Proposal Description

Large scale population-representative social surveys fielded by official national statistical organizations provide a rich source of information on a variety of topics describing human interaction, health, economic and social well-being. They provide critical input for tracking progress toward country policy priorities and Sustainable Development Goal indicators. Conducting comparative research-- to measure change over time or compare differences across place--requires harmonized data. This session features insights and experiences from organizations that plan, collect, and disseminate global data from household surveys, primarily labor force surveys. Presenters and panelists will discuss initiatives to harmonize data from survey planning and questionnaire development to post-data-collection work reconciling codes and concepts. Experts from national statistical offices, the World Bank, and IPUMS will share their insights about how their organizations approach harmonization of survey information across time and place from national (Nigeria and Brazil), regional (West Africa), and global (IPUMS) perspectives.

This session will feature slightly shortened presentations by our speakers to ensure lively facilitated discussion around issues of data harmonization and time for questions. Presentations will cover Labor Force Survey harmonization across a range of experiences. Each presenter will address challenges and opportunities for making survey data comparable across time and place as it applies to their data environment.