European Commission – Eurostat. First meeting of the Technical Cooperation Group for the Censuses in South East Europe

Enumeration of ethnic/religious/language groups:

a review of data collection

Donatella Zindato Istat, Central Directorate for General CensusesHead of Population and Housing Census Operational Planning Unit

Wien, Grand Hotel, 4-5 March 2010

Contents

Introduction Principles and recommendations

Ethnicity Language Religion

Ethnicity: national data collection practices in the 2000 round of Censuses Concepts and terminology Question format Multiple ethnic identities Operational issues: lessons learnt

Ad hoc enumeration/communication strategies = a tool for enumeration of minorities?

What’s the purpose

UNECE/CES Recommendations (par. 412) Data on ethno-cultural characteristics of the population are of increasingrelevance to countries of the UNECE region in the context of migration, integration and minority policies.

Countries with a culturally diverse population may wish to collect information on the ethnic identity (or composition) of the population, on mother tongue, the knowledge and practice of languages as well as on religious communities and denominations.

UN Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses, Revision 2 (par. 2.153, 2.160)The decision to collect and disseminate information on ethno-cultural characteristics of population in a census is dependent upon a number ofconsiderations and national circumstances national needs for such data suitability and sensitivity of asking such questions in a country’s

census

Political sensitivity (1)

(par. 415) Ethno-cultural characteristics have generally a subjective dimension, they can be politically sensitive and population groups are often small.

The free and open declaration of the respondents is therefore of essential importance.

Members of certain minority groups may be particularly vulnerable to discrimination on the grounds of ethnic group or religion. Special care, therefore, may be required in census procedures and outputs relating to ethnic group and religion in order to demonstrate to respondents that appropriate data protection and disclosure control measures are in place.

It is recommended that representatives of ethnic, language and religious groups be consulted in the drafting of census questions, the definition of classification procedures and the conduct of censuses among minority populations to assure transparency, the correct understanding of the questions and the full participation of the population.

Political sensitivity (2)

Need to avoid to expose vulnerable groups, but don’t forget the importance of being counted some people might not want to be counted (identified) some others might WANT to be counted (= recognised)

Need to adequately inform the responding public of the potential uses and need for data pertaining to ethno-cultural characteristics, in order to improve public support to census exercise.

Ethnicity: why and what

Multi-ethnic countries with long-established minorities and/or recently arrived immigrant populations may wish to collect information on the ethnic composition of the population or of certain subgroups of the population. The data are relevant for the understanding of the cultural diversity of the population, the position of ethnic groups in society as well as for the definition and monitoring of anti-discrimination policies (par. 420 )

Ethnicity is based on a shared understanding of the history and territorial origins (regional, national) of an ethnic group or community as well as on particular cultural characteristics: language and/or religion and/or specific customs and ways of life (par. 419 ).

Ethnicity: how

Affiliation with certain ethnic groups is distinct from affiliation with language and/or religious groups, although overlaps are frequent. The combined collection and analysis of data on several ethno-cultural characteristics is particularly informative for the understanding of cultural diversity. [par. 421 ]

Data on ethnicity should not be confounded with data on country of citizenship or country of birth. The use of the term nationality in place of ethnicity should be avoided (in many languages nationality is a synonym of citizenship). [par. 424 ]

Ethnicity has necessarily a subjective dimension and some ethnic groups are very small, therefore information on ethnicity should be based on the free self-declaration. [par. 425]

Ethnicity: data collection

Questionnaires should include an open question. Interviewers should refrain from suggesting answers to the

respondents. Respondents should be free to indicate more than one

ethnic affiliation or a combination of ethnic affiliations if they wish so.

Respondents should be allowed to indicate “none” or “not declared/prefer not to answer” when asked for their ethnicity.

Census instructions should specify how to determine the ethnicity of children from mixed couples.

Inclusion of ethnicity in the 2000 Censuses

65% (95 countries) of 147 countries (79% of the countries that conducted a census in the 2000 Round) included one or more questions on ‘ethnicity’ [UN, 2003]

Europe: 19 countries out of 36 included a question on ethnicity

Criteria for defining ethnicity may differ significantly from one country to another and from one point in time to another

Heterogeneity reflected in the terminology used in the 2000 Round of Censuses

Concepts and terminology

For classification purposes all questions were grouped into 6different categories according to the terminology used in the question: ethnic group (54%) ancestry or ethnic origin (7%) race (12%) nationality (22%) indigenous/aboriginal groups (12%) tribes and/or castes (4%)

NB Discrepancies between the questions and the underlying concepts: terminology apparently the same but answer categories referred to a variety of concepts such as race, nationality, indigenous groups or a combination of two or more of these groups.

What are we talking about?

What distinguishes the concepts of ethnicity, race and nationality according to academic research

Elision between the three concepts [Fenton, 2003]

Ethnicity = cultural commonality (shared beliefs, values and practices), symbolic [Gans, 1979], optional [Waters, 1990]

Racial identity = involuntary (imposed by others, regardless of individual behavioural choices), social construct (social invention that changes as political, economical and historical contexts change) [American Sociological Association, 2002]

Nationality = especially in Eastern Europe, something other than political citizenship, something more like ancestry or national origins [Kertzer and Arel, 2002b]

The subjectivity of identity

Respondents’ understanding or views about ethnicity, awareness of their family background, number of generations who have lived in the country, the length of time since immigration are all possible factors affecting the reporting of ethnicity in a census

ethnicity is multi-dimensional and is more a process than a static

concept

E.g. a change in the individual feeling of belonging to a group might result in an important change in the ethnic composition (in former-Yugoslavia, there were 1.2 millions of ‘Yugoslavians’ in 1981 and only 471 thousands in 1991).

Asking ethnicity question

Census questionnaires may differ noticeably in their recognition of ethnicity as a matter of subjective belief

More emphasis on the subjectivity

To what ethnic group do you think you belong?

To which of the following groups/communities/indigenous groups do you think you belong?

More objective view

What is your ethnic group?

Ethnic group (write-in)

Answering ethnicity question (1)

Response formats Close-ended responses

Close-ended with open-ended ‘Other’ option (allowing the respondent to write in a group name that is not included on the list presented)

Open-ended (write-in blanks) [it has been noted that, in countries where ethnic affiliation is registered in official records, this approach may not offer the respondent as much latitude as it could seem]

Yes/no questions (‘Is this persons Spanish/Hispanic/Latino?’ USA, 2000)

NB In some cases it is specified that answering to the question is not compulsory

Answering ethnicity question (2)

Response options

Several census questionnaires allow the respondent to identify with more than one ethnicity

by allowing to check off more than one category

by offering a generic mixed-ethnicity response option (e.g. ‘Mixed’)

by specifying exact combinations (e.g. ‘White and Black Caribbean’, ‘White and Black African’, etc.)

Answering ethnicity question (3)

Use of examples

Not very widespread (space constraints)

the list of checkbox response options serves as the principal illustration of the objective of the question

examples are more likely to be employed when a simple open-ended question is used

NB. Be aware of the possible ‘example’ effect [in 1993 the Canadian census included a ‘Canadian’ category as an example in the ancestry question, resulting in an increase of self-reported Canadians from 763,000 to 5,193,000 – Aspinall, 2001]

Answering ethnicity question (4)

Use of explanatory notes

Canada

Question on ancestral origins (‘While most people in Canada view themselves as Canadians, information on their ancestral origins has been collected since the 1901 Census to capture the changing composition of Canada’s diverse population. Therefore this question refers to the origin of the person’s ancestors.’)

Question on ethnic/colour group (‘This information is collected to support programs that promote equal opportunity for everyone to share in the social, cultural and economic life of Canada’).

Answering ethnicity question (5)

Comparison of a given census to those of its largest immigration source countries should be taken into consideration when evaluating the efficacy of a national census ethnicity items

Enumeration practices in the immigrants’ country of origin (as reflecting ethnicity perception) are likely to have shaped immigrants’ understanding of ethnicity

Philippines: ‘How does the person classify himself/herself? Is he/she an Ibaloi, Kankanaey, Mangyan, Manobo, Chinese, Ilocano or what?’

USA: ‘What is this person’s race? White, Black, Asian or American Indian’

Multiple ethnic identities (1)

Migratory movements and intermarriage add to the difficulty of measuring ethnicity

increase in multiple identities and in the likelihood of reporting them

in the 2000 round of censuses only 11 countries from the 95 that included a question on ethnicity allowed the option of selecting multiple ethnic identities in Europe, Hungary was the first country (2001 Census) to include the possibility of giving multiple answers on ethnicity (up to three ethnic nationalities), responding to the demands of several minority representatives [Hungarian Central Statistical Office, 2002] the Russian Federation is facing increasing demands to include in the 2012 census multiple ethnicities such as Russian Jews or Tatar Russians currently not reflected in census data

Multiple ethnic identities (2)

Methodological implications (1)

The level of detail and the typology of response categories differ a lot from country to country.

Even when the concept and terminology used is apparently the same, countries may recognize some groupings and categories that others may not.

⇨limited international comparability

Methodological implications (2)

The accuracy of responses (level of detail and consistency) may be affected by the structure of the question itself the selection of answer categories or examples

⇨ the selection of answer categories or examples has to be carefully planned in order to achieve an accurate reporting of ethnicity data when the examples included in a question, or the answer categories change, comparability of data from one census to another might be affected

In brief: how to measure ethnicity

Ethnicity can be measured using a variety of concepts, such as ethnic origin, ethnic identity, cultural origin, nationality, colour, minority status, tribe and so on.

Because of interpretative difficulties that may occur with measuring ethnicity in a census, it is important that the basic criteria used to measure the concept are clearly explained to respondents (and in the dissemination of the resulting data).

The method and the format of the question used to measure ethnicity can influence the choice that respondents make regarding their ethnic background/identification.

The subjective nature of the topic (and other factors such as the increasing percentage of intermarriages among various groups in some countries) requires that information on ethnicity be acquired through self-declaration

and also that respondents have the option of indicating multiple ethnic affiliations.

Ethnicity: data dissemination

Output classifications should be extensive and discussed with ethnic groups themselves. Classifications of ethnic groups at the finest level should be

comprehensive and include ethnic groups, self-perceived groups, regional and local groups as well as groups that are usually not considered to be ethnic groups (for example religious groups, groups based on nationality in the sense of citizenship etc.).

As for aggregated classifications, aggregations should be documented and fully transparent.

Results should be presented also for multiple ethnic affiliations and combinations of ethnic affiliations, as well as for the categories ‘no ethnicity’ and ‘not declared/prefer not to answer’.

Countries should document the basic criteria and classification procedures for ethnicity (including how the ethnicity of children from mixed couples is determined) and inform the data users about the scientific and socio-political concepts on which they are based.

Language: why and what

Multilingual countries and countries with significant immigrant populations may wish to collect data on languages that are currently written or spoken. Depending on information needs, the following data may be collected:

a) “Mother tongue”, defined as the first language spoken in early childhood at home;

b) Main language, defined as the language which the person commands best;

c) Language(s) most currently spoken at home and/or work;

d) Knowledge of language(s), defined as the ability to speak and/or write one or more designated languages.

Language: which question?

Data on a) [mother tongue] and b) [main language] are relevant to understand processes of language change and to determine language regions and language groups. Questions will generally refer to one language though multiple languages may be required for the mother tongue and main languages of minority groups.

Data on c) [language most currently spoken] and d) [ability to speak a designated language] are relevant to understand language practices and knowledge of languages, including official languages and languages learnt at school. Questions have to allow for multiple answers.

Which questions for which purposes? It depends on the national needs

It is recommended to ask two questions about language, one referring to topic a), b) or c) (mother tongue, main language, language most currently spoken) and another referring to topic d) (ability to speak a designated language).

Language: data collection

Definitions, according to the chosen concept, have to be spelled out for respondents (e.g. ‘What is the language you best command?’ or ‘What is the language you most currently speak at home?’ instead of just asking ‘Language’).

Questions referring to topics a) [mother tongue] and b) [main language] should include an open answer box (many language groups are small).

Language: data collection

Language: data collection

Language: data dissemination

Census documentation and reports should clearly explain chosen concepts and definitions and document the classification procedures for languages. The criterion for determining language for children not yet able to speak should be clearly indicated.

Classifications should be comprehensive and include on the finest level all language groups, regional dialects, sign languages and so on.

Religion: why and what

Countries that are traditionally multi-denominational or have significant immigrant populations with different religions may wish to collect data on religion.

Religion is generally regarded as a set of beliefs and practices, usually involving acknowledgment of a divine or higher being, power or principle, by which people order the conduct of their lives both practically and in a moral sense.

Depending on the specific circumstances and information needs, the following data on religion may be collected:

a) Formal membership of a church or a religious community;

b) Identification with a certain religion, religious community or denomination;

c) Religious belief;

d) Religion in which a person was brought up; or

e) Religious attendance.

Religion: which question?

Which questions for which purposes? It depends on the national needs

Usually questions in the census refer to the membership or identification with a certain religious community or denomination, while information on religious beliefs or religious practices is considered more appropriate to a sample survey rather than a census.

In any case, it has to be taken into account the sensitive nature of the question. Data should always be based on the free self-declaration. In some countries the question may be voluntary.

Religion: data collection Questions should always include an open answer box to allow small groups to identify. Respondents should always be allowed to indicate ‘none’ or ‘not declared’.

Religion: data collection and dissemination

Countries should choose among the different types of questions according to their information needs but operational definitions should be clearly specified in the census instructions and in the questionnaire.

Census documentation should clearly explain the chosen concepts and definitions. Criteria for determining the religion of children of mixed couples should be clearly indicated.

Concerning the dissemination of census results on religion, particular care should be taken, given the sensitivity the topic.

Classifications should be comprehensive and include on the finest level also subsets of religions and churches and groups that may not generally considered to be religions.

General recommendations

Strong subjective dimension and sensitivity of ethno-cultural topics.All possible measures to guarantee that the free self-declaration of the respondent is recorded and preserved during all enumeration phases (data collection, coding, processing, editing and dissemination). In brief, data should reflect the reality of the country and its population (the ‘reality’ is what is reported by respondents). respondents should be informed about their right not to reply interviewers should always ask the question without suggesting or influencing the answer assuming that they know it.Information on one topic cannot be derived from information on another one (for instance, religion cannot be derived on the basis of ethnicity).

Specific remarks

As for ethnicity the way the pre-coded categories are presented may substantially influence the results so, if pre-coded categories are being used, in addition to the open box and to the ‘none’ /‘not declared’ categories, then the most common ethnic groups should be presented. The practice of presenting only one pre-coded category (for the most common ethnic group) should be avoided respondents should be allowed to select more than one ethnic affiliation or a combination of ethnic affiliations. Coding procedures should be designed with the objective to preserve at maximum the information provided by the respondents, including multiple ethnic affiliations and combinations of ethnic affiliations. Particular care should be taken concerning the dissemination of census results.Guidelines should be provided on how to determine the ethnicity and religion of children of mixed couples.

Ad hoc enumeration/communication strategies

A tool for enumeration of minorities or for preventing undercoverage?

Main references Aspinall Peter J, Operationalising the collection of ethnicity data in studies of the sociology of health and illness, Sociology of health and illness, 2000, 23, 6, 829-862. Bisogno Enrico, Measuring Ethno-Cultural Characteristics in Population Censuses, UNECE, Regional Training Workshop on Population and Housing Censuses for South Eastern European Countries, Ohrid, 24-26 November 2008 Morning Ann, Ethnic classification in global perspective: a cross-national survey of the 2000 census round, 2005, http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/sconcerns Population Census Department from the Hungarian Central Statistical Office Population Census 2001: Ethnic affiliation, 2002. Tishkov Valery, Ethnicity and language in Russia’s 2002 Census, Paper presented in the International Symposium ‘Population Census – XXIst Century: Experience – Problems – Prospects’, Moscow, Russian Federation, 27-28 November 2001. UNSD (Demographic and Social Statistics Branch), Ethnicity: a review of data collection and dissemination, 2003, http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/sconcerns UNECE/CES Recommendations for the 2010 Censuses of Population and Housing, prepared in cooperation with the Statistical Office of the European Communities (Eurostat), 2009, New York and Geneva UN, Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses. Revision 2, 2007, United Nations, New York, ST/ESA/STAT/SER.M/67/Rev.2

Thanks for your attention

For any further information please contact:zindato@istat.it