REDCap is a data collection tool used to create surveys and databases and is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly. This guide provides an overview of REDCap, a brief guide on how it works and how to request an account.
Content:
- What is REDCap?
- Getting started with REDCap
- Project Overview
- Online Designer Overview
- Instrument Overview
- Testing your Project
- Moving your Project to Production
What is REDCap?
Research, Electronic and Data Capture (REDCap) is a web-based application used as a data collection tool and provides ways to create fully customisable surveys, longitudinal surveys and databases. It is fully online and only requires an internet connection and an account to access it. Each project is comprised of instruments that capture the data from participants using surveys or forms, with each question (or field) being customisable to your research needs. The instruments are workflow-based and the data collected can be exported into a range of file types for further statistical analysis. Each project is secured on a UoA server and the project creator can add other REDCap users with customisable permissions depending on the needs of the project, all at no cost.
REDCap is also suitable for collecting personal/sensitive data, NHS or other healthcare-related studies, and collaboration with other UoA or external members.
REDCap can be accessed here and more instructions videos can be accessed here and here. More information from our Digital Research web page can be found here.
Getting started with REDCap
You will need to have an account to use REDCap. To do this, email [email protected] with the subject 'REDCap Account', and your full name and email address for us to set this up. If you're requesting multiple accounts for other users, please also include their names and email addresses as well. When this has been created, you will receive an email with your REDCap username and a password setup link.
Once your account has been created, you can then access REDCap using the link in the above section. You should see tabs to see all your projects, create a new project, FAQs and training videos.
To get started with a new project, click on the 'Create New Project' tab. You will then see the below screen where you can name your new project and define its purpose:
Here, you can also select to create the project from scratch, upload a project that already exists, or choose from the list of templates below. Once you're happy with your choices, click on 'Create project'. All new projects start in a 'Development' phase, where you will design your surveys and test the project.
Project Overview
Once you have created your project, you will then be taken to the 'Project Setup' page, where you can see and change general project settings, create new instruments, add users to your projects, and test your project. This page provides an outline of what you need to and should do with your project before putting it into production (letting it go live to collect real data):
Each section will contain guides on how to use it and what to expect, as well as the FAQs section
Online Designer Overview
From the 'Project setup' tab, clicking on 'Online Designer' will bring you to where you can create instruments which will be used to collect your data.
You will automatically have 1 instrument in place, but this will be blank and the name can be changed using the 'Choose action' drop-down to re-name your instrument. Here, I've renamed mine to 'Participant details'. The 'Choose action' dropdown also provides options to copy the instrument, delete the instrument (this will delete any data associated with it), or download it as a ZIP file.
You can create as many as you require and can create ones from scratch, import an instrument from the Instrument Library, or upload a ZIP file from somewhere else.
Instrument Overview
This is where your survey building starts. Here, instruments contain the questions (or fields) that your participants will be answering. Your project can be split up into sections, or instruments, that contain a particular set of questions. My example project has a section called 'Participant information' and 'Work', pictured in the previous section.
Clicking on 'Participant details' takes us to this instrument where you can see the questions I have created for this:
Here, there are a few different question types, such as a simple text box and a date box. Please note that the record ID field is automatically generated and assigns a record ID in a sequential order, which you can see in the Test Your Project section.
You can add a new field by selecting 'add field' where you want to create your new question. You can also click on the pencil icon to edit an already-existing question. I'll use the date variable question as an example:
The field type is the type of question you want to input. This includes Yes/No, True/False, open-ended text boxes, multiple choice, sliding scale, and more from here. There is also an option to make certain questions mandatory for the participant to answer, all you need to do is select 'yes' for the 'Required?' option. This question example is a small text box for the date the survey was started. REDCap also implements a feature that the question must be inputted in a certain format to help with data quality. This feature is called Validation and can be seen in the above example. Here, the date must be inputted in DD-MM-YYYY format, or the participant gets a warning message that the answer is in the incorrect format.
In the 'Work' section, I have an example of a multiple-matrix field question:
Here, the participant can select from a matrix of options for the question 'How much does your work value:'. These types of questions are created by first selecting the 'Add Matrix of Fields' option. This will bring up the below:
The matrix header text is where you'll put your question. The matrix rows will be the answers to the question that will appear down the side of the matrix table, and the matric columns are the options that will appear across the top. Matrix questions fall into 2 categories: Single answer (radio buttons) where the participant selects one option per row, or Multiple answers (checkboxes) where the participant can select multiple answers.
Testing your Project
It is highly recommended that you regularly test your project, especially after making any changes, to make sure that it runs smoothly and the flow makes sense. To do this, select the 'Records Status Dashboard' option on the menu on the left, under 'Data Collection'. Here you have the option to create a new record (each participant who fills out your survey is recorded as a record) and fill in your questions as a test participant. Below is the dashboard for my test project:
Here, I have 1 record so far that has completed the first section, but not started the second section. This is denoted by the buttons next to the record ID (green meaning completed, grey meaning incomplete and not started). Clicking on these buttons brings you to that record's answers to that particular instrument of questions.
You can create a new record by selecting the green 'Add new record' button and seeing your survey from the participant's side. You can also create a new record by selecting the 'Add/Edit Records' option in the side menu, and then selecting to create a new record. From this section, you can view an existing record from the drop-down list, and this will provide you with information about what sections this record has done:
There are also options for each record under the 'choose action for record' including downloading the data as a PDF, locking the record, renaming it, and deleting the record, but this will delete any data associated with that record.
Moving your Project to Production
Once you have created all your instruments for your project and you are ready to move it to production, you can do this by selecting the 'Move to PRODUCTION' option at the bottom of the project setup page. You will then be given the option to use the data already collected in your development phase, or delete any data associated with the development phase (including any calendar schedules set) and start fresh:
We also get a notification if you move your project to production and we double-check that you are happy with all your data being deleted. Once that has been finalised, your project can be moved over to start collecting your data.
If you require any more information or support in REDCap, please email us at [email protected]