Preparing and Linking Administrative Data: Promising Practices and Lessons Learned from the Child Maltreatment Incidence Data Linkages Project

This brief highlights promising practices for preparing and linking data and discusses lessons learned related to (1) processing and cleaning data, (2) completing linkages, and (3) collaborating with partners to execute linkages.

• The feasibility study identified the following promising practices, within and across the sites, for preparing and linking administrative data to inform understanding of the incidence of child maltreatment and related risk:
  • Use existing data cleaning and diagnostic protocols.
  • Consult with staff who have specialized expertise on the content of administrative data sets.
  • Have or develop technical familiarity with the data sources and specific data elements.
  • Tailor linkage approaches to the content of the specific data source.
  • Clearly communicate with the research team and third parties (if applicable) regarding the linkage approach to establish realistic expectations regarding how the linkage algorithms will operate.
  • Use machine-learning techniques and tools to efficiently link larger databases.

The study team conducted a qualitative, cross-site feasibility study involving coding, collecting, and analyzing data from multiple sources to gather information on sites’ experiences. The team interviewed key respondents from participating sites once in the early phase of each project (within four months of the start date) and a second time approximately one year later.  Respondents included principal investigators (PIs) and co-principal investigators (co-PIs) from each site; administrators, directors, or managers at partnering government agencies or other organizations that provided administrative data; information technology or data managers; and research staff. Additional sources of data included site documents, notes and materials from cross-site learning network meetings and other technical assistance activities, and quarterly questionnaires on sites’ use of resources.

Tara Strelevitz and Claire Smither Wulsin (2022). Preparing and Linking Administrative Data: Promising Practices and Lessons Learned from the Child Maltreatment Incidence Data Linkages Project. OPRE Report #2022-108, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.