PSP-IQ
From Architected.info
Contents |
Introduction
PSP-IQ is short for Product and Service Performance for Information Quality. It is an academic theory that tries to comprehensively define what information quality is comprised of, based on a compilcation of the existing research and experience of practitioners. It was first introduced in 2002 by Kahn, Strong, and Wang, part of the Total Data Quality Management program at MIT.
PSP-IQ tries to definitively identify the basic characteristics of information quality. While this may seem like a trivial task, this is something that has been going back and forth within the academic community for some time. As a practitioner, it is very difficult to implement a quality system without knowing what areas to cover. If we could identify the basic characteristics of information quality would be the basic checklist to know where to start.
Defining the Model
PSP/IQ tries to define information quality using the traditional measurements for quality, specifically:
- Excellence
- Value
- Conformance to Specifications
- Meeting Customer Expectations
However, not all of these can be used easily. In the case of data, the first two terms (excellence and value) are vague and difficult to quantify, but the last two can be used as a basis. At the same time, information can be described both as tangible (produceable, storeable, re-usable) like a product and conceptual ( consumable, perishable, involving customer interaction) like a service. In order to create a model, both characteristics need to be considered.
A more visual description of PSP/IQ might look like:
Refining the Model
PSP-IQ then defines the characteristics of information quality relative to these areas. This is more of a challenge than one might think, as there has been a huge amount of research and methodology created, all of which disagrees on exactly what information quality consists of. So, the authors synthesized a list of characteristics from existing research and practice and came up with a single, unified specification.
A more detailed version of this might look like:
In Practice
In practice, PSP-IQ does a good job of fully describing the characteristics of information quality and and is a good starting point for understanding the big picture. At the same time, there are several issues with PSP-IQ that practitioners will need to look out for:
- The model has a lot of moving parts, perhaps too many for a layman to understand. Bringing something like this up to someone not experienced with information quality will probably spur a long conversation or a blank stare.
- The characteristics are somewhat vague, many falling under the ilities. If you were to ask 3 people what one of these terms meant (in relation to their work) you would get 5 different definitions.
- Measuring any of these characteristics would be difficult without additional time, work, and understanding. This is not a turnkey solution.
Citations
This model has been cited fairly extensively and extended through several other papers. For more information, take a look at:
- Wikipedia page on data quality. PSP-IQ is mentioned in the first paragraph on this page.
- Google Scholar on PSP-IQ.
