Which tool is primarily used for data collection in quality management?

The check sheet is specifically designed for data collection in quality management. It serves as a simple and effective tool that allows teams to systematically gather and organize data in a structured manner. By using a check sheet, quality management practitioners can collect information in real-time during the performance of processes, making it easier to analyze trends, identify issues, and monitor performance over time.

The check sheet's straightforward format enables users to tally occurrences of specific events or issues, providing a quantifiable measure of performance that can be easily interpreted. This makes it an invaluable tool for quality control and improvement efforts, where accurate and easily digestible data is crucial.

In contrast, while the fishbone diagram is useful for identifying potential causes of a problem, it does not collect data. Similarly, the decision matrix helps prioritize options based on specific criteria, and the affinity diagram is used to organize ideas and data into groups, but neither is primarily designed for data collection. Thus, the check sheet clearly stands out as the tool focused on gathering and documenting relevant data in quality management.