Measuring race and ethnicity for administrative data sets and then analyzing these data to understand racial/ethnic disparities present many logistical and theoretical challenges. In this chapter, we conduct a synthetic review of studies on how to effectively measure race/ethnicity for administrative data purposes and then utilize these measures…

Accurate census data is essential for a variety of government planning functions and plays an important methodological role in social science. This article responds to issues raised by Alice Sullivan concerning how the UK 2021 census will ask about sex and gender. The two-centuries-old question about male/female sex is not ideal, even with the new…

This paper is a very personal attempt to explore the problematics of portraying migrants in Applied Linguistics research. I begin with a discussion of identity, in particular what we might mean when we use the term, and from there I go on to explore its fundamental imprecision through an analysis of a census question about ethnicity. I then…

This is a report on the third effort to formulate an effective question for determining the ethnicity of respondents to Great Britain's 1981 census. Discussed herein is the response to the ethnic origins questions, different versions of which were incorporated into the main census pre-test and administered to 4250 households (including large…

This is a report on the first effort to formulate an effective question for determining the ethnicity of respondents to Great Britain's 1981 census. Procedures used to design and administer the trial questionnaire are outlined. Successes and problems in contacting and gaining the cooperation of various ethnic groups represented in the study sample…

This is a report on the second effort to formulate an effective question for determining the ethnicity of respondents to Great Britain's 1981 census. Problems encountered in the first pilot test and the two alternate survey forms tried in the second test are described. Included in the present version are additional questions on education,…

Conveys some ideas of the impact that the census undercount may have on the allocation of funds to states and cities by focusing on revenue sharing. (Author/AM)

This article discusses some of the methodological problems involved in determining indices for the level of education in the Soviet Union. (KM)

This document provides the testimony of Lois-ellin Datta, Associate Director of the United States General Accounting Office, before the House Subcommittee on Census and Population, on the evaluation of poverty indicators. Many of the concerns raised about the Census Bureau's experimental valuation methods can be systematically assessed, and the…

Examines how 1980 Census data can be used in: (1) estimating Hispanic Americans' health care needs; (2) identifying Hispanic subgroups with special health care problems; and (3) designing other local social surveys of Hispanics. Discusses problems in using census data for Hispanic health services research, and explores strategies for dealing with…

The Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) is an integrated set of surveys that has been conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in 1987-88, 1990-91, and 1993-94. In each of those school years, the Census Bureau also conducted a reinterview of the administrators, schools, and teachers. This report…

Data are presented from research on women's work in a Northern Nigerian city in which Muslim women are kept in seclusion. Focus is on errors in survey design, administration, and analysis, which occur when biased techniques are used to measure women's work and income-producing activities. (Author/SK)

Problems with the scope, validity, and accuracy of statistical data on Puerto Ricans have led to difficulties in research on that population. This situation has contributed to the restricted access of Puerto Ricans to government-sponsored programs and to public services, such as education, that are necessary for social equality. (Author/GC)

Criticizes Calvin Veltman's methodology in "The Future of the Spanish Language in the United States," in which he concludes that a majority of U.S.-born Spanish-dominant speakers are abandoning Spanish and becoming English speakers. Suggests that English language usage does not necessarily indicate English proficiency. Discusses…

In 1987 the U.S. Census Bureau created a universe of private elementary and secondary schools for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This universe has been updated every 2 years through list frame updating and area frame updating. For the list frame updating, lists of private schools are obtained from various associations around…