Washington City Group on Disability Statistics

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LANGUAGE AND CULTURAL ISSUES IN SURVEYS OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION
H. Van Oyen, Scientific Institute of Public
Health, Brussels S. Van Buuren, TNO Prevention
and Health, Leiden J. van den Berg, Statistics
on Health and Safety, Eurostat J. Bonte,
Statistics on Health and Safety, Eurostat
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EUROPEAN UNION

• 15 member states
• 11-plus languages
• 15-plus cultures and traditions

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CONCEPT AND OPERATIONALISATION
EU - input Concept Reference standard
instruments
Member state - input Reference standard
instruments National Operational
standard instruments
EU / Member state - output Conversion
techniques
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LABOUR FORCE SURVEY (LFS)

• Harmonised EU wide survey
• Monitor labour force development
• Based on regulations compulsary for MS
• 2002 module disability
• Agreement on the content
• Standard list of items variables and codes
  (EU-regulation)
• Agreement on description of variables
• coding instructions
• standard questionnaire

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LFS content and structure of module
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LFS Specification of the 2002 ad hoc module on
employment of disabled people
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LFS Explanatory notes - description of variable

• The first variable introduces the topic of a
  health problem and it is this variable along with
  its impact which are used as the statistic for
  setting clear goals and targets for the
  employment of disabled people. Thus one can look
  at the distribution of disabled people according
  to their economic activity by age, sex and, where
  appropriate, type of employment.
•  

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LFS Explanatory notes - instructions

• Interviewing Longstanding
• Coverage of health problems
• Coding
• Single event, continuous health problem
• Recurrent or episodic conditions
• Terminal illness or outcome dependent on
  treatment

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LFS Reference questionnaire

• Introductory text to be read out by interviewer
• The following few questions are about your
  health in relation to work.
• What people can do at work is often dependent on
  their health. Some people may have physical
  health problems or disabilities such as heart
  problems, respiratory problems, or difficulties
  in walking others may have sight or hearing
  problems even wearing glasses or hearing aids,
  whereas others may have psychological or
  emotional problems. Health problems also include
  such illnesses as diabetes, dyslexia, epilepsy,
  problems with digestion as well as skin
  complaints.
• Variable 1, Column 220.
• Do you have any longstanding health problem or
  disability?
• Interviewer by longstanding we mean anything
  that has affected R over the past 6 months, or
  that is likely to affect R for at least 6 months.
  
• (If no end module)

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LFS NATIONAL OPERATIONAL STANDARD

• At national level the operational questionnaires
  needs some adapation in order to reflect the real
  concept and meaning of the agreed reference
  questionnaire

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RESPONSE CONVERSION

• Comparing data in several circumstances
• Items on same topic having different formulation
• New items replacing old one, causing trend gap
• Items with identical formulation but subject to
  cultural response biases

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STEPS IN RESPONSE CONVERSION
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WHY RESPONSE CONVERSION?

• Works on existing data
• Cost-effective
• Assumptions can be tested
• Well-established mathematical framework
• Indicators on interval scale
• Activities can be separated into routines

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CONCLUSION

• Developmental work both at the input and output
• Input content / items (conceptual description)
• reference instrument
• operational instrument
• Output statistical tools e.g. response
  conversion