Experimentation and Evaluation Plans for the 2010 Census


Book Description

For the past 50 years, the Census Bureau has conducted experiments and evaluations with every decennial census involving field data collection during which alternatives to current census processes are assessed for a subset of the population. An "evaluation" is usually a post hoc analysis of data collected as part of the decennial census processing to determine whether individual steps in the census operated as expected. The 2010 Program for Evaluations and Experiments, known as CPEX, has enormous potential to reduce costs and increase effectiveness of the 2020 census by reducing the initial list of potential research topics from 52 to 6. The panel identified three priority experiments for inclusion in the 2010 census to assist 2020 census planning: (1) an experiment on the use of the Internet for data collection; (2) an experiment on the use of administrative records for various census purposes; and (3) an experiment (or set of experiments) on features of the census questionnaire. They also came up with 11 recommendations to improve efficiency and quality of data collection including allowing use of the Internet for data submission and including one or more alternate questionnaire experiments to examine things such as the representation of race and ethnicity.




2010 Census


Book Description

An accurate decennial census relies on finding and counting people -- only once -- in the right place and collecting complete and correct information. The author reviewed the Dept. of Commerce¿s U.S. Census Bureau¿s plans to: (1) improve the census¿s accuracy -- or coverage -- with its coverage follow-up operation; (2) assess the accuracy of the census through its census coverage measurement program; and (3) evaluate these efforts after 2010. Includes recommendations. Charts and tables.




2010 Census


Book Description

The U.S. Census Bureau (Bureau) will spend at least $2 billion to enumerate households that did not return census forms during the 2010 Census. Increasing the response rate would reduce the number of households that Bureau field staff must visit. To address concerns about reducing the cost of enumerating these households, this report: (1) analyzed how the Bureau develops, supports, and updates the response rate estimate, and the extent to which the Bureau uses the estimate to inform its 2010 planning efforts; (2) described the methods the Bureau considered for increasing response and how it tested these methods; and (3) assessed how the Bureau selects for testing methods to increase response rate, including considering other surveys' methods. Ill.




Envisioning the 2020 Census


Book Description

Planning for the 2020 census is already beginning. This book from the National Research Council examines several aspects of census planning, including questionnaire design, address updating, non-response follow-up, coverage follow-up, de-duplication of housing units and residents, editing and imputation procedures, and several other census operations. This book recommends that the Census Bureau overhaul its approach to research and development. The report urges the Bureau to set cost and quality goals for the 2020 and future censuses, improving efficiency by taking advantage of new technologies.







History: 7 : Census geography and the geographic support system


Book Description

From Book's Preface: Contains summary population totals for the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island areas and for major race groups and an overview of political, statistical, and technological context in which the census took place. Describes preparations for the census, including lessons learned from the 1990 census, consultations with governmental and other data users, recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences and other advisory groups, and the plans for and results of census tests conducted between 1992 and 1998. Summarizes the history of each question on the short and long forms, the response categories, data uses, and any associated editing, allocation, and coding instructions. Reviews evaluations and recommendations from the 1990 program, the decision to use paid advertising in Census 2000, developing and implementing an integrated marketing strategy, components of the partnership program, and a series of special initiatives. Describes the organization and distribution of regional census centers and local census offices, the hiring and training of temporary field staff, the hardware and software used to track and assess census progress, and the different components of the enumeration process. Summarizes the decision to hire contractors to conduct data capture and manage the data capture centers, the hardware and software used to capture census data, the headquarters tabulation process, identification and deletion of duplicates, editing and imputation, intermediate data files, and the creation of the 100 percent and sample detail files. Covers such topics as data collection and tabulation geography, mapping, creating and updating the census address list, data products and their dissemination, the experimental and evaluation programs, legislation, litigation, the debate over sampling, and the census in Puerto Rico and the Island Areas.




History, 2000 Census of Population and Housing: Census geography and the geographic support system


Book Description

From Book's Preface: Contains summary population totals for the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island areas and for major race groups and an overview of political, statistical, and technological context in which the census took place. Describes preparations for the census, including lessons learned from the 1990 census, consultations with governmental and other data users, recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences and other advisory groups, and the plans for and results of census tests conducted between 1992 and 1998. Summarizes the history of each question on the short and long forms, the response categories, data uses, and any associated editing, allocation, and coding instructions. Reviews evaluations and recommendations from the 1990 program, the decision to use paid advertising in Census 2000, developing and implementing an integrated marketing strategy, components of the partnership program, and a series of special initiatives. Describes the organization and distribution of regional census centers and local census offices, the hiring and training of temporary field staff, the hardware and software used to track and assess census progress, and the different components of the enumeration process. Summarizes the decision to hire contractors to conduct data capture and manage the data capture centers, the hardware and software used to capture census data, the headquarters tabulation process, identification and deletion of duplicates, editing and imputation, intermediate data files, and the creation of the 100 percent and sample detail files. Covers such topics as data collection and tabulation geography, mapping, creating and updating the census address list, data products and their dissemination, the experimental and evaluation programs, legislation, litigation, the debate over sampling, and the census in Puerto Rico and the Island Areas.




Hard-to-Survey Populations


Book Description

Surveys are used extensively in psychology, sociology and business, as well as many other areas, but they are becoming increasingly difficult to conduct. Some segments of the population are hard to sample, some are hard to find, others are hard to persuade to participate in surveys, and still others are hard to interview. This book offers the first systematic look at the populations and settings that make surveys hard to conduct and at the methods researchers use to meet these challenges. It covers a wide range of populations (immigrants, persons with intellectual difficulties, and political extremists) and settings (war zones, homeless shelters) that offer special problems or present unusual challenges for surveys. The team of international contributors also addresses sampling strategies including methods such as respondent-driven sampling and examines data collection strategies including advertising and other methods for engaging otherwise difficult populations.




Differential Undercounts in the U.S. Census


Book Description

This open access book describes the differences in US census coverage, also referred to as “differential undercount”, by showing which groups have the highest net undercounts and which groups have the greatest undercount differentials, and discusses why such undercounts occur. In addition to focusing on measuring census coverage for several demographic characteristics, including age, gender, race, Hispanic origin status, and tenure, it also considers several of the main hard-to-count populations, such as immigrants, the homeless, the LBGT community, children in foster care, and the disabled. However, given the dearth of accurate undercount data for these groups, they are covered less comprehensively than those demographic groups for which there is reliable undercount data from the Census Bureau. This book is of interest to demographers, statisticians, survey methodologists, and all those interested in census coverage.




Principles and Practices for a Federal Statistical Agency


Book Description

Since 1992, the Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) has produced a book on principles and practices for a federal statistical agency, updating the document every 4 years to provide a current edition to newly appointed cabinet secretaries at the beginning of each presidential administration. This fourth edition presents and comments on four basic principles that statistical agencies must embody in order to carry out their mission fully: (1) They must produce objective data that are relevant to policy issues, (2) they must achieve and maintain credibility among data users, (3) they must achieve and maintain trust among data providers, and (4) they must achieve and maintain a strong position of independence from the appearance and reality of political control. The book also discusses 11 important practices that are means for statistical agencies to live up to the four principles. These practices include a commitment to quality and professional practice and an active program of methodological and substantive research. This fourth edition adds the principle that statistical agencies must operate from a strong position of independence and the practice that agencies must have ongoing internal and external evaluations of their programs.