in other areas of the business. The correct data to be used in organizations is also expected to be consistent, which is something [BMY99] helps to establish.
How to Determine Information is [BMY99]-Reviewed
To determine that a piece of information has been reviewed using the [BMY99] assessment technique, one needs to check if it has undergone detailed steps. To measure quality, the first step is setting up an information quality standards list. The standards are grouped into directly and indirectly assessed groups. Scores for the second group are calculated from the first group. Conventional software metrics methods are utilized to assess the direct criteria. The methods determine data quality using the goal-question-metric approach, as suggested by (Koumarelas et al., 2020). For all directly evaluated criteria, a query is formed that typifies the group, plus then a metric is deduced to respond to the query, providing an accurate assessment of the quality. From the above-mentioned metrics, a user questionnaire, according to samples of the database, is set up.
Conclusion
Individuals in every sector prefer high quality information as it enables them to conduct their daily businesses as required. This kind of information is characterized by accuracy, consistency, completeness, timeliness as well as uniqueness. People view information input into databases as perfect, accurate, and dependable. The paper suggests that errors can occur when it comes to the design of databases. However, it cautions that this should not be the case with information’s accuracy and dependability. A database design that is precise and has no issues helps to accomplish the development of new ideas. It is essential that one understands the traits of high-quality information.
Incomplete information may be just as invaluable due to only representing a small portion of the picture. Completeness is as vital as accuracy when entering data into a database. An individual who desires to use a piece of information to find a cure to a disease may fail to do so if the information offered is not whole. Consistency is also essential during the input of data into databases. For example, suppose a piece of work is about possible cures for a particular health condition. In that case, it is vital that the author shows consistency by sticking to the ideas expressed in one section to another.
Uniqueness or originality is another essential aspect of high-quality information. Unique as well as distinctive information adds value to organizations and is thus preferred. Organizations view information as a vital component in their operations and, when utilized well, can create a competitive edge for an organization. Timeliness is also regarded as necessary as the latest piece of information has more value than an outdated piece of work. In the current times, especially now that the world is experiencing the advancement of technology at a high rate, old information can hinder an organization from accomplishing its goals.
References
Koumarelas, I., Jiang, L., & Naumann, F. (2020). Data preparation for duplicate detection. Journal of Data and Information Quality (JDIQ), 12(3), 1-24. Web.
Magdalena, R. (2018). AIMQ methodology for accounting information system technology assessment. Web.
Tennant, J. P., & Ross-Hellauer, T. (2020). The limitations to our understanding of peer review. Research Integrity and Peer Review, 5(1), 1-14. Web.